And oooo, ouch, it’s not going to get any easier.
My votes:
Henry Bergh
Chief Joseph
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Robert Frost
George Gershwin
Langston Hughes
Helen Keller
James Madison
John J. Pershing
Upton Sinclair
Thomas Edison x2
George Gershwin x2
Langston Hughes
Eleanor Roosevelt x2
Harry Truman
Daniel Webster
Orville and Wilbur Wright
This sounds like a very good change for future rounds.
All of these were undoubtably great American figures, but it’s time they went. And losing Jefferson–not to mention Einstein, especially after the History Channel program on the Manhattan Project last night–still smarts.
Henry Bergh
Chief Joseph
John Franklin Enders
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
John J. Pershing
Will Rogers
William Seward
Upton Sinclair
Jim Thorpe
Daniel Webster
I don’t see me moving these around much–unless some jackasses decide it’s time to evict Lincoln or some fool thing.
Since von Neumann was the only one of my six picks to go in the last round, I’ll just double down on each of the remaining ones:
Helen Keller 2
Will Rogers 2
Jonas Salk 2
William Seward 2
Daniel Webster 2
Helen Keller 2
Jim Thorpe 2
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Chief Joseph
Henry Bergh
William Lloyd Garrison
Jackie Robinson
Harriet Tubman
Interesting so far. It seems that most Great Americans left have someone who wants them off.
Henry Bergh: Saved children, animals 9
Helen Keller: Redefined language, mind 6
Chief Joseph (Hin-mah-too-yah-lat-kekt): Leader, peacemaker, tactician 5
George Gershwin: Prolific, versatile composer 5
John J. Pershing: Top WWI general 4
Will Rogers: Humorist, social commentator 4
Jim Thorpe: Native American athlete 4
Daniel Webster: Orator, advocate, statesman 4
Ralph Waldo Emerson: Philosopher, writer 3
William Seward: Diplomat; bought Alaska 3
Thomas Edison: Inventor, workaholic 2
Robert Frost: Greatest American poet 2
Langston Hughes: Harlem Renaissance poet 2
Eleanor Roosevelt: Reformer, writer, advocate 2
Jonas Salk: Polio vaccine inventor 2
Upton Sinclair: Author, muckraker 2
John Franklin Enders: Modern vaccines pioneer 1
William Lloyd Garrison: Abolitionist, writer 1
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.: Supreme Court Justice 1
James Madison: President, Framer, statesman 1
Edgar Allan Poe: Poet, writer, critic 1
Jackie Robinson: Athlete, activist, inspiration 1
Harry Truman: President, statesman 1
Harriet Tubman: Civil rights advocate 1
Earl Warren: Chief Justice, governor 1
Walt Whitman: Civil War poet 1
Orville and Wilbur Wright: Aviation pioneers, inventors 1
Those without votes–see how long this lasts:
Susan B. Anthony: Suffrage activist
George Washington Carver: Agricultural botanist
Frederick Douglass: Abolitionist, orator
Dwight D. Eisenhower: President, war hero
Benjamin Franklin: Scientist, statesman, inventor
Martin Luther King Jr.: Preacher, orator, humanitarian
Lewis and Clark (Meriwether and William, resp.): Louisiana Purchase explorers
Abraham Lincoln: President, emancipator, writer
George Marshall: General, diplomat, statesman
John Marshall: Fourth Chief Justice
Thomas Paine: Political theorist, pamphleteer
Franklin D. Roosevelt: President, reformer, statesman
Theodore Roosevelt: President, conservationist, statesman
Sitting Bull: Indian leader, warrior
Henry David Thoreau: Poet, naturalist, philosopher
Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens): Humorist, “Huckleberry Finn”
George Washington: President, general, statesman
Roger Williams: Statesman, religious leader
My votes:
Henry Bergh: Saved children, animals
Robert Frost: Greatest American poet (X2)
George Gershwin: Prolific, versatile composer
Langston Hughes: Harlem Renaissance poet
Helen Keller: Redefined language, mind (X2)
Will Rogers: Humorist, social commentator
William Seward: Diplomat; bought Alaska
Upton Sinclair: Author, muckraker
This is getting tough
Henry Bergh 4
John Franklin Enders 2
William Lloyd Garrison 2
Roger Williams 2
Five votes for George Gershwin.
Five votes for Sitting Bull.
Upton Sinclair x3
William Lloyd Garrison x3
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. x2
Ralph Waldo Emerson x2
Lewis and Clark (Meriwether and William, resp.) – 4
Robert Frost – 3
Jim Thorpe – 3
Thomas Edison x2
Robert Frost x2
Orville and Wilbur Wright x2
Henry David Thoreau x2
Helen Keller x1
Lewis and Clark (Meriwether and William, resp.)x1
You likely missed this, but up-thread it was requested that you provide multiple votes in the following format, to make it easier on the tallyer:
Joe Schmoe 5
Standings update:
1 Henry Bergh 14
2 George Gershwin 11
3 Robert Frost 9
3 Helen Keller 9
5 Jim Thorpe 7
6 Upton Sinclair 6
6 William Lloyd Garrison 6
8 Sitting Bull 5
8 Ralph Waldo Emerson 5
8 Chief Joseph 5
8 Lewis and Clark 5
8 Will Rogers 5
Thomas Edison 4
John J. Pershing 4
William Seward 4
Daniel Webster 4
John Franklin Enders 3
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. 3
Langston Hughes 3
Orville and Wilbur Wright 3
Eleanor Roosevelt 2
Jonas Salk 2
Henry David Thoreau 2
James Madison
Edgar Allan Poe
Jackie Robinson
Harry Truman
Harriet Tubman
Earl Warren
Walt Whitman
If we change to five votes each, then each vote becomes the equivalent of two, unless a bunch of new people start voting. So I say keep it at 10.
Sitting Bull x2
Chief Joseph x2
Lewis and Clark x2
Will Rogers x2
John J. Pershing x2
Both of these ones I feel have made it as far as they should go. Also, Webster was on the list but Clay wasn’t, strange.
Eleanor Roosevelt 5
Daniel Webster 5
Odd that Emerson seems to be going before Thoreau. Thoreau is more romanticised, but Emerson was far more influential.
Also a little sad that Gershwin is going so early. It certainly does suck that the guy who probably did more than anyone to define America’s musical culture is getting bounced, but I guess he had to go sometime.
Clay was one of the ones Elendil specifically considered adding after all the nominations were in (along with US Grant). I’d throw George Kennan in as an oversight.
I disagree. The wholesale culling we’ve been doing was good to get the game to a managable size, but now it’s time to be more selective.