Amelia and Robert would have two daughters, Eva Robert in 1863 and Maud Robert in 1864.Īlthough he originally opposed Lincoln's candidacy, when the civil war broke out Ingersoll mustered a regiment to fight with the union army. Amelia was the daughter of a well-to-do family and some credit her with Roberts introduction to agnosticism. Robert met his wife, Eva Amelia Parker, while trying a case in Groveland, IL. It was at this point that Ingersoll became active in politics and began to forge his reputation as one of the greatest orators of his day.
Having learned to love education he spent a short time as an itinerant teacher in Illinois and Tennessee.Įventually he settled in Peoria, Illinois where, with his brother Ebon, he apprenticed in law and stood the bar. He would later say that his real education began when, idling at a cobblers shop, he happened to pick up and read a book of poetry by Robert Burns. He had four siblings, Ruth, John, Mary Jane, Ebon and Clark.īecause of his family's constant traveling Ingersoll was poorly educated until he was enrolled in school at the age of 15.
His mother, Mary, died when Robert was one and a half years old. His father, John, was an itinerant minister who gave fiery abolitionist sermons. Robert Green Ingersoll was born in Dresden, New York on August 11, 1833. To the terrible deities of Truth and Beauty. He stripped off the armor of institutional friendships His speeches and essays are a "must read" for any serious student of anti-apologetics. Ingersoll's unwavering defense of science, humanism, and agnosticism make him one of the great heroes of the free thought movement.
Mark Twain once remarked of Ingersoll, "What an organ human speech is when employed by a master". Among those people touched by Ingersoll's oratory were Walt Whitman, Andrew Carnegie, Thomas Edison and many others. Although Ingersoll spoke on the subjects important to his age, he earned the sobriquet "The Great Agnostic" with lectures titled “Superstition”, “Some Mistakes of Moses”, “The Gods”, and the famous “Why I Am an Agnostic”.Īs he grew richer and more famous he became a friend and inspiration to the celebrities of his day. In a time before pay per view television and motion pictures, Ingersoll commanded premium fees for speaking engagements. Robert Green Ingersoll (Aug– July 21, 1899) was a nineteenth century orator, lawyer, and agnostic or weak atheist.
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