From Wrestling Champ to Cat Lover—Unexpected Facts About Abraham Lincoln

My head has been swimming with strange Abraham Lincoln facts since I did a school report on him in 2nd grade. I still remember the first sentence of my Abe presentation for class,

"Abraham Lincoln was born February 12th, 1809, in a log cabin." 

My parents rehearsed the details of my school project with me over and over and over again. It was the first time I'd ever had to stand up in front of my peers and give a little speech. Fun and terrifying memories!

So, anyway, let's celebrate Honest Abe's birthday with some lesser-known facts!

1. Abraham Lincoln is surprisingly the only president to hold a patent. He invented a device to lift boats over various obstructions in the water. Interesting.

2. Only one of Abe and his wife Mary Todd's four sons lived to adulthood. They had 4 boys named Robert, Eddy, Willie, and Tad. Robert was the only one to make it through his entire childhood. There are also no direct descendants of Lincoln.

3. Abraham Lincoln is written about more than any other figure in American history. Over 18,000 books are devoted to Abe.

4. Lincoln was a huge animal lover and had tons of them. Dogs, cats, horses, and even goats were no strangers to Abe. It's also been said he had a special love for cats. (Men who love cats are TOTAL green flags. Just saying.)

5. Lincoln was the first president to wear a beard.

Did you catch any facts you were familiar with? Have more to share? Drop them in a comment below this article or email me at Chrissy.Covington@townsquaremedia.com, then go and celebrate Abraham Lincoln's birthday! Any excuse for cake is a good one...