Robert Todd Lincoln (1843 - 1926)

Refresh this page to see various historical events that occurred during Robert's lifetime.

In 1843, in the year that Robert Todd Lincoln was born, on March 21st, the world didn't end! It was the first time that Baptist preacher William Miller predicted the Second Coming - he kept predicting it until his death in 1849.

In 1874, he was 31 years old when on November 4th, the Democratic Party regained control of the US House of Representatives - the first time since 1860. The Democrats now held 183 seats - up 94 - and the Republicans held 106 - down 93.

In 1896, he was 53 years old when in April, the first study on global warming due to CO2 - carbon dioxide - in the atmosphere was published by Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius. Arrhenius concluded that human activity due to the Industrial Revolution would amplify CO2 in the atmosphere, causing a greenhouse effect. His conclusions have been extensively tested in the ensuing 100+ years and are still seen to hold true.

In 1903, when he was 60 years old, the first World Series of American baseball was played between October 1st and 13th. The Boston Americans of the American League played the Pittsburgh Pirates of the National League. Boston came back from a three game to one deficit, winning the final four games to capture the title - such a large comeback wouldn't be repeated by a team until 1925. (A total of eight games were played.)

In 1926, in the year of Robert Todd Lincoln's passing, on October 31st, Harry Houdini died in Michigan. Houdini was the most famed magician of his time and perhaps of all time, especially for his acts involving escapes - from handcuffs, straitjackets, chains, ropes slung from skyscrapers, and more. He was president of the Society of American Magicians and stringently upheld professional ethics. He died of complications from a ruptured appendix. Although he had received a blow to the area a couple of days previously, the connection between the blow and his appendicitis is disputed.