Abraham Lincoln was infected with smallpox at some point in his life.
Notes on verification
Confirmed by peer-reviewed medical history study (Goldman & Schmalstieg 2007), contemporary diaries of Lincoln's secretaries, and multiple independent journalistic and historical sources. Minor scholarly debate exists only over severity of the case, not the fact of infection.
Sources
- History of smallpox vaccination (who.int)
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17551612/ (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
- https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2020/10/11/lincoln-smallpox-valet-died/ (washingtonpost.com)
- https://historyofvaccines.org/blog/lincolns-brush-death-smallpox-1863/ (historyofvaccines.org)
- https://www.chron.com/news/health/article/UTMB-study-finds-Lincoln-had-smallpox-at-1794864.php (chron.com)