Thomas Lincoln: Abraham's Father
By Daniel Cravens Taylor
Hundreds of books have been written (and are still being written) about Abraham Lincoln. But in the annals of Lincoln history, Thomas Lincoln, Abraham's father, is a largely neglected figure. He rates a few paragraphs in an otherwise large biography and has served as a quick backdrop to the birth and childhood of our sixteenth president.
Early Lincoln biography did not consider Thomas worthy of much mention. William Herndon set the pattern for how Thomas has been viewed historically. Thomas was seen as "roving and shiftless", lazy beyond repair. Thomas was said to be uneducated and against education. He was portrayed as mentally and physically slow, "careless, inert, and dull". He was the obstacle Abraham overcame to become great. That view of Thomas Lincoln is wrong. Thomas was not dull or inert or lazy. He lived in a different path from that chosen by his illustrious son but he was not an obstacle his son had to overcome.
Because of this view, many will consider this volume to be revisionist history. In a sense, it is. It will revise the standard view of Thomas based on the historical record available and place him as he was in the events and time in which he lived. However, it is not revisionist in the negative sense that wording often suggests. It is not built from twisting events or rewriting timeframes to make history into something it was not. Thomas Lincoln: Abraham's Father will correct the old and errant understanding of Thomas Lincoln and show him the man he truly was. It will not enlarge him into something he was not nor will it lower him to be what many have thought him. Lincoln history has a gap in not having the story of Thomas Lincoln readily available. Hopefully this volume will open the doors to taking a new and serious look at the father who raised and shaped Abraham Lincoln's early life.
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Paperback: 472 pages
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Publisher: Beacon Publishing Group
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Language: English
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ISBN-13: 978-1949472752
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Category: Non-Fiction | History | Biographical
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About Author
Daniel Cravens Taylor is a Project Manager by trade. That may seem an odd qualification for writing a biography of Thomas Lincoln but Dan has been a student of Abraham Lincoln for over 50 years. Delving into every aspect of Abraham Lincoln and working through large amounts of Lincoln information and trivia with the organizational and detail-oriented nature of a Project Manager is rewarding. He is thorough and looks at topics from all angles. In researching Thomas Lincoln over a period of years, he applied his tenacity to digging into the facts of Thomas’ life and now brings us Thomas Lincoln: Abraham’s Father, the first full biography of Thomas’ life. Lincoln buffs and history buffs will not want to miss putting this book on their shelves.
Dan has been an Indie author for many years with six other books to his credit, one of those being another Lincoln book. He was born and raised in the Midwest, living a quiet life, working fulltime, volunteering at his church and in his community. He looks forward to retirement when he can put his passion for writing at the top of his to do list.
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