Lincoln Lore – Robert Todd Lincoln (2024)

FAQs

What happened to Lincoln's son Robert? ›

Robert Todd Lincoln died in his sleep at Hildene, his Vermont home, on July 26, 1926, at age 82. The cause of death was given by his physician as a "cerebral hemorrhage induced by arteriosclerosis".

(1843-1926)

Robert was the only one of the Lincoln sons who lived into adulthood, and he distinguished himself in many ways. He graduated from Harvard College in 1864. After four months at Harvard Law School , he was commissioned a captain on the staff of General Ulysses S.

His body remained in a receiving vault at a nearby cemetery until his wife arranged his burial in Arlington's Section 31 on March 14, 1928. She had their son's body moved from the Lincoln tomb in Springfield to Arlington, where it was re-buried on May 27, 1930.

Born in Riverside, Illinois — about three hours from where Abraham Lincoln had lived with his family in Springfield — Beckwith spent most of his life out of the spotlight. The Associated Press reports that he studied law at Georgetown University and married three times, but had no children.

Abraham Lincoln was famously a “man of sorrows.” Few things did more to intensify his sorrow than the death of his favorite son, eleven-year-old Willie, in February 1862.

Robert Todd Lincoln, or “Bob” and “Prince of Rails” (a nickname developed on the President-elect's trip to Washington and one which Robert detested), was named after Mary Todd's father and was the oldest of the Lincoln children.

Abraham and Mary Lincoln had four sons together – Robert, Edward, William, and Thomas. Robert was born in 1843; just nine months after Abe and Mary were married.

Sadly, Robert Lincoln was very familiar with death. However, it was not the deaths of his brothers or his mother for which he is most famous or for which he believed himself to be cursed. Rather, it was his close connection to three presidential assassinations in just 36 years.

United States Presidents and Their Families

Only two U.S. presidents, William Howard Taft and John F. Kennedy, are buried at Arlington National Cemetery. (Most presidents have chosen to be buried in their home states.)

Are there any living descendents of Abraham Lincoln? ›

There were ten known descendants of Abraham Lincoln. The president's branch of the family is believed to have been extinct since its last undisputed, legal and known descendant, Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith, died on December 24, 1985, without any acknowledged children.

Robert had a great appreciation for his father's talents and character even if he had sensibilities more akin to his mother. One telling insight into Robert's consideration of his father took place during his first year at Harvard.

Later life. After the assassination, Mary, Robert, and Tad Lincoln lived together in Chicago. Robert moved out after a short time, and Tad began attending school. In 1868, they left Chicago and lived in Europe for almost three years, in Germany and later in England.

Booth had been part of a conspiracy to kidnap Lincoln, Koerber said, but even when there was no hope for the Confederacy, Booth “was so against the idea of equality, he so embraced white supremacy, that he thought it was grounds for killing Lincoln.”

On Thursday, February 20, 1862, Abraham and Mary Lincoln were reeling from the death of their second-oldest surviving son, Willie. He had died from what was likely typhoid fever.

After President Lincoln's assassination in April 1865, Willie's coffin was removed and placed on the funeral train. Both father and son are permanently buried at Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, Illinois. Willie's death left deep marks on the Lincoln family.