15, 1860 - 153 years ago today &mdash 11-year-old Grace Bedell ... Lincoln wrote her back, and days after the election, he decided to grow a beard, according to The New York Times.

Not this: This is my beard, if you even want to call it a beard. This footage was taken after I let it grow for two weeks. Two weeks! It's thin, patchy, and in some spots there's no hair at all.