O'Reilly: Lincoln Book Has Just 4 Errors, 2 Typos

Ford's Theatre superintendent writes scathing 4-page letter

(NEWSER) - Bill O'Reilly's book, Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever, has sold nearly a million copies and currently sits at #2 on the New York Times bestseller list . Only problem is, it's riddled with errors, according to a scathing review from the National Park Service bookstore at Ford’s Theatre, Salon reports. Here are a few alleged historical missteps:

• Killing Lincoln refers several times to the Oval Office. Little problem: The Oval Office wasn't built until 1909.

... to give the Gettysburg Address

(NEWSER) - One man looking to celebrate Presidents Day found that the land of the free isn't always so, the Daily Caller reports. Phillip Howell is a 25-year-old, 6-foot-4-inch tall American who, with a beard and top hat, bears a striking resemblance to a certain former president. He tried giving the Gettysburg Address from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, only to get booted by park police who informed him he needed a permit. More»

Grant descendant found pic in private album of Ulysses S.

(AP) - A photograph from a private album of Ulysses S. Grant may show Abraham Lincoln in front of the White House and could be the last image taken of him before he was assassinated, a collector believes. If it is indeed Lincoln, it would be the only known photo of the 16th president in front of the executive mansion and a rarity—only about 130 photos of him are known to exist. More»

'Monarchical' fears long prevented use of presidents

(NEWSER) - As Honest Abe's 200th birthday approaches, his likeness in our pockets is often disregarded. But the 100-year-old Lincoln penny is actually an American artistic milestone: Its debut marked the first appearance of a real person on a US coin, the New York Times reports. After the nation’s birth, putting a president on a coin “smacked of royalty,” says an expert, so George Washington opposed his own metallic representation. More»

(NEWSER) - The bicentennial of Lincoln's birth will be celebrated Feb. 12, so expect endless tributes to the president beloved by ordinary citizens and historians alike. Unless, of course, you're south of the Mason-Dixon line, where anti-Lincoln views "aren't particularly radical," writes Alex Beam of the Boston Globe. Lincoln is viewed by many as a cynical politician who pushed the Civil War not to end slavery but to keep his party in office. More»