Lincoln–Kennedy coincidences urban legend
Claimed coincidences connecting U.S. Presidents Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy are a piece of American folklore of unknown origin. The list of coincidences appeared in the mainstream American press in 1964, a year after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, having appeared prior to that in the G.O.P. Congressional Committee Newsletter.[1][2] Martin Gardner examined the list in an article in Scientific American, later reprinted in his book, The Magic Numbers of Dr. Matrix.[3] Gardner's version of the list contained 16 items; many subsequent versions have circulated much longer lists. The list is still in circulation today, having endured in the popular imagination for over 50 years. In 1992, the Skeptical Inquirer ran a "Spooky Presidential Coincidences Contest." One winner found a series of sixteen similar coincidences between Kennedy and former Mexican President Álvaro Obregón, while the other came up with similar lists for twenty-one pairs of US Presidents.[4]
The list[edit]
An example of the list is presented here for illustration. Some urban folklorists have postulated that the list provided a way for people to make sense of two tragic events in American history by seeking out patterns.[5] Gardner and others have said that it is relatively easy to find seemingly meaningful patterns relating any two people or events.
- Both presidents were elected to the House of Representatives in '46.
- Both presidents were non-masons and both of their successors were masons (non-mason presidents replaced with mason power).
- Both were losing candidates for their party's vice-presidential nomination in '56.
- Both presidents were elected to the presidency in '60.
- Both died after being shot in the head.
- Lincoln defeated incumbent Vice President John C. Breckinridge for the presidency in 1860; Kennedy defeated incumbent Vice President Richard M. Nixon for the presidency in 1960.
- Both their predecessors were the last presidents to be born in their respective centuries.
- Both their predecessors left office in their seventies and retired to Pennsylvania. James Buchanan, whom Lincoln succeeded, retired to Lancaster Township; Dwight D. Eisenhower, whom Kennedy succeeded, retired to Gettysburg. They both then died before the end of the decade.
- Both their Vice Presidents and successors were Southern Democrats named Johnson (Andrew Johnson and Lyndon B. Johnson) who were born in '08.
- Both presidents were concerned with issues affecting Black Americans and made their views strongly known in '63. Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862, which took effect in 1863. In 1963, Kennedy presented his reports to Congress on issues related to the Civil Rights Movement, and in June of that year delivered his Civil Rights Address on radio and television in which he proposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
- Both presidents, and their successors, conferred with a nationally known black leader about civil rights. Both Lincoln and Andrew Johnson conferred with Frederick Douglass. Both Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson conferred with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- Both presidents were known for their wit and eloquence, and both frequently quoted Shakespeare and the Bible in their speeches.
- Both presidents had been captains of ships in their private lives: Lincoln on a river boat, and Kennedy on PT-109.
- Each president suffered from a genetic disease. Lincoln had Marfan's syndrome. Kennedy had Addison's disease.
- Both presidents were shot in the head on a Friday seated beside their wives. Both Fridays preceded a major holiday observed within the week.
- During the assassination, they were sitting in an alphabetical pattern. Their spouses first name and both president's last name. J,K,L,M- Jackie, Kennedy, Lincoln, Mary. Jackie was seated to the left of Kennedy and Mary to the right of Lincoln.
- Both presidents were accompanied by another couple.
- The male companion of the other couple was wounded by the assassin.
- Both presidents fathered four children, and had a son die during his presidency.
Coincidence (not part of the above list) - Both Lincoln and Kennedy were carried in coffins with no pallbearer's handles. Lincoln's body was placed in a plain pine box with no handles. It was carried out of the Petersen house with hands underneath the bottom of the box. Kennedy was placed in a bronze coffin, which wouldn't fit through the Eastern Airlines aircraft door; the pallbearer's handles were forcibly removed to board the plane (Lyndon Johnson boarded Air Force One as the newly sworn President). Esquire Magazine; Manhunt, Swanson (2006).
Musical legacy[edit]
Buddy Starcher wrote a song recounting many of these coincidences and parallels between the two presidents' careers and deaths entitled "History Repeats Itself." It became a U.S. Top 40 hit for him during the spring of 1966,[6] and reached number two on the Country chart. Cab Calloway also scored a minor chart hit with the song that same year.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ A Compendium of Curious Coincidences, TIME, August 21, 1964 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on January 29, 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-16.
- ^ Newsweek, August 10, 1964
- ^ The Magic Numbers of Dr. Matrix By Martin Gardner. 1985. Prometheus Books. Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 84-43183, ISBN 0-87975-281-5 (cloth), 0-87975-282-3 (paper) (This was previously titled The Numerology of Dr. Matrix. It contains all of The Incredible Dr. Matrix plus four more chapters.)
- ^ Martin, Bruce (September–October 1998). "Coincidences: Remarkable or Random?". Skeptical Inquirer. 22 (5).
- ^ Mikkelson, Barbara & David P. "Linkin' Kennedy" at Snopes.com: Urban Legends Reference Pages.
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X