• About this Book
• About the Author
• Read an Excerpt
• Table of Contents

Written by Gerald J. Prokopowicz

• Format: Trade Paperback, 352 pages
• Publisher: Vintage
• On Sale: January 6, 2009
• Price: $14.95
• ISBN: 978-0-307-27929-3 (0-307-27929-4)

about this book

Over the course of nine years as scholar-in-residence at the Lincoln Museum, Gerald J. Prokopowicz answered thousands of questions about Abraham Lincoln. Reporters, researchers, students, and especially the 50,000 visitors who come to the museum every year all want to know about the nation's most famous president. Although there have been more books written about Lincoln than any other American, there has never been a single book that clearly answers the most important, most unusual, most provocative, and most frequently asked questions. Until now.

Did Lincoln Own Slaves? And Other Frequently Asked Questions About Abraham Lincoln draws on the questions that people actually ask. Some are personal: Did Lincoln keep an pets? Some are inspired by recent reinterpretations of Lincoln's actions: Was Lincoln a racist? Some are questions that previous generations of historians considered inappropriate: Was Lincoln gay? Whether drawn from today's headlines (Did Lincoln's presidential actions violate the Constitution?) or from today's tabloids (Did doctors really raise Lincoln from the dead?), the questions in Did Lincoln Own Slaves? illuminate what people really want to know about the past.

Prokopowicz has organized the questions along the time line of Lincoln's life to give us a portrait of the sixteenth president unlike any we have had before. His authoritative, often surprising responses illuminate facets of Lincoln's life, work, and legacy about which people remain endlessly curious.


“While Gerald Prokopowicz’s book may be another in the long line of Lincoln tomes, it is not just another. Far from it. In the expanding universe of Lincoln literature . . . this volume of questions and answers deserves placement well up the list, for initiate and faux expert alike. . . . This is history for regular folks, not just historians, but it doesn't talk down, condescend or offer up easy shortcuts or over-simplifications. . . . This book proceeds both thematically and chronologically, giving it, if not quite the immediacy and connection of biography, then beyond that a rich and entertaining multiplicity of perspectives between Lincoln and the dialectic of the public and the historian. . . . [T]hink of these question-and-answer series almost as Socratic dialogues.” —The Herald-Sun, Durham, N.C.

“Although this won’t be the last book written on Lincoln, it’ll certainly be one of the most entertaining for readers. The surprises found on almost every page should delight anyone even remotely interested in our national history.”—Larry Cox, King Features

“Did Lincoln Own Slaves? by Gerald J. Prokopowicz is one of the best Lincoln books I’ve read (cover to cover or otherwise), and that’s more than a few. Based on questions Prokopowicz has fielded or solicited over his years as a teacher, talk-show host and Lincoln Scholar, the book is broken down into chapters covering Lincoln’s boyhood, his early adult life and law practice, his years in Springfield, his development as a politician, his role as a speaker, his presidency, his performance as Commander-in-Chief, the Gettysburg Address, the Emancipation Proclamation, his physical appearance, his assassination, and his legacy. Throughout Prokopowicz provides light and readable and at the same time thorough and scholarly answers to the questions, with responses ranging from one word to several pages. He’s got a great sense of humor and the bits on Was Lincoln gay? and Speaking of JFK, what about the amazing coincidences between the Lincoln and Kennedy assassinations? will have you spitting Pepsi through your nose if you’re not careful. Buy this book: I get the impression Prokopowicz had as much fun writing it as I did reading it.”—Harry Smeltzer, Bull Runnings

“Prokopowicz doesn't write down to the reader of Did Lincoln Own Slaves?; it is as if the reader is in a seminar on Lincoln and the author is the discussion leader and instructor. Aristotle and Socrates would be pleased; Prokopowicz employs questions to bring the reader through the implications of the simplest question. What are the assumptions implied in the questions? How has this question been answered previously? What is the current scholarship on the question? . . . From first to last, the author is not a sage-on-a-stage but a guide-by-the-side. A clear writing style and a concise delivery of the facts presents the reader with an enjoyable experience. A foundation of facts with citations offers the reader a thoughtful and scholarly return on the time invested.” –Rea Andrew Webb, Civil War Librarian, Associate Professor, Eberly Library Waynesburg College, Waynesburg, PA

“Prokopowicz answers every question with balanced and intelligent—but not pedantic—responses, wonderfully conversational style and readability, and more than a little humor. . . . It’s fun. It’s well written. . . . A valuable catalog of Lincoln information, very accessible, that is a good read from beginning to end.” —America’s Civil War

“Gerald Prokopowicz has pulled off a stovepipe hat trick of a Lincoln book–by pleasing buffs and intriguing scholars all in one. His fresh and informative guidebook to navigate the land of Linconistas makes this a wonderful addition to any American history lover’s library. Did Lincoln Own Slaves? answers the perennial question, ‘is there anything new to say about Lincoln’ by convincing us ‘Yes’–and that we really do need this compact, yet compelling, appraisal. Prokopowicz leads readers on a merry chase through the thicket of Lincoln myth, lore, and scholarly feuds. This marvelous compendium suggests how the sixteenth president bewitches each new generation of Americans and why Lincoln mania will extend well beyond Lincoln’s 2009 Bicentennial.”—Catherine Clinton, Queen’s University-Belfast, author of The Plantation Mistress

“Full of surprises, and splendidly imaginative in concept and format, Gerald Prokopowicz’s Did Lincoln Own Slaves? is also learned, entertaining, fair-minded, witty, up-to-date, readable, and truly informative. A bargain of a book, it must surely capture the wide audience it deserves.”—Richard Carwardine, author of Lincoln: A Life of Purpose and Power

“Of the thousands of book about Lincoln (you can get the exact number, and many other facts from this book) very few bring to the reader as much of the information the reader really wants, about the 16th president, and none is more pleasantly amusing. The device of answering the questions the public keeps asking really works. If you have any interest in Lincoln, and start reading this book, you will have a hard time stopping.”—William Lee Miller, author of Lincoln's Virtues: An Ethical Biography; and President Lincoln: The Duty of a Statesman

“Did Lincoln Own Slaves? is a wonderful book, as witty as it is wise. Addressing every question that conceivably can be raised about Abraham Lincoln, Gerald Prokopowicz provides answers that are short, accurate, and in many instances highly amusing. Every Lincoln student must own this book.” —David Herbert Donald, author of Lincoln

"From his birth to his death (not to mention the century and a half since), here is everything one ever wanted to know about Abraham Lincoln—told authoritatively and entertainingly by a fine scholar and gifted writer. Facts are reported, myths punctured, and controversies analyzed in a text that proves both an essential reference and a page-turning good read." —Harold Holzer, cochairman, U. S. Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission

“Did Lincoln Own Slaves?, beautifully written by a lawyer-turned-historian, is exactly what is needed during the Lincoln bicentennial year. Not surprisingly, Prokopowicz is judicious with the questions he poses and entertaining in his answers. He has sifted through the dustbin of history and biographies to accurately depict the facts about Abraham Lincoln in a format that is as enlightening as it is easy to read and understand. Anyone with the slightest interest in our greatest American should own this book. ” —Hon. Frank J. Williams, founding Chair of The Lincoln Forum and chief justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court

“Witty, intelligent and informative, Did Lincoln Own Slaves? is just what the world needs as we begin our celebration of the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth. This is a book that every level of Lincoln student—from grade school to scholar—will find useful. Prokopowicz has provided accurate answers to the essential questions about our sixteenth president; no more digging around in the Lincoln library is required.” —Jean H. Baker, author of Mary Todd Lincoln