James Harrison Wilson (1837-1925) Wilson (not to be confused with General James Grant Wilson) was a take-charge officer, the kind President Lincoln liked. Historian Bruce Catton wrote of the Tennessee campaign in late 1864: “James H. Wilson, the former…” Abraham Lincoln and Friends >

William O. Stoddard (1835-1925) William O. Stoddard wrote a great deal about Mr. Lincoln over the five decades after President Lincoln’s death. Stoddard was a professional journalist when he met Mr. Lincoln and he became a professional writer after… Abraham Lincoln and Friends >

John G. Nicolay (1832-1901) Nicolay had met Mr. Lincoln when he worked at the Free Press in Pittsfield, Illinois. Thomas Hall Shastid wrote how his father introduced Nicolay to Mr. Lincoln: “Once into the printing office, fresh from the courthouse in… Abraham Lincoln and Friends >

John Hay (1838-1905) The chief qualification of John Hay for his White House position may have been his sense of humor. Hay could guffaw while colleague John G. Nicolay growled. In comparison to the somewhat morose… Abraham Lincoln and Friends >

Elmer Ellsworth (1837-1861) Increasingly, Ellsworth had been at the President’s side. In the late winter of 1860 Ellsworth had received a letter from General John Cook expressing Mr. Lincoln’s interest in having Ellsworth relocate to… Abraham Lincoln and Friends >

Carl Schurz (1829-1906) Schurz’s political influence was important to President Lincoln. Historian Hans L. Trefousse wrote that “there can be no question about Schurz’s effective advocacy of emancipation after the…” Abraham Lincoln and Friends >

John A. McClernand (1812-1900) Fellow Illinois generals found John A. McClernand to be a braggart. “We did the fighting. He did the writing,” wrote Illinois politician Richard Oglesby, whose war career helped make him… Abraham Lincoln and Friends >

Montgomery Meigs (1816-1892) During the first year of the Civil War, Montgomery Meigs was a important military adviser for President Lincoln when there were few experienced army officers in Washington he could… Abraham Lincoln and Friends >

Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885) President Lincoln had faith in Ulysses S. Grant when few people did. In the spring of 1862, there were many calls for the replacement of Grant. In the spring of 1863, Senator Benjamin Wade came to see the President and insisted… Abraham Lincoln and Friends >

John Dahlgren (1809-1870) Dahlgren assumed command of the Washington Navy Yard in April 1861 when the Franklin Buchanan abandoned his office to join the Confederacy. Commander “Dahlgren shone in the new job. As a…” Abraham Lincoln and Friends >