19 Facts About Lincoln Gordon

Abraham Lincoln Gordon was the 9th President of the Johns Hopkins University and a United States Ambassador to Brazil.

Lincoln Gordon had a career in business after his resignation as president of Johns Hopkins University, but remained active at institutions such as the Brookings Institution until his death.

Lincoln Gordon received a DPhil from Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar in 1936.

Lincoln Gordon was program vice-chairman of the War Production Board from 1944 to 1945.

Lincoln Gordon started in the Bureau of Research and Statistics of the War Production Board before joining the staff of the Requirements Committee, helping design the Controlled Materials Plan.

Lincoln Gordon then worked for the US State Department as Director of the Marshall Plan Mission and Minister for Economic Affairs and at the United States embassy in London.

In 1960, Lincoln Gordon helped develop the Alliance for Progress, an aid program designed to prevent Latin America from turning to revolution and socialism for economic progress.

Lincoln Gordon served as US Ambassador to Brazil, where he played a major role for the support of the opposition against the government of President Joao Goulart and during the 1964 Brazilian coup d'etat.

Lincoln Gordon, who was eager to see the Goulart government overthrown, then began assisting the eventual 1964 Brazil coup and even recommended to "strengthen the spine" of Brazil's military.

Lincoln Gordon believed that Goulart, wanting to "seize dictatorial power", was working with the Brazilian Communist Party.

Lincoln Gordon was a Professor of International Economic Relations at Harvard University in the 1950s, before turning his attention to foreign affairs.

Lincoln Gordon then served as president of Johns Hopkins University between 1967 and 1971.

Lincoln Gordon took part in a campus-wide discussion over military recruiting on campus and whether the ROTC should have a place at Johns Hopkins.

Faculty were angered because while Lincoln Gordon was cutting teaching positions, he was increasing the size of the university's administration.

Lincoln Gordon incurred student wrath when he re-wrote the student conduct code.

Lincoln Gordon resigned in March 1971, following a vote of "no-confidence" by a committee of senior faculty, attributing his resignation to growing criticism from the university's faculty.

Lincoln Gordon was a fellow of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars at the Smithsonian Institution from 1972 to 1975.

Lincoln Gordon died at the age of 96 at Collington Episcopal Life Care, an assisted-living home, in Mitchellville, Maryland.

Lincoln Gordon was survived by two sons, Robert and Hugh, and two daughters, Sally and Amy and seven grandchildren ; and three great-grandchildren.