Lincoln was so enamored of inventions and mechanics that during his first session as a Congressman, he took his four-year-old son, Robert, to the U.S. Patent Office to examine the invention models on public display. The visit must have been an awe-inspiring revelation to the two Lincolns.

http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/history_of_innovation/2014/05/abra...

the original patent model is on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. The model is a somewhat ungainly looking device that incorporates a system of under-the-waterline bellows on a ship; the bellow could be inflated either manually or with steam power to lift the ship over shoals. The model is constructed of wood, some of which Lincoln may have carved himself, with silk for the bellows. The real thing was never built. Critics at the time deemed it unworkable. The Smithsonian's Harry Rubenstein says that engineers recently reviewed the patent. Because of unknowns, such as the volume of air that was to be pumped into the bellows, they couldn't conclude whether the design was practical. "I'm not sure if his idea was unworkable or not," says Emerson. "His model worked, but that was only a model."

http://www.usnews.com/news/history/articles/2009/02/11/abraham-lincoln-a-te...

the original patent model is on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. The model is a somewhat ungainly looking device that incorporates a system of under-the-waterline bellows on a ship; the bellow could be inflated either manually or with steam power to lift the ship over shoals. The model is constructed of wood, some of which Lincoln may have carved himself, with silk for the bellows. The real thing was never built. Critics at the time deemed it unworkable. The Smithsonian's Harry Rubenstein says that engineers recently reviewed the patent. Because of unknowns, such as the volume of air that was to be pumped into the bellows, they couldn't conclude whether the design was practical. "I'm not sure if his idea was unworkable or not," says Emerson. "His model worked, but that was only a model."

http://www.usnews.com/news/history/articles/2009/02/11/abraham-lincoln-a-te...

As Wheeler recounts in his book, when Lincoln took office the White House had no telegraph connection. The invention's technical applications were in its infancy. Lincoln "developed the modern electronic leadership model," Wheeler says. "He went through three phases. The first 14 months he barely touched the telegraph. On May 24, 1862, he had an electronic breakout and began using the telegraph to give direct orders for troop movements. Cursed with poor generals, the telegraph gave him the tool to project himself to the front. [Union Maj. Gen. George] McClellan was bogged down on the peninsula [east of Richmond, Va.], and [Confederate Maj. Gen. "Stonewall"] Jackson was threatening Washington. Lincoln took command to maneuver forces to confront Jackson. When, in 1864, he finally found the leader he and the nation deserved in [Lt. Gen. Ulysses] Grant, his use of the telegraph evolved again. With Grant he built the modern leadership model. He used the telegraph to monitor, to track to see what was going on, to enhance his eyes and ears. It gave him a keyhole into the general's headquarters where he could say, 'I see you are worrying about this—this is what I think.' "

http://www.usnews.com/news/history/articles/2009/02/11/abraham-lincoln-a-te...

On April 6, 1858, Abraham Lincoln gave his first lecture on "Discoveries and Inventions" before the Young Men's Association of Bloomington, Illinois. In 1859 he delivered it in Jacksonville, Illinois. He repeated the lecture in Decatur, Springfield, and Pontiac, but turned down future requests, saying, "I am not a professional lecturer. Have never got up but one lecture; and that I think, a rather poor one."

http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/discoveries.htm

Man is not the only animal who labors; but he is the only one who improves his workmanship.

But speech alone, valuable as it ever has been, and is, has not advanced the condition of the world much.

Writing -- the art of communicating thoughts to the mind, through the eye -- is the great invention of the world.

One of the books Safire reviewed was the 79-page Abraham Lincoln by James M. McPherson. The example I cite below comes from McPherson's book. The way in which Lincoln handled the problem reminded me of Russell L. Ackoff in his advice to check if a problem can be resolved or dissolved before you commit yourself to using heavyweight methods to solve it.
"In the month after Lincoln took office, Confederate leaders demanded withdrawal of the federal garrison from Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor. William Seward, the former political rival Lincoln had chosen to be secretary of state, and several other cabinet members urged the president to give in to that demand in hopes that it would preserve the peace and dissuade other slave states — especially Virginia and Maryland, which surrounded the District of Columbia — from following South Carolina’s lead in seceding. Lincoln’s dilemma: Withdrawal from the fort would show a weakness likely to encourage foreign countries to recognize the Confederacy as an independent nation. On the other hand, by sending a shipload of United States troops to shoot their way in to reinforce the garrison at Sumter, Lincoln would be blamed by many in the North — especially those who did not believe the cause of abolition was worth civil war — for choosing to start a bloody conflict.
“But Lincoln hit upon an ingenious solution,” McPherson writes. “Instead of sending troops, he would send only provisions — ‘food for hungry men.’ ” The new president sent a message of assurance to the governor of South Carolina “that, if such attempt be not resisted, no effort to throw in men, arms or ammunition, will be made.” Of course, Lincoln was aware that Jefferson Davis, the Confederate president, could not accept that seemingly peaceful gesture of sending only food, because that would appear to cede sovereignty of the port to the Union. Davis ordered Southern guns to fire, thereby suffering the blame for starting a war. As Lincoln had figured, his move not only helped keep European nations from recognizing the Confederacy but also united the divided North.

http://johngaynardcreativity.blogspot.com.au/2009/02/abraham-lincoln-creati...

Lincoln was undoubtedly one of the greatest communicators among all American presidents. His words—as a public speaker, writer, debater, humorist, and conversationalist—continue to entertain, educate, and inspire us to this day. With only one year of formal schooling, Lincoln consciously cultivated this mastery of language and expression. As a young boy he would practice public speaking by gathering his friends together and stepping onto a stump to address them. During his days as a lawyer in Illinois, Lincoln would frequently meet up in the evening with friends at a tavern where they would engage in story-telling contests. And he gleaned valuable lessons in rhetoric by diligently studying Shakespeare.

http://www.inc.com/hitendra-wadhwa/lessons-in-leadership-how-abraham-lincol...

After he became president and moved to Washington, Lincoln must have been surprised to find that his interest in new ideas would be tantalized over and over again. Numerous businessmen and inventors visited the Executive Mansion, taking advantage of the new president's 'open' office hours. In addition, hundreds of letters poured in requesting that the government purchase a particular invention that would shorten the war. Another man in his position might have ignored or even scoffed at such proposals, but not Lincoln. Not only did he review every request; he set up dozens of demonstrations in and around Washington that he personally attended. By doing so, he was acting as something of a one-man research and development department. These demonstrations, mostly of weapons, were not only fun for Lincoln; they were an important part of his overall strategy to enhance the tools of war through the evolution of modern technology. He was astute enough to understand the importance of gaining new and effective weapons as soon as was humanly possible.
Lincoln observed the ascension of hot-air reconnaissance balloons and the throwing of pontoon bridges across the Potomac River. He opened the way for the ironclad ship, the Afonitor, to be built. Once he miraculously escaped injury while witnessing the trial test of a Hyde rocket that exploded prematurely. He also screened new types of bullets, flame throwers, gunpowder, and other ammunition. The president even brought one inventor into a regular meeting of his cabinet to demonstrate a new breech-loading cannon.
Perhaps Lincoln's greatest contribution in this area was his screening and support for the new breech-loading rifles that were, at the end of 1861, just becoming dependable. On October 15, he directed the chief of ordnance, Gen. J. W. Ripley, to order 25,000 Marsh breech loaders. But Ripley had decreed early in the war (because he believed it would be of short duration) that he would not waste his departments time with processing any new proposed weapons, so he did not follow through on the president's order. However, on December 26, Lincoln ordered Ripley to purchase 10,000 Spenser repeating rifles, and this time the president had his way. Lincoln had personally fired both rifles and was convinced that they would make an enormous difference in the war.
Lincoln made himself aware of any and all new technological advances so they could be implemented first by the Union, well before the Confederacy had time to act. He was quick and decisive in employing these new advances and made every attempt to get new weapons into his soldier's hands immediately, often overcoming government red tape and bureaucracy that might have delayed their use in combat. Overall, Lincoln's philosophy and handling of the most up-to-date technology available at the time was brilliant. Moreover, it has amazing parallels with the 1980s movement in business and industry labeled 'High Tech.'

http://www.sausd.us/cms/lib5/ca01000471/centricity/moduleinstance/7991/linc...