How would people find out what important historic people sounded like?

by real-dreamer

I've googled questions like, "What did Abraham Lincoln sound like?" And I've found nothing. Is there a way that people can surmise how people sounded? Not just dialect but intonation and unique pronunciation... Is it possible for people to know?

Lincoel

Edison didn't invent sound recording until 1878, so before then, you would need to hopefully find descriptions of a person's voice. Luckily, people did comment on Lincoln's voice: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/ask-an-expert-what-did-abraham-lincolns-voice-sound-like-13446201/?no-ist .