Giant in the Shadows: The Life of Robert T. Lincoln

Born in a boardinghouse but passing his last days at ease on a lavish country estate, Robert Lincoln played many roles during his lifetime. Giant in the Shadows also reveals Robert T. Emerson also delves into the true reason Robert is not buried in the Lincoln tomb in Springfield but instead was interred at Arlington National Cemetery. Meticulously researched, full of never-before-seen photographs and new insight into historical events, Giant in the Shadows is the missing chapter of the Lincoln family story.

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This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Without cookies your experience may not be seamless. Fascinating to learn about the life of Robert Lincoln, the eldest son of Abraham and the only to survive into adulthood. I came across this book on a visit to Hildene - Robert Lincoln's estate in Vermont in late adulthood worth a visit! Its fascinating to view th Fascinating to learn about the life of Robert Lincoln, the eldest son of Abraham and the only to survive into adulthood.

Its fascinating to view the events of Abraham Lincoln's life election, dealing with Civil War, assassination, etc. The book was a great read - highly recommended for history fans! Jun 09, Rob rated it really liked it. A fascinating and in-depth life of Abraham Lincoln's only son to reach adulthood.

Shows how Robert Todd Lincoln emerged from his father's shadow to become his own man while protecting the legacy of the 16th president. Well worth the time. May 28, Phrodrick rated it liked it. Biographers tend to like the subjects of their biographies. In the case of Robert T Lincoln there is apparently much to like. In his youth he knew something of extreme poverty.

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He entered the adult world with a number of fine advantages and having survived a number of personal and public tragedies. For all of this, Giant in the Shadows: The Life of Robert T Lincoln by Jason Emerson succeeds only in so far as it minutely details the contention that this was a good man. As the only surviving son of Biographers tend to like the subjects of their biographies. As the only surviving son of America's first murdered president, Robert Lincoln will have experienced some of the worst of the Civil War by visiting hospitals with his then-President father and by serving for four months on Gen.

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Grant's staff as the Southern armies collapsed. He would have completed a Harvard education and would have the finest possible contacts in the business world.

He would also be shackled to an emotionally dependent mother who may have been insane. Robert Lincoln would have choices and he would choose to be a hard-working lawyer, and dedicated appointee to two national offices. By the end of his long life he would be a multimillionaire capitalist, and a careful superintendent of his father's reputation. It is not the subject of this biography that makes this a weak biography. Jason Emerson is a capable writer and his book is an easy read.

With thousands of footnotes it is well documented. What keeps me from rating this as a superior biography is its inconsistency and lack of depth. At one point we're told that the young Robert is very brave in making a speech for his than candidate father on the next page we are told he is very modest because he refuses to make other speeches. In one sentence we are told that Robert T Lincoln is pro-labor and the following pages documenting his active disinterest in the cause of labor.

Detailed is his refusal to consider that the mostly black Pullman porters were underpaid and ill-treated. We are asked to excuse his lack of concern for the treatment of his black customers because that was the typical opinion of his era. A giant of a man and the son of the Great Emancipator who fails to see beyond the typical opinions of his era is probably not that giant.

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Robert Lincoln's life would stretch from horse and buggy days with the telegraph in the railroad as new inventions; into a world of telephones, transatlantic, cables, Airplanes and Rolls-Royce automobiles. These advances simply appear in this book without comment or consideration. Robert Lincoln would be closely associated with the railroads, first as a railroad lawyer and later as president of the Pullman rail car company.

Yet there is no discussion of the scandals, the lawsuits and struggles as Western farmers attempted to survive against predatory railroad companies. Robert Lincoln would be a close friend with a number of the great names of this gilded era including Vanderbilt, of course Pullman. There is little or no discussion of antitrust law, labor law or any of the great issues that would arise or be addressed during his lifetime or in his service as a lawyer.

We're told that Robert Lincoln was a good friend of some presidents and some administrations and was greatly unhappy with others and we are never told why. In the end the reader has a page detailed recounting of Robert Lincoln's domestic life with continual reminders of how every one of his decisions was a good decision. As for the pages of footnotes one has to wonder if Jason Emerson is substituting research for lack of analysis or ideas. The life of Robert T Lincoln's an interesting life. This biography is a pleasant read. In terms of what is here the book is likable. What keeps it from being a better book is the absence of depth and critical analysis.

May 24, Caryn rated it really liked it. I originally checked this book out to research some specific items about Robert Lincoln and ended up reading the whole book, admittedly skimming through some parts. I was interested in his take on various subjects Lincoln biographers and historians have argued about over the years, as well as all the background on Lincoln's strife with unauthorized biographers spreading dirt on his parents obtained from questionable sources that have gained general acceptance. One of the main reasons I read the I originally checked this book out to research some specific items about Robert Lincoln and ended up reading the whole book, admittedly skimming through some parts.

One of the main reasons I read the book, though, was to learn about Lincoln's role in the Pullman strike and the little backroom deal he struck for his client after Pullman ran out of town to escape prosecution. That got glossed over, and as to his claim that Robert Lincoln played a limited role because he wasn't the labor relations lawyer, I don't buy it. He was Pullman's right hand man and closest advisor, who took over the company after Pullman died. There's no question in my mind that Lincoln was calling all the shots in the strike.

That opinion aside, I think the bio was well written and researched, a worthwhile reference with quite a bit of insight into its subject. Aug 21, Dennis Goshorn added it Shelves: It took me a long time to read this book, but it was a really good book. It took awhile partly because as I would read about events or things the piqued my interest and I would put the book aside for a time and read about those—such as, Presidents Grant, Hayes, Garfield, Arthur one of Robert's good friends , B. The section on the Pullman railway cars was also very interesting.

Even though this is primarily about Robert Todd Lincoln, it gives a It took me a long time to read this book, but it was a really good book. Even though this is primarily about Robert Todd Lincoln, it gives a fairly thorough treatment of Robert's entire family, especially Mary Todd Lincoln. He was urged many times to run for president, and given his surname and the long string of Republican presidents from , he would have probably been elected; it's fun to speculate on what might have happened, how our history would have been altered, if he had been elected president.

But, the real history is much more interesting! The connections to the Booth family are particularly interesting and would be scoffed at in a novel as being too far fetched, yet they're true! The author states "the truth is that had Robert Lincoln not been the son of Abraham Lincoln, his achievements today would be studied by schoolchildren along with other captains of industry such as Carnegie, Rockefeller, Morgan, and Pullman. He was a kind, dedicated family man. He was as honest as ole Abe and inherited his father's humor and loved to tell stories as much as his father.

He was known as a great conversationalist and could talk for hours with his close confidants. My estimate is that if he were elected president that he would have been a capable chief executive, but not an outstanding one. He was more of a William Howard Taft than a Teddy Roosevelt, with whom he had numerous disagreements. If he had lived, entered politics, he may well have been the second Lincoln in the White House—perhaps in when Jack would have been The country would have perhaps been spared the Harding administration and its scandals.

How that would have changed history we'll never know. Apr 28, Amy rated it really liked it Shelves: This book teases you a bit. Although it does have a lot of pages, more than of them are wrapped up in meticulous notes, a detailed bibliography and an index; actual reading only takes up a little over pages, and although a bit dry at times, overall, this was still a fascinating read.

A couple of interesting tidbits that I learned: Robert L This book teases you a bit. He was not in Ford's Theatre when his father was shot, but he was in the Petersen house when his father died; he was not with Garfield when he was shot, but he was only yards away, having just arrived at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Depot; he was not with McKinley when he was shot, but he was on his way to the Pan-American Exposition. Such coincidences are the stuff of legends From a librarian's perspective aka my perspective, this is fabulous! However, there was a caveat to the deal -- the papers had to stay sealed from public view until twenty-one 21 years after Robert Lincoln's death.

The speculative story behind this is very interesting! At the end of the book, after information about Lincoln's death, the author wraps up with information about Lincoln's wife, children and grandchildren and what happened to them.

BOOK REVIEW: 'Giant in the Shadows'

It is interesting to note that there are no more direct descendants of Abraham Lincoln -- this line has died. Oct 28, Gary Schantz rated it really liked it. I purposely chose to read this book after I had read The Patriarch. My reason being that The Patriarch was about the success story of a man who became the father of an assassinated president and Giant in the Shadows was about the success story of a man who was the son of an assassinated president.

One success story bore out a president and the other success story was borne out of a president. So much has been written about the similarities between Abraham Lincoln and John Kennedy but when you rea I purposely chose to read this book after I had read The Patriarch. So much has been written about the similarities between Abraham Lincoln and John Kennedy but when you read both of these books you will find how similar both Joseph Kennedy and Robert Lincoln were as well.

Both men despised Washington politics; both men were ambassadors to England; both men suffered the loss of numerous family members; both had to deal with a family member that had to be committed, etc. Quite strange are the coincidences. The most similar quality that both men had was that they were not very much like their respective presidential relative.

As for this book itself, I liked it a lot. At pages, I found that the chapters were achievable at chapters per reading. None of them were long-winded and the details seemed to be limited to what needed to written without over-analyzing the subject of a given chapter. I recommend this book to anyone that is an Abraham Lincoln fan or historian.

Jun 08, Ken rated it it was amazing Shelves: A really enjoyable biography about one of America's lesser known icons. Lincoln did everything he could to live his own life outside of the shadow of his father and was successful in his own right. I was disappointed in some of the other reviews that found the author too positive toward RTL.

Giant in the Shadows: The Life of Robert T. Lincoln - Jason Emerson - Google Books

Emerson gave ample research notes to validate his perspective. And I hope everyone is reading the notes along with the text. You A really enjoyable biography about one of America's lesser known icons. You won't understand the authors perspective if you don't read the notes.

Emerson covered everything that I have heard about Robert from the committing of his mother, the Lincoln tomb robbers, through his connection to 3 presidential assassinations. He dispels to the best of his abilities the myths that have been spun around all of these cases. What was more interesting was all of the things that I did not know, such as his term as secretary of war, his life in Chicago and the part he played in the aftermath of the Chicago fire. Being a local history buff of the greater Chicago area and Illinois in general, this book fits right into my collection.

It was also a nice back way entry to the personal life of his father Abraham Lincoln. Dec 24, Tracy rated it liked it Shelves: A pretty interesting book on the life of Abraham Lincoln's only son to make it to adulthood. It's ridiculously and unnecessarily long though and I had to to renew it two times from the library in an attempt to finish it. Still didn't end up finishing it but I hope to at some point.

The author manages to write in an stylistic and fluid way but I don't think he really got to the core of Bob Lincoln. I wanted to know more about his relationship with his brothers and parents and less about the col A pretty interesting book on the life of Abraham Lincoln's only son to make it to adulthood.

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I wanted to know more about his relationship with his brothers and parents and less about the colleges he went to or what his friends ended up becoming later in life. I know the thesis was an attempt to show Lincoln's historical importance beyond his father but there should have been more on the man himself. Furthermore, some of the notes on Mary Todd Lincoln see a bit off. All of this sounds like I didn't like it.

Giant in the Shadows: The Life of Robert T. Lincoln

I did - I just wanted a bit more. May 28, Nancy rated it really liked it. This book is much better written and researched than Emerson's book on Mary Lincoln. Through examining the life of Robert Lincoln, Emerson also gives a different picture of our country in the immediate aftermath of the Civil War. Robert was a tenacious guardian of his father's legacy, which at times, caused him much duress.

His children and grandchildren continued the protection of Pres. Lincoln's papers, but were less willing to participate in public celebrations honoring the president. Robert This book is much better written and researched than Emerson's book on Mary Lincoln. Robert was involved in politics, but he resisted the efforts to draft him for a presidential candidate.

I read this because I'm a Lincoln geek, but this is an interesting book for anyone who enjoys history. Aug 20, Herb rated it really liked it Shelves: This was a very well-researched and interestingly written biography of the sole surviving son of President Abraham Lincoln. There are many things to like about this book, but the book's editor must have been asleep while editing this. There are too many examples of missing connective words like "and, of, etc. This was a mistake used in this book, too. The past tense of "forbid This was a very well-researched and interestingly written biography of the sole surviving son of President Abraham Lincoln.

The past tense of "forbid" is "forbade", pronounced FOR-Bad , the final "e" is silent. This is enough to send me to the looney bin.