Tag: Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America

One Comment

Abraham Lincoln Goes to Washington

  By

Abraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the Whig candidate in 1846 and, as per a gentlemen’s agreement with other Whigs, served one term as a U.S. Congressman from December 1847 to March 1849.

This was Lincoln’s first time in Washington, D.C., or in any large city other than his brief flatboat visits to New Orleans. At the time, Washington was a mix of formal government buildings and run-down boarding houses, and was a constant quagmire of mud and filth. The roughly 40,000 inhabitants were squeezed into a District area newly shrunken by the return of the Alexandria portion south of the Potomac River to the Commonwealth of Virginia. Slavery pens sat within eyesight of the Capitol building, which was still capped by a rotting wood and copper dome. Lincoln and his family lived at Mrs. Sprigg’s boarding house on 1st Street SE in a spot now covered by the Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress. Joining him were eight other members of Congress, all with abolitionist tendencies, so Lincoln likely had many interesting debates about slavery over the common dinner table.

Most of his congressional duties were mundane, such as answering letters from constituents and voting on appropriations, but Lincoln’s good humor and adeptness with a funny story ingratiated him with his fellow representatives. Not long after his arrival he wrote back to his law partner, William Herndon, that he was “anxious” to “distinguish” himself in this august body. Not content with merely making speeches on immaterial subjects, he chose to take on the President of the United States.

President James K. Polk had initiated a war with Mexico that would eventually result in the United States gaining territory encompassing present-day Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California. George Ashmun, a Whig member of the U.S. House of Representatives, offered an amendment to what had been expected as a perfunctory commendation to those who served in the war. The amendment proposed to add a coda to the resolution: “In a war unnecessarily and unconstitutionally begun by the President of the United States.” Lincoln voted in favor of the amendment, which passed 82 to 81.

Lincoln went a step further. Polk insisted Mexico had been the aggressor, but Whigs believed that was an invention to hide Polk’s desire to expand the United States (and, by extension, the area to which slavery could be instituted). Three days before Christmas, Lincoln introduced a series of eight interrogatories demanding President Polk identify the exact spot where Mexico had supposedly initiated the first bloodshed. Because Lincoln repeatedly asked the spot be identified, they became derisively known as the “spot resolutions.”

Not surprisingly, Polk completely ignored the impertinent demands of an unknown freshman representative from the western prairies. Lincoln pressed the point, and Polk continued to ignore him, as did virtually everyone in Congress. The spot resolutions faded away without any debate or action, but Lincoln had asserted himself as unafraid to challenge even the highest authorities. He showed the integrity and determination to change the status quo and make things right. Later the spot resolutions would come back to haunt him when Democrats ridiculed him as “spotty Lincoln,” which may have hurt his chances to get a land office patronage job.

Lincoln immersed himself in other issues during his one term in Congress, including his proposal for emancipation of the slaves in the District of Columbia (although it was never formally introduced or passed). After his first session he toured New England campaigning for Zachary Taylor as the Whig nominee for president, even though Taylor had been a hero of the Mexican War. He then took a roundabout route past Niagara Falls through the Great Lakes by steamship, and along the newly opened Illinois and Michigan Canal on his way back to Springfield. He was essentially removed from politics for several years while he focused on his family and his law practice.

[Adapted from my book, Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America]

David J. Kent is an avid science traveler and the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, in Barnes and Noble stores now. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

Check out my Goodreads author page. While you’re at it, “Like” my Facebook author page for more updates!

2 Comments

Reflections of a Science Traveler Five Years On

  By , ,

Glacier National ParkIn the last quarter of my most recent 2000 mile road trip we met a lovely couple at a Montana rest stop. Gene and Jacque were sitting in foldable chairs next to their large RV camper when we pulled in to stretch our legs. As we talked about life I realized that very day – September 12th – was the 5-year anniversary of my science traveling life.

Five years ago I resigned from my well-paid environmental consulting position in Washington, D.C. My new life as a science traveler, writer, and Abraham Lincoln historian has been jam-packed with excitement, interesting locations, and mind-stimulating enrichment. I said then, and reiterate now, that it was the best decision I ever made.

Back when I was contemplating making the jump, I couldn’t help but worry about where and how much I might travel, whether anyone would read what I was writing, and how I would make ends meet financially. After all, I was giving up a good salary, adventuring into new intellectual territory, and traveling to places I never expected to travel. In some ways it was a big risk. And yet, as I wrote in my first anniversary reflections, “the stars aligned, angels’ voices rang down from the heavens,” so the risk wasn’t all that risky. I remind myself of this as my bank account and royalty check balances dwindle. 

There are times I think I’m not taking big enough, or fast enough, advantage of this post-salary time of my life. I could travel more, but that would mean less writing (I still haven’t mastered the art of writing while traveling). I could write more, but that would mean more obligation and less fun as I take on freelance jobs more for the money than the topic interest. I could do more with the Lincoln Group, but that greater responsibility comes with lessened flexibility. Overall, I think I’ve found a good balance.

So what have I been doing these five years? As the name of this website suggests, I’ve been science traveling. What does science traveling mean, you ask? Simple. I try to find the science in everywhere I travel, with science defined in the broadest sense. I don’t spend time in laboratories pouring chemicals (although I have been known to do that). And I don’t spend a week sitting on the same beach contemplating the same sand particles and clouds (some call this relaxing, to me it is stressful not to be moving). Instead, and with a career background ranging from marine biology to aquatic toxicology to environmental science to regulatory science I’m bound to find myself exploring the environmental aspects of my target location. For example, I was just along the Oregon coast where I noticed the similarities – and differences – between the rocky stacks there and the 12 Apostles off the southern coast of Australia. While in Crater Lake I marveled at the geology of the inside of a volcano. While in Pisa my mind wandered to the physics of Galileo dropping unequal weights off the Leaning Tower (not to mention the physics of what keeps the tower leaning and not toppling). Usually I try to read up on locations before visiting them, but I also do research on the locations once I return. I include these scientific aspects in my travel writing.

But my definition of science is broader than that. As a Lincoln historian I include getting to understand the local cultures (e.g., Serbian vs Croatian, Aborigine vs Maori vs Native American). As a science communicator – yet another interest in my diverse repertoire – I look for ways to best communicate the science to the public. Glacier National Park, for example, will soon have to be labeled “Historical Glacier National Park” as most of its glaciers have disappeared or shrunken to minimal levels. In contrast, the Perito Moreno glacier in Argentina is one of only a few glaciers that is actually growing. Throw in a little Darwin and Patagonia becomes a much more interesting place than simply hundreds of kilometers of gravel roads. Mark Twain once said that “travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” I aim to prove that is true.

My travels have taken me to over 50 countries, so far. This past 12 months alone I have been to nine or ten countries and several areas of the United States. There was Australia, New Zealand, Denmark, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Russia, Finland, the Aland Islands, and Sweden on the international front, with Hong Kong, Philippines, Brunei, and Singapore coming up soon. Domestically, I’ve been to New England several times in the last year, including Maine, plus Sanibel Island in Florida and my most recent road trip through Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Montana. With three corners of the country covered I’m looking to make a road trip in the southwest U.S. soon.

This has been a busy year for my Abraham Lincoln side as well. In May, I finished up my term as Vice President of Programs of the Lincoln Group of DC, responsible for booking speakers for our monthly dinner meetings. I considered taking on ultimate leadership responsibility but opted to make a lateral move instead because of my travel and writing schedule. I’ve driven three increasingly intensive road trips as research for my book in progress. First a long weekend in Newport News for a “Battle of Hampton Roads” conference. Then a week-long drive through Lincoln’s early life in Tennessee/Kentucky/Indiana, with a stop in Michigan to see the rocking chair Lincoln was sitting in when assassinated. Finally, a 9-day Chasing Lincoln zigzag around Illinois to visit the seven Lincoln-Douglas debate sites, the I&M Canal, Rock Island, and two dozen or more Lincoln statues. I even got to see Lincoln and Douglas debate in person thanks to George Buss and Tim Connors. In the coming months I’ll make a few short day trips related to Lincoln, plus a few days in Chicago to check out more Lincoln sites (plus the famed Art Institute of Chicago).

The year wasn’t always great; there were some downer times too. My trips to New England were in part because my father has repeatedly made hospital and rehab stays as his body slowly gets weaker in his 92nd year. Then my Lincoln mentor and friend John Elliff passed away suddenly and unexpectedly. Other drags on life also creaked into existence during the year, but overall, it was a very good year.

My writing has been both a highlight and a lowlight this year. My first book on Tesla is into its 8th printing and several foreign translations. Edison is essentially sold out and has been translated as well. My Lincoln book released last summer is into a 2nd edition and is likely to get a 3rd plus translations. I’m also working on three books, two on Lincoln and one a travel memoir. The lowlights? I’ve spread myself a bit thin so none of the books is progressing as fast as I intended. I also planned to submit more freelance article work this year but haven’t put much effort into following through on it. I specifically dropped my reading goal from 100 books to 75 this year, intending to spend the freed time writing. I’m now 3 books behind even the lower goal and haven’t shifted the time into writing as much as I planned. Some of this is because of traveling, and with a heavy travel schedule continuing through at least next summer, I’m not sure whether I’ll improve my reading or writing pace much in the near future. Still, I am writing. I just need to write more and faster.

As I reflect on five years of post-salary life it strikes me that I get two kinds of reactions. One is envy, as people who want to quit/retire/travel/write think the grass is greener on my side of the fence. The other is inspiration, as they see promise of greater fulfillment even while they are working. It simply takes making the time to do what you want. After five years I can still say I have no regrets about my decision.

No regrets whatsoever.

See my previous “Reflections” for 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017. This will be the last of these annual “Reflections” pieces unless something marvelous happens to warrant a special one. Of course, if one of my books becomes a million seller I won’t need to write these updates as you’ll be seeing me all over television and the internet. 🙂

David J. Kent is an avid science traveler and the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, in Barnes and Noble stores now. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

Check out my Goodreads author page. While you’re at it, “Like” my Facebook author page for more updates!

No comments

Lincoln Book Reviewed in Civil War Times Magazine

  By ,

Lincoln: The Man Who Saved AmericaMy book, Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, has been reviewed in Civil War Times magazine. Civil War Times is the “go-to” magazine for Civil War enthusiasts, and with a circulation of over 100,000, it’s the Number 1 magazine in its category. They also have a wide-ranging online presence. I’m a long-time subscriber myself. Each issue has maybe four books reviewed, so getting a review is a big deal.

Which is why I was happy to see in the August 2018 issue a review of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America by one of the nation’s preeminent Lincoln scholars, Jonathan W. White, author of several books on Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War (several of which are on my shelf).

Jonathan White review of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved AmericaAdmittedly, the review is a little hard to find, as I discussed in this article. You can pick up a copy at newsstands or check it out at your local library, then go straight to Page 69.

As you can see, the review is quite positive. White notes that the book “succeeds admirably” in reaching out to a broader audience, which was the goal of the book. He highlights the graphics (“paintings, lithographs, newspaper prints, cartes de visite, tintypes, maps, documents, and mid-20th-century comics”) and says that the writing style “should engage readers.”

The book has enjoyed great success and the second printing is already in Barnes and Noble stores nationwide. My earlier books on Tesla and Edison have been translated into several foreign languages so I’m expecting the same shortly for Lincoln.

This isn’t the only honor Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America has received. Late last year it was nominated for the Abraham Lincoln Institute book award (losing out to famed Lincoln scholar Richard Carwardine), and recently was nominated for the 2018 Lincoln Group of New York’s Achievement Award. It was also the overwhelming choice as the first book to be reviewed on the Railsplitter Podcast program (three episodes) and recently was selected as resource material for the LEAD: Spirit of Lincoln Youth Leadership Academy program in Springfield, Illinois.

You could say I’m very happy with the reception the book has received from the general public and Lincoln scholars alike.

David J. Kent is the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, in Barnes and Noble stores now. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

Check out my Goodreads author page. While you’re at it, “Like” my Facebook author page for more updates!

 

No comments

The Forgotten Hodgenville, Kentucky – Abraham Lincoln’s Birthplace

  By

Hodgenville, Kentucky is where Lincoln was born, though the town seems forgotten by all by die-hard Lincolnophiles (call it a guilty pleasure). As I wrote in my book, Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America:

When Nancy was heavily pregnant with Abraham, Thomas moved to Sinking Spring Farm, a 300-acre tract near Hodgenville, Kentucky, named after a spring bubbling up from a sunken cave. He quickly erected a one-room log cabin, barely in time for Abraham’s birth on February 12, 1809. The Lincoln family likely believed this would be an ideal location to raise their growing family, as it had plenty of acreage and was only a few miles from Nancy’s aunt and uncle, Elizabeth and Thomas Sparrow.

Within two years, however, the Lincolns were on the move again. While initially idyllic, Sinking Spring turned out to be poor farmland and subject to a legal dispute over the title. After losing his land and his investment, Thomas sought to restart by purchasing 230 acres of land about ten miles away at Knob Creek Farm. Here Thomas was his most prosperous as a Kentucky farmer.

Both the Sinking Spring and Knob Creek farms are now part of the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park run by the National Park Service. Both are well-visited and I’ll talk more about them later. Today we focus on the town of Hodgenville itself, which virtually everyone passes through on the road between the two farm sites, but too few stop in. That’s a mistake.

Hodgenville, which was originally simply Hodgen’s Mill, is tiny. It’s 3000 or so residents are squeezed into an area less than 2 square miles. From a visitor’s point of view it consists of a traffic circle surrounded by buildings sporting the Lincoln name. One of those buildings is the Lincoln Museum and it is not to be missed. The main part of the museum is a series of life-size wax figure vignettes of Lincoln’s life. Here you’ll find him growing up in the log cabin, tending a general store, making his name as the railsplitter, courting Mary Todd, preparing bills as a congressman, debating Steven A. Douglas, having his photo taken by Matthew Brady with Tad, being sworn in at his second inaugural, and after a quick look at Grant and Lee at Appomattox, relaxing on that fateful night at Ford’s Theatre. Photos of the scenes are in the slide show below.

Upstairs in the museum you’ll find period clothing, furniture, accessories, and a wonderful art gallery. Back on the main floor is a gift shop filled with souvenirs and books.

After visiting the museum, look both ways (and down the side streets), then hop over to the center of the traffic circle. Here you’ll find not one but two statues of Abraham Lincoln. The first one you’ll notice is a traditional seated Lincoln in all his presidential grandeur. Sculpted by Adolph A. Weinman as part of the centennial celebrations of Lincoln’s life, it was dedicated on March 31, 1909.

Facing it on the opposite side of the circle is a much more recent addition. Dedicated on March 31, 2008, the small bronze shows a youthful Lincoln with his dog “Honey.” Created by the Daub-Firmin-Hendrickson Sculpture Group, it represents Lincoln as he would have appeared shortly before leaving Kentucky for Indiana.

If you missed them, check out my previous posts from my Chasing Abraham Lincoln tour. Much more to come so check back regularly.

David J. Kent is the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, in Barnes and Noble stores now. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

Check out my Goodreads author page. While you’re at it, “Like” my Facebook author page for more updates!

No comments

Abraham Lincoln Dies, Thomas Lincoln Gets Married – The Lincoln Homestead

  By

I finally managed (on my third try) to complete Part 1 of my Chasing Abraham Lincoln tour. Last week I wrote about my first stop at the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum, which is on the campus of Lincoln Memorial University. My next stop was the homestead where Abraham Lincoln died and Thomas Lincoln got married.

That may sound a little confusing at first. Consider how I started chapter one of my book, Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America:

Abraham Lincoln was killed by an Indian in the spring of 1786. This was the namesake grandfather of the future president. Thomas Lincoln, the president’s father, was nearly killed at the same time. Only 8 years old, young Thomas was being dragged away by his father’s murderer when Mordecai, his 15-year-old brother, killed the attacker with a shot from the family musket. Thus, Thomas was saved and the family line leading to Abraham Lincoln’s birth remained intact. Had Thomas died as a child, the future of the United States would have been substantially different, if the country existed at all.

The Lincoln Homestead is the farm where Abraham Lincoln (the grandfather) was killed. It’s also where Thomas Lincoln (Abe Lincoln’s father) courted Nancy Hanks, Lincoln’s mother.

The site itself was closed the day I arrived, which meant I couldn’t get inside the buildings. I could, however, walk around the grounds and take photos. The “Lincoln Cabin” is  a reconstruction, as is the “Lincoln Workshop.” These are set up as they would have been when Thomas Lincoln was growing up. The third building is an original structure. The two story Francis Berry House is where Nancy Hanks was working as a seamstress while being courted by Thomas. Thomas proposed in front of the big fireplace. I couldn’t get inside but did snap a few photos through the windows.

Mordecai Lincoln house

As I mention in the book excerpt above, Thomas’s older brother Mordecai had killed their father Abraham’s killer. Through the ancestral law of primogeniture, the entire estate passed to the eldest brother Mordecai when he gained adulthood, at which point he likely turned the 12-year-old Thomas out of the house to work for others. Mordecai then built the much larger house above about a mile down the road. He lived out the rest of his life in that house, farming the large tract of land that now encompasses the Lincoln Homestead State Park (and an 18-hole golf course).

And here is where the story gets weird. Mordecai gained even more pedigree by marrying Mary Mudd from one of the “first families” of Washington County, Kentucky. If that name sounds familiar it’s because she is a distant cousin to Samuel Mudd, the doctor who set John Wilkes Booth’s broken leg after he assassinated Abraham Lincoln.

From the Lincoln Homestead I headed for Knob Creek and the Lincoln Birthplace. More on those in following posts.

David J. Kent is the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, in Barnes and Noble stores now. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

Check out my Goodreads author page. While you’re at it, “Like” my Facebook author page for more updates!

No comments

My Interview and Abraham Lincoln on the Railsplitter Podcast

  By

Railsplitter podcast logoThe Railsplitter podcast is up with the third of three episodes reviewing my book, Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America. In this final installment, they chat for about 20 minutes about the last two chapters before welcoming me to talk about the book.

Listen to the first episode covering Chapters 1-4.

And second episode for Chapters 5-8.

And the final episode for Chapters 9 & 10, plus an interview with me.

I want to thank Jeremy, Mary, and Nick choosing my book as the very first book of their Railsplitter Book Club. Jeremy tells me that they put out a poll asking listeners which book out of thousands of Lincoln books they should choose to be their very first – and Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America was their overwhelming choice!

I had a great time being interviewed for the show and I hope everyone will enjoy it.

For those who missed my earlier presentation on Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America at the Lincoln Group of DC, you can watch the C-SPAN broadcast online.

David J Kent on C-SPAN

For those wondering how my Chasing Abraham Lincoln Part 1 went, well, it hasn’t yet. I was all set to go but then a family emergency redirected my long road trip. Instead of down to Tennessee and up through Kentucky, Indiana, and more, I drove up to New England. The Chasing Abraham Lincoln trip will likely (hopefully) happen in May, so stay turned.

I’ve also been having some issues with my home computers (both of them), which is why I haven’t been able to post about my recent trip down to Newport News for the Battle of Hampton Roads weekend. Working on solutions and I should be able to report on that next week.

In the meantime, enjoy the Railsplitter podcasts and the C-SPAN broadcast.

David J. Kent is an avid science traveler and the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, in Barnes and Noble stores now. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

Check out my Goodreads author page. While you’re at it, “Like” my Facebook author page for more updates!

[Daily Post]

No comments

How Robert E. Lee Tried to Disrupt the 1864 Election

  By

Lincoln at Fort StevensIn the summer of 1864 Lincoln was becoming increasingly desperate to finish the war. He authorized Grant to engage in destructive warfare, targeting and destroying plantations, railroads, bridges, crops, and anything that the Confederacy needed to sustain its troops. In the latter part of 1864, General Philip Sheridan burned fields and plantations in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, while Sherman did the same in his March to the Sea through Georgia. Union forces left no possibility that Confederate forces could resupply soldiers along the way.

Robert E Lee SurrenderMeanwhile, Lincoln was coming under fire, literally. Robert E. Lee sent Confederate General Jubal Early to race up the Shenandoah Valley, invade Maryland, disrupt Union rail-supply lines, and threaten Washington. Lee hoped this would force Grant to move troops away from him and Richmond in order to defend the capital. Success would also disrupt the November presidential election, and a Lincoln loss would change the trajectory of the war.

Lincoln was at the Soldier’s Home when news of fighting at nearby Fort Stevens reached him. Against the wishes of his aides, Lincoln rode out to the fort to witness the assault firsthand. The Confederate threat was repulsed, but not before the exposed Lincoln was pulled down from his viewing point after a soldier next to him was killed by incoming fire. Some reports suggest it was future Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes who shouted at Lincoln, “Get down, you damn fool, before you get shot!”

In early September, Lincoln finally caught a break. Admiral David Farragut won the Battle of Mobile Bay, a quixotic Union campaign to capture the last harbor controlled by Confederates in the Gulf of Mexico. The harbor was protected by three onshore forts, three traditional wooden gunboats, and an imposing ironclad commanded by Roger Jones, the same man who had so impressively commanded the CSS Virginia against the USS Monitor in a battle of ironclads two years earlier. Mines (then called torpedoes) blocked the harbor entrance. Farragut became famous by being lashed to the rigging of the main mast and, according to legend, yelling, “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead.”

Lincoln was so convinced he would lose reelection that on August 23, 1864, he wrote what has become known as the “blind memorandum:”

This morning, as for some days past, it seems exceedingly probable that this Administration will not be re-elected. Then it will be my duty to so co-operate with the President elect, as to save the Union between the election and the inauguration; as he will have secured his election on such ground that he cannot possibly save it afterward.

He folded the memorandum in half, asked each member of his perplexed cabinet to sign the back without reading it, then put it away for safekeeping.

Soon afterward, William T. Sherman finally drew Confederate General John Bell Hood away from Atlanta, which allowed the Union to capture the Georgia capital. As northern newspapers praised the mighty successes at both Atlanta and Mobile Bay, Lincoln’s reelection chances suddenly looked more promising.

Indeed, by the time November arrived the election was not even close. The National Union Party received 55 percent of the popular vote (with only northern states voting, of course) to 45 percent for the Democratic Party. But the electoral vote was even more decisive: 212 for Lincoln and 21 for McClellan. Lincoln won 22 of the 25 northern states and was reelected in a landslide.

[Adapted from Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America.]

David J. Kent is an avid science traveler and the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, in Barnes and Noble stores now. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

Check out my Goodreads author page. While you’re at it, “Like” my Facebook author page for more updates!

No comments

Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America on the Railsplitter Podcast (Part 2)

  By

Railsplitter podcast logoThe popular Railsplitter Podcast continues its on-air discussion of my book, Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America. The first four chapters were discussed on February 8th and the second four chapters on March 8th. They will discuss the rest of the book shortly, so be sure to check their website often for the final date. Also check out their catalog of great podcasts.

Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America was also the topic of my recent presentation at the Lincoln Group of DC. You can watch the C-SPAN broadcast online.

David J Kent on C-SPANIn other news, I just returned from a captivating Battle of Hampton Roads weekend in Newport News, Virginia. The Mariners’ Museum and Monitor Center were hopping with historical reenactors, a full size model of the CSS Hunley, and of course, a full size Monitor on who’s deck you can have coffee with the cook. I even got a behind the scenes tour of the Monitor conservation lab with no other than President Lincoln himself. More on that as soon as I can get my home computer working again.

Until then, check out the Railsplitter podcasts (Part 1 and Part 2) and the C-SPAN video.

David J. Kent is a science traveler and the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, in Barnes and Noble stores now. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

Check out my Goodreads author page. While you’re at it, “Like” my Facebook author page for more updates!

No comments

Lincoln Was a Typical Boy, and Atypical Man

  By

Abraham Lincoln has been revered as a typical rags-to-riches story – the young boy of meager means who rose to become our greatest president. In Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, I wrote:

Things were going so well that both Sarah and Abraham were allowed, at least briefly, to attend local schools. When not in school or laboring on the farm, Abraham was a typical boy who got into scrapes; corporal punishment from both father and mother was not uncommon. On one occasion he fell into Knob Creek and his playmate Austin Gollaher saved him from drowning. Rather than run home to be coddled in response to the trauma of his near-death escape, Abraham dried his clothes in the sun for fear his mother would give him “a good thrashing.” Later he was kicked in the head by a horse and “apparently killed for a time.”

Lincoln Graphic Story 2

Of course he wasn’t that typical. Unlike many of his companions at an early age, Lincoln always sought intellectual stimulation. His father would berate him, even beat him, for putting off work in the fields to stop and read whatever book he was able to borrow. Lincoln the young boy learned as much as he could, which positioned Lincoln the young man to become involved in local politics and Lincoln the adult man to become the nation’s leader.

He never gave up that love of life, even as he dealt with the conflict of Civil War. Much to other political leaders chagrin, Lincoln would read from a humorist’s writings – often the adventures of Petroleum V. Nasby – before sitting down to serious business with his cabinet. The guy who would hold up children so they could leave muddy footprints on the ceiling in New Salem was the same guy who dealt with the horrors of slavery and war.

Lincoln started off life as a typical frontier boy, and ended his life as a wholly unique man who shepherded us through our darkest hours.

More in Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America.

David J. Kent is the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, now available. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (both Fall River Press). He has also written two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

Check out my Goodreads author page. While you’re at it, “Like” my Facebook author page for more updates!

Follow me by subscribing by email on the home page. Share with your friends using the buttons below.

[Daily Post]

No comments

Happy Birthday Abraham Lincoln (and Charles Darwin)

  By ,

February 12th is always a good day because it blends my two careers – Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin were born on the same day in 1809. Both changed the world in remarkable ways. So Happy Birthday to Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin.

Lincoln Memorial Wreath Laying

It will be a busy week.  For the third year in a row I’ll be laying the wreath at the foot of the statue in the Lincoln Memorial for the Lincoln Group of DC, joined by Wendy Swanson. If you’re in Washington DC Monday at noon, stop by the Lincoln Memorial. Here is video from last year’s wreath laying.

On Tuesday night I’ll be attending a joint meeting of the Lincoln Group of DC and the Civil War Round Table of DC. Our speaker, which I’m happy to say I arranged, is Sidney Blumenthal, famous politico and author of two great books on Abraham Lincoln (with two more volumes in the works).

Saturday will take me to Ford’s Theatre for the monthly Lincoln Group of DC Book Discussion Group. We’ll finish up our current book (James McPherson’s Lincoln and the Second American Revolution) and choose the next book to read. This is a great time to join us so check out the web page link. From that group I’ll join others in an intensive meeting in which we’ll inventory Lincoln-related items we’ll auction off in April.

George Buss Abraham LincolnIt doesn’t stop there. Next week (February 22nd, 7 pm) I’ll be at the National Archives for the Lincoln-Douglas-Douglass Debates. In this very special presentation we’ll have Lincoln interpreter George Buss recreating his famous debates with Stephen A. Douglas (portrayed by Tim Connors). After a short break, Lincoln will return to have a discussion with Frederick Douglass (portrayed by Phil Darius Wallace) using a script written by world famous Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer. Harold will moderate the debates. This is a once in a lifetime event that cannot be missed. [And it’s free] Check out more info at the National Archives.

And that’s just the next two weeks following on recent events that included Part 1 of 3 as the featured book discussion on the Railsplitter podcast, a successful Ask Me Anything online Q&A, and C-SPAN coverage of my presentation on Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America.

It doesn’t stop there. I’m planning several Lincoln events for March, including joining the Board of the Abraham Lincoln Institute, attending the annual ALI Symposium, taking a trip to Newport News to view the ironclad Monitor, starting the new book in our monthly book discussion group, touring the Gettysburg Battlefield, and then the beginning of the first segment of my “Chasing Abraham Lincoln” road trip. Stay tuned.

Happy Birthday, Abraham Lincoln! And Happy Birthday, Charles Darwin!

David J. Kent is an avid science traveler and the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, now available. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (both Fall River Press). He has also written two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

Check out my Goodreads author page. While you’re at it, “Like” my Facebook author page for more updates!

Follow me by subscribing by email on the home page. Share with your friends using the buttons below.