November 13, 2007

Lincoln

I was just thinking...Abraham Lincoln was a cool guy, I wonder what his voice sounded like. Perhaps he has some descendants that could have inherited his larynx. According to the online Lincoln library:

Are there any direct descendants of Abraham Lincoln?

No. Robert Todd Lincoln, the only son to reach adulthood and marry, had three children: Mary, Abraham and Jessie. Mary's only child, Lincoln Isham, had no children. Abraham lived from 1873-1890 and had no children. Jessie had two children, Mary Beckwith and Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith, neither of which had any children.
I cannot sonically picture the voice described by Donald Phillips in Lincoln on Leadership, as compiled by Dr. Zebra:
Lincoln had a "penetrating and far-reaching" voice that could be heard over great distances. It was high-pitched and "tended to become even more shrill when he became excited. At times, it was even unpleasant. But his voice was a great asset because it could be heard at the farthest reaches of the crowds that gathered outdoors to hear him speak." "For example, everyone present heard the Gettysburg Address, and there were at least 15,000 people in attendance"

No comments: