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Several months ago I wrote a post called “[Award Winning] Writer!” And now I am one. I received the Lincoln Legacy Award, ironically perhaps, on the anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s death.

The “[Award Winning] Writer!” post talked about how you can forever carry that qualifier once you win a writing award, especially if the award is one of those big-name ones that everyone will recognize (e.g., Pulitzer, Oscar, Nobel). I mentioned how the honorific could be milked to excess, but overall, it’s a wonderful experience to be recognized both for the achievement and the effort that went into it. Which gets me to the Lincoln Legacy Award.

I wrote briefly on my author website about my recent tour of West Point and visit with the Lincoln Society of Peekskill. Here’s what I wrote about receiving the award:

It seemed altogether fitting and proper that I should follow Lincoln’s footsteps through New England and to West Point. I could feel his presence. I was even more honored that the Lincoln Society of Peekskill presented me with their Lincoln Legacy Award at the banquet following my presentation. In presenting the award, Tony Czarnecki and outgoing Society president Michael Macedonia mentioned my service as president of the Lincoln Group of DC, my efforts to organize and emcee the Lincoln Memorial Centennial program on the Memorial steps in May 2022, and of course, the success of my book, Lincoln: The Fire of Genius (of which I signed many copies at the banquet). The award itself is a beautiful bronze of the Daniel Chester French seated Lincoln from the Lincoln Memorial.

The Lincoln Legacy Award brings me into good company. Previous recipients include Harold Holzer, Eric Foner, David Blight, James Oakes, Edna Greene Medford, Martha Hodes, Ted Widmer, and James McPherson. Most may not be known to the general public, but these people are all huge names in the Lincoln and history fields, with quite a few Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prizes, Bancroft Prizes, and even a few Pulitzer Prizes. Perhaps their aura will shine on me as well.

With the Lincoln Legacy Award now on my shelf, that Pulitzer seems just a little bit closer.

On to the next book!

[Photos by author]

Lincoln: The Fire of Genius is available for purchase at all bookseller outlets. Limited signed copies are available here. The book is also listed on Goodreads, the database where I keep track of my reading. Click on the “Want to Read” button to put it on your reading list. If you read the book, please leave a review and/or rating.

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David J. Kent is President of the Lincoln Group of DC and the author of Lincoln: The Fire of Genius: How Abraham Lincoln’s Commitment to Science and Technology Helped Modernize America and Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America.