Sarah B. Lincoln

Obituary Notice

Sarah B. Lincoln, was born in Dallas, Texas, June 18, 1905. She died on Friday, April 18, 2003 in Little Rock, Arkansas. She is survived by her daughter, Sara Ann Lincoln, of Lansing, Michigan; and two surrogate sons, Harold Greer of Topeka, Kansas, and Dale Whitman of Hot Springs.

Sara was very proud of her membership in the Daughters of the Republic of Texas. Her grandmother, Ann Eliza Hill Heslep, was born in 1841 on New Years Creek, near Old Washington on the Brazos, before Texas became a state.

Sara met her husband, Bert H. Lincoln, at the University of Colorado in Boulder. She was taking a chemistry class taught by Bert, then a graduate assistant. They danced to the music of Glenn Miller. They married in 1927 and their first baby, Gilbert , was born in 1928 in Ponca City, Oklahoma where Bert served as Chief Chemist for the Continental Oil Company. Daughter Sara Ann was born in 1932, and son John in 1936.

Sara and Bert and the children were active in the First Presbyterian Church. Sara served as president of the Presbyterian Women's Association. She was long active in Christian Education. Her most prized honor is the pin recognizing her service, and she was awarded honorary membership in the National Board of Christian Education.

Son Gilbert was ordained as a Presbyterian minister in 1954. John and Sara Ann both became teachers. All three children became active in their local churches.

Sara and Bert built their dream home in Ponca City in 1938, a two- story colonial brick home with great white columns. In the design of the house, Sara used architectural drawings from the restoration of Williamsburg. The Flemish Bond brick added a special look, as did the broken pediment over the front door. Sara gradually filled this stunning home with early Victorian antiques, including antiques that belonged to her family. Relatives still mention memories of visiting Sara's home : " She made it truly memorable. Her hospitality was perfection. Sara is artistry from head to toe, back to front, inside and out."

When recalling her years in Ponca, Sara often said, " never let it be forgot that once there was a Camelot." Bert died in 1975, John in 1995, and Gilbert in 1998.

In Ponca, Sara was a leader in establishing a child guidance clinic for the county, and was on the board of directors of the Kay County Association for Child Guidance. They studied mental health problems and developed a legislative proposal for financing a clinic that would deal primarily with preventive work. The clinic was finally built in Ponca City.

Sara's husband, Bert specialized in chemical research and gained 164 patents for Continental Oil Company. He was a Major in the Chemical Warfare Reserve, and after World War II he was given a Distinguished War Service Award. A biographical sketch of Dr. Lincoln appears in 20 different Who's Who volumes. In 1954 he was made a Fellow in the Royal Society of Arts in England. Bert studied law on his own, and was admitted to the Patent Office as a patent attorney in 1933. In 1937 he was awarded an honorary doctorate through New York University and the Academy of Arts and Sciences of Brazil. Bert was an elder in the Presbyterian Church. From 1958 to 1968, he was head of the Chemistry Department at Arkansas State University in Magnolia, Arkansas.

Sara and Bert moved to Little Rock in 1974 and Bert died in 1975. Sara moved into Presbyterian Village retirement community in 1981. At Presbyterian Village, Sara was active in Krygma, the Bible Study group sponsored by Second Presbyterian Church. Others who attend speak with deep admiration of her knowledge of the Bible and her prayers.

Sara often quoted songs and poems from her childhood. One of her favorites is poignant, if you know of her shift from a 15 room house, to an apartment, to a smaller apartment at Presbyterian Village, to a single room in the Village Lodge, to a smaller room in Personal Care, to half a room on the nursing floor: Said the wee little worm in a hickory nut, as happy as she could be, "I live in the middle of the whole wide world, and it all belongs to me.

Memorial services will be held later next week. Sara will be buried in the Lincoln family plot in Ponca City, OK, along side her husband and sons. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to Arkansas Hospice or Presbyterian Village. Arrangements by Ruebel Funeral Home.

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