Tag: Abraham Lincoln

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Abraham Lincoln and the Election of 1864

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th_LincolnAs the Civil War raged on, things weren’t looking so good for the reelection of Abraham Lincoln. In August 1864 Lincoln asked his entire cabinet to sign the back of what became the “blind memorandum,” essentially a promise to work with whomever wins the November elections to save the Union before the new president would be sworn into office.

 

And yet Lincoln was reelected, by a wide margin in fact. How did this happen?

Find out on the 150th anniversary of that election, on November 8th, 2014 at the E. Barrett Prettyman District Courthouse in Washington, DC. That’s when the Lincoln Group of DC is sponsoring a full day of expert historians examining The Election of 1864.

1864-banner

At the symposium you’ll find out why Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee tried so hard to disrupt the northern elections. You’ll find out how Lincoln prepared for what appeared to be a looming defeat. And you’ll find out what changed all that, from critical military victories to strategic political maneuvering. The result was the reelection of Abraham Lincoln and the saving of the Union.

Join distinguished Lincoln experts Michael Burlingame*, Thomas Horrocks, Elizabeth Varon, Jennifer Weber, and Jonathan W. White as they explore every facet of an election that is without a doubt one of the most important elections in our nation’s history. The very fact that it occurred at all during a Civil War is significant; even more so because a different result would likely have split our nation apart.

It’s not too late to register for the event. Click to go to the Lincoln Group website and join us for what is guaranteed to be a highlight of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. Also, Like our Facebook page to keep up to date on Lincoln Group events and information on our sixteenth president.

[*Note: Michael Burlingame has graciously agreed to stand in for our scheduled keynote speaker, Dr. Allen Guelzo, who has had to withdraw for personal reasons. Watch for Dr. Guelzo to join us next March at the Lincoln Inaugural reenactment and gala.]

David J. Kent is a lifelong Lincolnophile and is currently working on a book about Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. His most recent article, “Lincoln and the Rule of Three,” was published in the September 2014 issue of The Lincolnian. He is also the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and an ebook Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time.

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Abraham Lincoln and the Rule of Three

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Abraham Lincoln rose from a nearly non-existent formal education to become the 16th President of the United States. In a brief biography provided to friends endorsing his 1860 nomination he wrote “I could read, write, and cipher to the Rule of Three; but that was all.” That was the extent of his formal schooling.

Lincoln sum book rule of three

Page from Lincoln’ sum book. Photo courtesy Library of Congress.

Anyone with an interest in Lincoln – or frontier schooling in general – has likely heard those words, but very few people probably know what they mean. The reading and writing make sense, but “ciphering to the rule of three?”

It turns out the “rule of three” is a way of solving proportions, what we more commonly today call “ratios.” It is a form of cross-multiplication in which the problem is set up such that the unknown quantity is the last “extreme” in a series of numbers exhibiting a proportional relationship. The basic form is:

 

Rule of Three basic form2

The idea is to determine the value of x when you know the values of a, b, and c. The Rule of Three states that you simply rearrange this simple ratio formula into:

Rule of Three rearranged

Another way of looking at it is by laying out the three known terms in a linear sequence (a –> b –> c) and then multiplying the last term (c) by the middle term (b) and then dividing that product by the first term (a).

That’s it. Not very complicated on its face, but this simple rule could incorporate not only multiplication and division but also addition and subtraction. Lincoln likely used it to figure out proportions and costs for different supplies during the time he was a young storekeeper in New Salem. Of course, Lincoln went on to learn long division and other math functions as well, not to mention he mastered the six books of Euclid geometry. He also taught himself the law, political oratory, and the logical thinking that helped him define the slavery debate and, eventually, make him one of our greatest presidents.

Not bad for a guy with less than a year of formal schooling.

[The above is adapted from my book, Lincoln: The Fire of Genius and an article published in The Lincolnian, a publication of the Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia.]

 

Fire of Genius

Lincoln: The Fire of Genius: How Abraham Lincoln’s Commitment to Science and Technology Helped Modernize America is available at booksellers nationwide.

Limited signed copies are available via this website. The book also listed on Goodreads, the database where I keep track of my reading. Click on the “Want to Read” button to put it on your reading list. Please leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon if you like the book.

You also follow my author page on Facebook.

David J. Kent is President of the Lincoln Group of DC and the author of Lincoln: The Fire of Genius: How Abraham Lincoln’s Commitment to Science and Technology Helped Modernize America and Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America.

His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World and two specialty e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

 

 

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Book Review – Congressman Lincoln by Chris DeRose

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Congressman Lincoln by Chris DeRoseAuthor Chris DeRose takes a more detailed look at a period in Abraham Lincoln’s life that is normally glossed over in other biographies – his single term as a U.S. Congressman. The first few chapters highlight the political status of the time, as well as the political wrangling between different factions both within and external to the Whig party. The book goes into various aspects of the key question of the day, slavery. Doing so makes it clear that the post-Civil War reinvention of history to suggest the South wasn’t fighting to maintain and expand slavery is hogwash.

Despite dismissals by others that Lincoln’s term in congress was lacking, DeRose shows that many important decisions were made and that Lincoln was much more active than most freshman congressmen. Unlike first termers in general, Lincoln was willing to stand up for what he believed, even when it wasn’t particularly popular. Several actions related to slavery that would become important later, e.g., the end of the Mexican War and how California and New Mexico were brought in to the Union, were argued and somewhat decided. Critical friendships with players that would be allies or adversaries during his own presidency are also discussed.

Overall, this is much-needed survey of Lincoln’s time in Congress.

Further note: After I had written the above review I had the pleasure of meeting Chris DeRose in September 2014. Chris presented his new book “The Presidents’ War: Six American Presidents and the Civil War That Divided Them” to the Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia. He has recently become Chair of the Scholarly Advisory Group at President Lincoln’s Cottage in Washington, D.C.

David J. Kent is a lifelong Lincolnophile and is currently working on a book about Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. His most recent article, “Lincoln and the Rule of Three,” was published in the September 2014 issue of The Lincolnian. He is also the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and an ebook Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time.

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Book Review – Angels and Ages: A Short Book about Darwin, Lincoln, and Modern Life by Adam Gopnik

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Gopnik Angels and AgesThe title comes from the controversy (assuming you knew there was a controversy) over whether Edwin Stanton, upon Lincoln taking his last breath, said “Now he belongs to the ages” or “Now he belongs to the angels.” With this contrivance as a starting point Gopnik presents what amounts to six essays.

Gopnik does look at Lincoln and Darwin and their contributions, habits, beliefs, and psyches in ways different than do other writers. Whereas James Landers’ Lincoln and Darwin: Shared Visions of Race, Science and Religion (reviewed recently by me here) gets way into the weeds of comparison, Gopnik takes a more philosophical and less comparable approach. In doing so he reveals some interesting insights into how the two men thought, as well as their use of language (Lincoln the language of the law, Darwin of natural observation).

And yet, the language of the essays themselves tend toward the overtly literary. Often it seems the author is trying to impress the reader with his soliloquy rather than present an impression of the men he is profiling. The first and last chapters in particular seem more about Gopnik than Lincoln and Darwin. That said, the intervening four chapters, hopping between the two men, are worth wading through for the gems that may or may not be obvious to most readers.

I do recommend those interested in Lincoln and Darwin read the book, but for the bigger picture insights into their habits rather than the details that support them. For more comprehensive books comparing these two men born on the same day, check out the James Landers book mentioned above and a book by David R. Contosta called Rebel Giants: The Revolutionary Lives of Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin.

David J. Kent is a lifelong Lincolnophile and is currently working on a book about Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. He is also the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and an ebook Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time.

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Where to Find Abraham Lincoln in Washington DC

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Abraham Lincoln spent about six years in Washington, D.C. The first two were from 1847 to 1849 when he served his one term as a U.S. Congressman from Illinois. The last four – the last four years of his life – were as President of the United States during one of the most tumultuous times of our nation’s history. Many statues and other honors to our sixteenth president can be found in the city, and one of the oldest organizations dedicated to the celebration of his life is based here – the Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia.

LGDC banner

In these sesquicentennial years of the Civil War, the Lincoln Group of DC has been active staging a variety of events acknowledging key events in Lincoln’s presidency, as well as highlighting some of the wonderful authors and historians that write about it. Coming off our recent dinner lecture by author Chris DeRose and the beginning of this year’s Lincoln Group book discussion, the following few weeks and months are especially busy. Anyone interested in Abraham Lincoln and in the DC area can join us for the following (click on the links for more information):

October 4th: Motorcoach trip tracking Sheridan’s 1864 Shenandoah Valley Campaign and its impact on the crucial presidential election of 1864.

October 21st: Dinner lecture by John McKee Barr, historian and author of “Loathing Lincoln.” (Scroll down after clicking on link)

November 8th: Symposium – The Election of 1864. A full day featuring such notable Lincoln scholars as Allen Guelzo, Jonathan White, and many more. This is absolutely not to be missed!

December 16th: Dinner lecture by Gerard Magliocca – “Turning Lincoln’s Vision into Law: John Bingham and the Fourteenth Amendment.”

And that is just the beginning! In 2015 we’ll have more monthly dinner speakers, a spring symposium, and an amazing 2nd Inauguration Day trio of events featuring Bobby Horton and a reenactment on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. [And if you look close, you might just see a certain filmmaker of documentaries on the Civil War, Baseball, Jazz, National Parks, and the Roosevelts. But ssshhhh, you didn’t hear that yet.]If you have any interest in Abraham Lincoln or the Civil War, now is the time to get involved with the Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia. Check out our website, read our newsletters, join our book discussion group, ride along on our expert-guided bus tours, meet current Lincoln authors at our dinner meetings, and share your interests with some of the most knowledgeable Lincoln scholars and aficionados in the world.

David J. Kent is a lifelong Lincolnophile and is currently working on a book about Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. He is also the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and an ebook Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time.

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Abraham Lincoln, Ballooning, and the Technology of War – Redux

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Abraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln is the only president to ever get a patent, an ingenious, though impractical, method for lifting boats over shoals. This interest in technology served him well during the Civil War as battles increasingly relied on mechanization for transportation, communication, and weaponry.

I’ve hinted at some of these things in previous posts and will be enlarging on this as my new book develops. As I do that, here are some relevant posts you may have missed:

James L. GreenAbraham Lincoln’s Air Force – Balloons in the Civil War: A discussion with James L. Green, a Director of Planetary Science with NASA and a worldwide expert on Thaddeus Lowe and the use of gas-filled balloons during the early part of the war. Green is working on a new book on the topic and was gracious enough to host me for a lunch discussion.

Organized by the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee, this exhibition explores how cutting-edge Civil War technological innovations captured Lincoln's fascination and impacted the conduct of the war.Abraham Lincoln and the Technology of War: A recent exhibit held in the Ford’s Theatre Center for Education and Leadership displayed telegraphs, weapons, and other artifacts reflecting various forms of technology that helped the North win the war.

Lincoln and the Tools of War by Robert V. Bruce: My review of the definitive treatment on the technology of weaponry in the Civil War.

While you’re at it, check out these two reviews of books comparing Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin, two men born on the same day who each left a lasting legacy that changed the world.

Rebel Giants: The Revolutionary Lives of Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin, by David R. Contosta.

Lincoln and Darwin: Shared Visions of Race, Science and Religion, by James Lander

Check back soon for more about Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. BTW, did you know that Nikola Tesla and Abraham Lincoln have a World’s Fair connection? Find out more here.

David J. Kent is a lifelong Lincolnophile and is currently working on a book about Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. He is also the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and an ebook Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time.

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Reflections on My Anniversary (or, Why I Became a Science Traveler)

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The Traveling ScientistOne year ago today I left behind the first half of my life.  After more than 30 years as a working scientist I had decided to give up a comfortable salary for a life of (essentially) no income. I would become a poor starving writer.

It was the best decision I ever made.

I loved my previous life. Well, most of it. But the parts I didn’t like had grown in proportion to the parts that excited me. Using my skills, my knowledge, and my personal connections with colleagues and clients, I made a large amount of money – for others. Sure, my salary was nice enough, but increasingly the benefits of my labor went to others, and those others seemed decreasingly appreciative of that fact. Abraham Lincoln’s line from his Second Inaugural Address about  “wringing their bread from the sweat of other men’s faces” kept popping into mind. Not a perfect analogy, but close enough.

I learned a lot during all those years – about science, about business, about people. I also learned that science is often trumped by business concerns and people’s perceptions. I felt there was a growing need to communicate science to the public, and that scientists weren’t always very good at meeting that need. I decided to do something about that.

Coincident with this desire was some serendipity that led to publication of my first professional book, Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity. As the old saw grinds, “the stars aligned, angels’ voices rang down from the heavens” and all that not-so-scientifically-accurate metaphorical interlude. In real terms, stuff fell into place and it became clear this was the time to take the risk. So I did.

So where am I this one year later? I’ve traveled a bit, though not as much as I would have liked. One highlight of 2014 is an amazing trip to Argentina, with several smaller and more local trips throughout the year. I’ll squeeze in a few more jaunts before New Year’s and am busy planning for 2015 (Peru? China? Rushmore?). Science Traveling will play an increasingly important role in my future.

I’m also writing. Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity was back in Barnes and Noble stores mid-summer and was selling faster than it did last year (in fact, sales in the first 6 weeks already nearly matched all last year). To this I added a second book, an e-book exclusive to Amazon called Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time. More books are in the works, including my opus on Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science. Add in some manuscript editing, magazine articles, newsletter writing, and even some grant requests (plus my blogs, which I’ll reveal more about later), and yes, I’ve been keeping incredibly busy. All in an effort to bring science to the public – to make science fun again.

Finally, as I wind down my final year of the presidential cycle for the regional SETAC Chapter, I begin my first year in a leadership role with the Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia. As the director of outreach and education for LGDC I’m working with an engaged group of Lincoln scholars and aficionados to celebrate the life of Abraham Lincoln and ignite a new generation of interest. His “science geekiness” bridges my lifelong interest in Lincoln with my lifelong career in science. A perfect prelude to my forthcoming book. 🙂

I can confidently acknowledge that it’s a very happy anniversary indeed. The first of many.

David J. Kent has been a scientist for thirty-five years, is an avid science traveler, and an independent Abraham Lincoln historian. He is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (now in its 5th printing) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His book on Thomas Edison is due in Barnes and Noble stores in spring 2016.

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Nikola Tesla and Abraham Lincoln – The World’s Fair Connection

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Though Nikola Tesla was born only nine years before the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and half a world apart, there nevertheless are an uncanny number of connections between the two great men. One of them involves a World’s Fair (two, actually).

Nikola Tesla’s first big break in the war of the currents with Thomas Edison was at the World’s Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World’s Fair of 1893. Up to this time Edison dominated the growing electricity business with his direct current (DC) systems. But DC had some severe limitations and Tesla favored his own alternating current (AC) system. Edison brutally protected his DC turf with a campaign to discredit AC, even supporting the development of the first electric chair to show how dangerous AC could be.

But Tesla had teamed up with George Westinghouse and the combination of Tesla’s AC system and Westinghouse’s business acumen allowed them to win the bidding to light up the Chicago World’s Fair – the first attempt to electrify at this scale. It was a huge success.

Chicago World's Fair 1893

The World’s Fair grounds were designed by some of the greatest architects of the time, including Daniel Burnham and Frederick Law Olmstead. The canals, pools, and massive buildings – the White City – were tremendous, but the centerpiece was a 65-foot tall sculpture called the Statue of the Republic (nicknamed “Big Mary”). With its stone base it stood 111-feet high over the Grand Basin.

Lincoln Memorial

The connection to Abraham Lincoln? Well, “Big Mary” was designed by none other than Daniel Chester French. French, of course, went on to design the seated statue of Abraham Lincoln that dominates the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Interestingly, Daniel Burnham, the architect who supervised the design and building of the Chicago World’s Fair and who selected French to design “Big Mary,” was also on the Lincoln Commission tasked with designing a fitting memorial to our 16th President. Burnham strongly lobbied for another architect, Henry Bacon, to build the Lincoln Memorial. In fact, Bacon did design and build the Greek Doric temple that houses French’s famous statue and serves as one of the world’s most visited monuments.

Meanwhile, French’s original Statue of the Republic was destroyed by fire only two years after the fair ended. French was later commissioned to create a smaller version – only 24-feet high and gilded in bronze – for the 25th anniversary of the fair. Appropriately, it now stands on the site of the original World’s Fair Electricity Building, the place where Nikola Tesla first brought alternating current into the modern world.

Tesla exhibit 1893 World's Fair

Oh, there’s another World’s Fair connection between Nikola Tesla and Abraham Lincoln. I’ll talk about that in a later post. 🙂

David J. Kent is a lifelong Lincolnophile and is currently working on a book about Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. He is also the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and an ebook Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time.

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Mourning Robin Williams, With a Poem Written for Abraham Lincoln

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Robin WilliamsThe world woke up this morning to the news of the untimely death of actor, comedian, and humanitarian Robin Williams. Having been a fan of his since his first appearance as Mork on the sitcom Happy Days, before he spun the character off into his own show Mork and Mindy, his demise comes as a shock. The world mourns.

One of the ways many people are honoring his life’s work is by posting a clip of Williams from the movie Dead Poet’s Society. It features a passage from Walt Whitman’s extended metaphor poem, “O Captain! My Captain!”

It’s a poignant moment in the movie. It’s also a poem Whitman wrote about the death of Abraham Lincoln.

Walt Whitman lived in Washington during the Civil War and often watched President Lincoln ride by horseback, later by carriage, to and from his summer living quarters in the Soldier’s Home (now called the Lincoln Cottage). He admired Lincoln, and after the  assassination Whitman composed “O Captain! My Captain!” to mourn the loss of such a great man. According to the Wiki article:

The captain in the poem refers to Abraham Lincoln who is the captain of the ship, representing the United States of America. The first line establishes a happy mood as it addresses the captain. The phrase “our fearful trip is done” is talking about the end of the Civil War. The next line references the ship, America, and how it has “weathered every rack”, meaning America has braved the tough storm of the Civil War, and “the prize we sought”, the end of slavery, “is won”. The following line expresses a mood of jubilation of the Union winning the war as it says “the people all exulting”; however, the next line swiftly shifts the mood when it talks of the grimness of the ship, and the darker side of the war. Many lost their lives in the American Civil War, and although the prize that was sought was won, the hearts still ache amidst the exultation of the people. The repetition of heart in line five calls attention to the poet’s vast grief and heartache because the Captain has bled and lies still, cold, and dead (lines six through eight). This is no doubt referencing the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and Whitman’s sorrow for the death of his idol.

Such a sad, yet exalting, eulogy for the fallen President. And somehow, a fitting elegy for the tormented Robin Williams. Such a trial was his internal life; such a treasure was his gift to all of us.

As Williams’ character in Dead Poet Society puts it, the poem encourages us to think:

That you are here—that life exists, and identity;
That the powerful play goes on, and you will contribute a verse.

This begs the question: “What will your verse be?”

Robin Williams’ verse was cut short. For us the living, our verse is still to be written.

David J. Kent is a lifelong Lincolnophile and is currently working on a book about Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. He is also the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and an ebook Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time.

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Book Review – Lincoln & Darwin: Shared Visions of Race, Science, and Religion by James Lander

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Lincoln and DarwinAbraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin were born on the same day, February 12, 1809. Both became icons of change and are will be remembered throughout history for their contributions. The book is subtitled: Shared Visions of Race, Science and Religion. While their views were not so much shared as contrasted, author James Lander deftly flips back and forth between Darwin’s and Lincoln’s lives as they experience their separate travels, coming of age, development of ideas, and eventual breakthroughs into the public eye as they dramatically change history.

While the same age, the two men have very different lives. Lincoln is born poor in the frontier with few resources and little formal education, then takes charge just as the country is rendering itself apart. His travel is entirely domestic, flatboating down the Mississippi River as a young man, traveling the circuit in Illinois as a lawyer, and the northern part of the United States as a legislator and political speaker. Darwin was born into a wealthy family, married into an even wealthier family, received the highest educational opportunities, and after spending five years traveling the world on his famous studies, became sickly and largely reclusive the rest of his life.

Still, Landers points out that while Lincoln is remembered for his fight against slavery, he also had a significant interest in science. Likewise, while Darwin is known for his Origin of Species and contributions to science, he also was an adamant abolitionist and carried on fervid correspondence with American botanist Asa Gray, in which he debated the slavery issue in depth. In fact, Landers brings us into how the academic debate raging over the singularity of man’s creation (vs multiple creation of man) influenced the ongoing discussion of equality of white and black men. “Scientific racism” becomes a common theme as it was espoused both by Lincoln’s main foil, Stephen A. Douglas, and Darwin’s scientific nemesis, Louis Agassiz.

The 26 chapters unevenly look at Lincoln and Darwin as these three main issues – race, science, and religion – pervade each of their lives. Landers does a good job of balancing the discussions of these two men for each of the issues, comparing and contrasting where applicable. Overall, this scholarly work published by the Southern Illinois University Press is well done and deserves more attention than it seems to have received.

David J. Kent is a lifelong Lincolnophile and is currently working on a book about Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. He is also the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and a soon-to-be-released ebook on Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time.

Other Abraham Lincoln book reviews:

Lincoln’s Boys by Joshua Zeitz

Lincoln Unbound by Rich Lowry

Lincoln in New Orleans by Richard Campanella

Lincoln’s Other White House by Elizabeth Smith Brownstein