Abraham Lincoln

About Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865) remains one of the most historically crucial figures in American history, earning him the #206 rank in MIT's Historical Popularity Index. As the 16th U.S. President, his defining achievement was successfully leading the nation through the American Civil War, preserving the Union, and issuing the Emancipation Proclamation, which began the process of ending slavery.

Despite this monumental historical importance, Lincoln’s contemporary internet attention, measured by 5.4 million annualized Wikipedia views in 2025, suggests a degree of online marginalization relative to his stature. This results in an "Attention Gap" of +11x, indicating that the modern web pays over eleven times the attention to contemporary figures compared to his historical ranking. For context, while Lincoln is ranked #206 globally in importance, his view count trails modern politicians like Joe Biden (#329 importance) by 5.6 million views.

Interestingly, his online presence is currently showing signs of attrition, with a 13.4% year-over-year decline in views and a sharp 22% drop in momentum between Q1 and Q3 of 2025, suggesting a potential trajectory toward greater historical obscurity online.