Famous Americans

On June 16, 1858, Abraham Lincoln delivered his famous House Divided Speech in Springfield, Illinois. The speech helped propel Lincoln onto the national stage, setting him on course to become one of America’s greatest presidents.

Winfield Scott was born on June 13, 1786, in Dinwiddie County, Virginia. Nicknamed “Old Fuss and Feathers” and the “Grand Old Man of the Army,” he was one of America’s longest-serving military commanders.

Vincent Thomas Lombardi was born on June 11, 1913, in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. One of the most successful coaches in NFL history, the Super Bowl trophy is named in his honor.

Robert Robinson Taylor was born on June 8, 1868, in Wilmington, North Carolina.  He was the first African American student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the first fully accredited African American architect in the US.

Conductor George Szell was born György Endre Szél on June 7, 1897, in Budapest, Hungary.  Szell conducted the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra and is credited with transforming it into one of the world’s greatest orchestras.

Artist John Trumbull was born on June 6, 1756, in Lebanon, Connecticut. A prolific artist, he painted many of America’s founding fathers as well as notable events and battles from the Revolutionary War.

Anthropologist Ruth Fulton Benedict was born on June 5, 1887, in New York City, New York. Benedict developed her own theories on culture and conducted special research for the US government during World War II.

America’s first First Lady was born Martha Dandridge on June 2, 1731 (by the Old Style calendar), on her parents’ Chestnut Grove Plantation near Williamsburg, Virginia. After leading several initiatives to involve women in the Revolutionary War, Martha established many of the responsibilities and traditions of the office of first lady.

Jim Thorpe said he was born on May 28, 1888, in Indian Territory. A world renowned athlete, he helped popularize football in the United States and was the first athlete to win both the decathlon and the pentathlon at the 1912 Olympics.