The Times was a daily newspaper published from March 13, 1875, to August 11, 1902, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania .
100-595: The paper was founded by Alexander McClure and Frank McLaughlin as an independent voice against party machine politics and corruption. Despite this, by the mid-1890s it had become aligned with the city's ruling Republican Party machine. The Times , along with Philadelphia papers such as the Public Ledger , the Press , and the Evening Telegraph catered to a middle-class readership, and by 1880, it had
200-524: A stalking horse to build support for the frontrunner, New York Senator William H. Seward . This was supported by a visit Seward had paid to Harrisburg in 1859, in which he had been feted by Cameron. Afterwards, Seward had written to his political manager, Thurlow Weed , that Cameron had promised the ultimate support of the Pennsylvania delegation, though it might initially vote for Cameron. The rumors that Cameron would support Seward were damaging since
300-512: A Republican. Republican Party leaders did not rest on their state laurels but pressed for a heavy majority for Lincoln. On Election Day, November 6, 1860, Republicans flipped Pennsylvania to their party, something confirmed by a telegram from Harrisburg to Lincoln's headquarters in Springfield after midnight, "Hon. A. Lincoln: Pennsylvania, 70,000 for you. New York safe, Glory enough. S. Cameron." In drafts Lincoln made of his cabinet following
400-461: A crucial state in the election, Cameron was considered as Frémont's running mate, but William Dayton was chosen. Buchanan won Pennsylvania by fewer than three thousand votes, and Frémont blamed the decision not to choose Cameron as critical to the outcome. The Democrats had a narrow majority in the Pennsylvania legislature against the combined forces of the Republicans and Know Nothings. Once
500-557: A governor in 1844, and Democrats had been divided between supporters of Henry A. P. Muhlenberg and of Francis R. Shunk . Muhlenberg got the nomination, but soon thereafter died, and Shunk was chosen as gubernatorial nominee. Shunk was elected, but former Muhlenberg supporters, including Cameron, feared they would not receive patronage. This divided the party as it prepared to elect a senator in January 1845, and when it became clear that Senator Buchanan would become Polk's Secretary of State,
600-546: A growing rift between Buchanan and Cameron. On the day of his election, Cameron wrote to Buchanan, asking him to assure Polk that no one in the Senate would support the administration with more good will than he. Nevertheless, having been elected by uniting disaffected Democrats and the minority parties against the candidate of the Democratic caucus, he found that neither Democrats nor Whigs were willing to fully accept him as
700-428: A journalist and loyal Democrat. Forney had gotten President-elect Buchanan to write a letter of support to show to legislators, but there were three Democratic members who disliked Buchanan and the letter helped them decide to vote for Cameron. They secretly met with Cameron's managers, who told the Republicans and Know Nothing legislators that there would be Democratic votes, and obtained an agreement to support Cameron on
800-638: A justice; Grier was confirmed, but the president never forgave Cameron. Cameron and Polk also differed on the tariff. The Whig-backed Tariff of 1842 was protectionist in nature, rather than for the sole purpose of raising government revenue, and Polk's administration sought to revise it through the Walker tariff (named of the Secretary of the Treasury, Robert J. Walker , an advocate of free trade). Cameron felt free to oppose it as he owed no debts to Polk and
900-461: A majority in the legislature and elect himself. Since the election and especially in his inaugural address, it had become clear that Polk did not support a protective tariff; most of the dissenting Democrats did, as did Cameron and the Whigs. Cameron also held similar views to the Whigs on internal improvements, and found them willing to support him—he hinted to the nativists that he supported increasing
1000-409: A member of a faction in Pennsylvania opposed to Cameron. Lincoln wrote to withdraw the offer, asking Cameron to keep it confidential, unless he chose to publicly decline, in which case he had no objection to the offer being made public. One reason for Lincoln's about-face was that he had asked Cameron to keep the offer confidential, which he had not done. Cameron complained to Lincoln's associates about
1100-875: A member of the Pennsylvania State Senate for the 18th district in 1861 and the 4th district from 1873 to 1874. He was a prominent supporter, correspondent, and biographer of President Abraham Lincoln . He was the editor of the Franklin Repository newspaper in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania and of the Philadelphia Times . The borough of McClure, Pennsylvania , and the Alexander K. McClure School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , are named in his honor. McClure
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#17327717975001200-627: A periodical that reported on the Congress . Although it paid little, the job was ideal for a young man interested in politics, allowing him to build contacts with national political figures, including U.S. President James Monroe and U.S. Senator John C. Calhoun of South Carolina. In 1822, Cameron returned to Harrisburg as a partner in the Pennsylvania Intelligencer . He then purchased the Republican , and merged it with
1300-541: A political fellow. Immediately after being elected senator, Cameron went to Washington, where on March 15, 1845, his credentials were laid before the Senate, which was in special session, by Vice President Dallas. On March 17, he was presented to the Senate by Senator Sturgeon, and was sworn in. Three days later, the Senate adjourned until December 1845. Polk declined to consult Cameron on Pennsylvania federal appointments, though he had been advised by his brother-in-law, James Walker, to make an ally of Cameron, especially since
1400-592: A second seat would also have to be filled. The factions remained apart as the legislature prepared to fill the seat held by Senator Daniel Sturgeon . Cameron wrote to Buchanan in December 1844, hinting at his interest in the seat, but both factions had candidates in mind. Neither had enough support to be elected by the legislature when it met in January 1845, and as a compromise, Sturgeon was re-elected. Buchanan resigned following Polk's inauguration in March 1845, and
1500-556: A verbal battle in March 1858 with Missouri's James S. Green , during which each called the other a liar, and Green suggested the two should fight a duel. The matter was settled, as was usual in such cases, with formal apologies before the Senate. Nevertheless, remembering the recent beating of Charles Sumner , Cameron made a pact with Zachariah Chandler of Michigan and Benjamin F. Wade of Ohio that they would take each other's part in another such incident. Cameron's view concerning slavery remained much as it had during his first term in
1600-523: The 1860 Republican National Convention in May in Chicago . Confident that Seward would gain the nomination, and of Cameron's support, Weed did not meet with Cameron. Kahan suggested that if the two had met, Cameron would have demanded a cabinet seat for his support, something Weed wanted to avoid. In Chicago, supporters of his rivals worked to stop a Seward victory on the first ballot, and selected Lincoln as
1700-609: The Franklin Repository newspaper. He studied law and was admitted to the Franklin County, Pennsylvania , bar in 1856. McClure became active in the newly formed Republican Party and was an outspoken abolitionist . In 1857, he was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and re-elected in 1858 and 1859. At the 1860 Republican National Convention McClure became a well-known political figure, opposing fellow Pennsylvanian Simon Cameron 's bid for
1800-537: The Intelligencer . These enterprises gave Cameron enough security that he felt he could marry; on October 16, 1822, he married Margaret Brua, with whom he had ten children, six of whom reached adulthood. In 1823, Cameron's friend John Andrew Shulze was elected Pennsylvania governor , and Cameron spent several years in the profitable post of State Printer. In 1829, Shulze appointed him Adjutant-General of Pennsylvania . His brief term in this position gained him
1900-538: The Know Nothing Party before switching to the Republican Party in 1856. He won election to another term in the Senate in 1857 and provided pivotal support to Abraham Lincoln at the 1860 Republican National Convention . Lincoln appointed Cameron as his first Secretary of War. Cameron's wartime tenure was marked by allegations of corruption and lax management, and he was demoted to Ambassador to
2000-456: The Know Nothing Party , before joining the Republican Party in 1856. The year 1860 was a presidential election year, and Cameron sought the nomination, believing that Pennsylvania's strength at the nominating convention would be sufficient to win. Not all Pennsylvania Republicans supported Cameron, and there were rumors that he had made a deal with the Democrats, or that his candidacy was
2100-764: The Liberal Republican Party . In 1867, McClure published Three Thousand Miles Through the Rocky Mountains and it became a resource by many interested in traveling in the West. In 1873, McClure was elected to the Pennsylvania Senate for the 4th district . In 1874 , he ran for mayor of Philadelphia but lost by only 900 votes. McClure returned to newspaper editing by founding the Philadelphia Times in 1875. He continued as The Philadelphia Times' editor until 1901, when he sold
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#17327717975002200-581: The Pennsylvania Republican , the leading Pennsylvania newspaper outside of Philadelphia; after two years' apprenticeship, Cameron was made the newspaper's assistant editor. Involvement with a Harrisburg newspaper meant involvement in Pennsylvania politics; in 1842, Cameron said he had attended almost every session of the Pennsylvania General Assembly , the state legislature, since 1817. He met Samuel D. Ingham ,
2300-733: The Perry County Freeman and the Juniata Sentinel in Mifflintown, Pennsylvania . He became editor and publisher of the Sentinel in 1846, and became known for his Whig political views. McClure was appointed to the staff of the first Whig governor of Pennsylvania, William F. Johnston , with the honorary rank of colonel. In 1850, Millard Fillmore appointed McClure deputy United States Marshal for Juniata County . He moved to Chambersburg in 1852 and purchased
2400-663: The Secretary of the Commonwealth and proprietor of the Doylestown Messenger . Following the departure of its editor, he hired Cameron as his replacement in January 1821. Cameron held this position throughout the year, but the newspaper was not profitable and merged with another local paper, ultimately costing Cameron his job. Cameron next worked as a compositor for the Congressional Globe ,
2500-665: The United States Military Academy , though he held the position only briefly. By the mid-1830s, Cameron had built a national reputation in what was becoming known as the Democratic Party . Buchanan had left the House of Representatives after 1831, and then served as minister to Russia. When he returned, Cameron tried to get him elected to the Senate in 1833, lobbying the legislature for votes—until 1913, senators were elected by state legislatures. He
2600-688: The colonial-era Province of Pennsylvania , in 1766. A farmer, he continued his trade in Lancaster County and fought with the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War . On Martha Cameron's side, Simon was the great-grandson of Hans Michel Pfoutz, one of the first Palatine Germans to emigrate to the Thirteen Colonies , and was the third of eight children born to Charles and Martha Cameron. Charles Cameron
2700-439: The national convention to require a two-thirds vote to nominate, thus effectively dooming Van Buren's candidacy, though his exact role is uncertain. Cameron was unenthusiastic about the eventual presidential nominee, former Tennessee governor James K. Polk , not liking Polk's ambiguous position on tariffs, and worked for his election in a desultory fashion. Polk won Pennsylvania, and was elected president. Pennsylvania elected
2800-649: The Civil War began, McClure rallied support for the war as Chairman of the Senate Committee of Military Affairs. He assisted Governor Curtin in planning a meeting of fourteen Northern state governors known as the "Loyal War Governors of the North", in Altoona, Pennsylvania , in order to secure their continued support of the war. McClure was commissioned by President Lincoln as an assistant adjutant general with
2900-419: The December 31 letter offering a post without showing the January 3 one rescinding the offer. With much of Lincoln's cabinet undetermined by the end of January, Herndon wrote, "Lincoln is in a fix. Cameron’s appointment ... bothers him. If Lincoln do[es] appoint Cameron, he gets a fight on his hands, and if he do[es] not he gets a quarrel deep-abiding, & lasting ... Poor Lincoln! God help him!" At
3000-402: The Democratic majority in the legislature, was seen as a great victory for the Republicans, and an embarrassment for President-elect Buchanan. The Democrats alleged bribery, and the legislature formed a committee to investigate, but the majority found no evidence to substantiate any charges. Similarly, shortly after Cameron's swearing-in, Senator Bigler presented a petition signed by 59 members of
3100-515: The New Yorker's abolitionist leanings limited his support among Pennsylvania's conservative voters. Kahan suggested that the fact that Cameron hosted both Seward and another presidential hopeful, Governor Salmon P. Chase of Ohio, in 1859, meant that he was trying to keep good relations with the major contenders for the nomination and place himself in a position to be a kingmaker. There was little support for Cameron outside of Pennsylvania. One of
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3200-534: The North, opposed the spread of slavery, an issue on which Cameron might find common ground with them. In addition, being a party with few prominent leaders, it was a route to political power for Democrats who wished to avoid Buchanan's hold on the state party, especially after the Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 cost the party support in the North. Cameron worked to appeal to the Know Nothing caucus. When
3300-861: The Oro Cache vein in the Montana Territory . He also collaborated with former Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Curtin as an incorporator of the McClure-Curtin Oil Company in Venango County, Pennsylvania . He returned to Philadelphia in 1868 after supporting Ulysses S. Grant at the Republican National Convention. By the time of Grant's reelection bid, McClure had left the Republican Party and threw his support to Horace Greeley and
3400-460: The Pennsylvania legislature had passed a resolution asking the state's congressional delegation to oppose the legislation. He gave a lengthy speech against the tariff in July 1846 opining that it would harm Pennsylvania's iron foundries, and opining that no native of the state could support the bill. This was a comment aimed at Vice President Dallas; nevertheless, Dallas's tie breaking vote in favor paved
3500-617: The Philadelphia Public Ledger and merged the Times into his new acquisition. This article about a Pennsylvania newspaper is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Alexander McClure Alexander Kelly McClure (January 9, 1828 – June 6, 1909) was an American politician, newspaper editor, and writer from Pennsylvania . He served as a Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1858 to 1859 and 1865 to 1866 as well as
3600-734: The Potomac River and destroyed railroad property in Chambersburg en route to the Battle of Gettysburg , but noted McClure's hospitality. Days before the battle of Gettysburg , Confederate General Albert Jenkins was a guest at McClure's house. McClure personally met with Robert E. Lee during the second occupancy of Chambersburg by the Confederate army. In 1864, during the Confederacy's third occupation of Chambersburg, when
3700-478: The Republican nomination for the presidency. McClure and Andrew G. Curtin helped swing the state's vote away from Cameron and William Seward to Abraham Lincoln. After Lincoln's election, McClure became chairman of the Republican state committee and helped to elect Curtin governor of Pennsylvania. He served in the Pennsylvania Senate for the 18th district in 1861 and for the 4th district in 1873. When
3800-558: The Russian Empire in January 1862. Cameron made a political comeback after the Civil War, winning a third election to the Senate in 1867 and building the powerful Cameron machine , which would dominate Pennsylvania politics for the next 70 years. Cameron was born in Maytown, Pennsylvania , on March 8, 1799, to Charles Cameron and his wife Martha Pfoutz Cameron. Charles Cameron's father, named Simon, had emigrated from Scotland to
3900-497: The Senate. He returned to a Senate far less congenial than the body he had left eight years before, with members deeply divided over slavery. Nevertheless, he maintained friendships with Southern senators. The divisions manifested themselves during the Senate's debate over whether to adopt President Buchanan's recommendation that Kansas Territory be admitted to the Union under the pro-slavery Lecompton Constitution . Cameron engaged in
4000-490: The Senate. He opposed its spread, believing it to be against Pennsylvania's interest for it to do so, but thought Congress had no power to do anything about it where it already existed. He also, beginning in about 1859, employed as a servant an escaped slave named Tom Chester. Cameron arranged for him to be educated; he later emigrated to Liberia and became that country's minister to Russia. Although like most Republican senators, Cameron distrusted President Buchanan, he supported
4100-709: The South. McClure recognized that integration was necessary. McClure married Cora M. Gratz in 1879 after his first wife's apparent death. Together they had at least one son. McClure died on June 6, 1909, in Wallingford, Pennsylvania and was buried at Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia. The town of McClure, Pennsylvania , and the Alexander K. McClure School in Philadelphia are named in his honor. Citations Sources Simon Cameron Simon Cameron (March 8, 1799 – June 26, 1889)
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4200-472: The Union Party, or Republican Party . Cameron was aligned with many of the new party's views and also saw an opportunity to return to the Senate. He was prominent at many of the meetings that shaped the new party. He attended the 1856 Republican National Convention that nominated former California senator John C. Frémont for president. With Buchanan the Democratic nominee for president, and Pennsylvania
4300-491: The Whigs had taken control of the state senate. Pennsylvania's delegation to the 1852 Democratic National Convention , which included Cameron, was instructed to vote for Buchanan; nevertheless, Cameron worked for the nomination of Cass and the evident dissension in his home state's ranks hurt Buchanan's chances. The nomination went to former New Hampshire senator Franklin Pierce . Once elected, Pierce declined to return Buchanan to
4400-540: The administration had only a narrow majority in the Senate. Angered, Cameron struck back, defeating the nomination of Henry Horn to the lucrative position of Collector of Customs for the Port of Philadelphia, which Polk pressed repeatedly. Cameron also defeated the nomination of Woodward to the Supreme Court, the latter likely with Buchanan's help. Polk eventually nominated another Pennsylvanian, Robert C. Grier , as
4500-604: The administration when the president asked for funds for troops in case there should be conflict with members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Utah Territory . Republicans feared Buchanan would use the troops to support pro-slavery elements in Kansas. Cameron was one of only four Republicans to vote in favor. In 1858, Cameron campaigned for the Republicans in Pennsylvania, who were rewarded with control of
4600-513: The administration, and Jackson convened the 1832 Democratic National Convention for the main purpose of endorsing a new running mate, Martin Van Buren of New York. Pennsylvania politicians preferred one of their own to run with Jackson, but Cameron arranged a delegation that would back Van Buren, and he was elected along with Jackson. As a reward, Cameron was appointed to the Board of Visitors of
4700-420: The behest of Cameron supporters Lincoln met with, the president-elect offered another meeting in Springfield, but Cameron refused, and the matter was still unresolved when Lincoln left for Washington, D.C. When the train passed through Pittsburgh , Lincoln was met with a group of Cameron supporters who insisted he be appointed to the cabinet. In Philadelphia , other Cameron acolytes buttonholed Lincoln, both in
4800-481: The cabinet, and Cameron was successful in getting a number of his allies federal positions. Pennsylvania's next Senate election was in 1855; in the 1854 legislative elections, the Whigs won a majority, which would ordinarily make it very difficult for Cameron to regain the seat. Many members of both the Whig and Democratic Parties were Know Nothings , who sought restrictions on immigration and immigrants, but who also, in
4900-569: The cabinet, citing the Winnebago affair or the allegations of bribery in his elections to the Senate; former congressman George N. Eckert wrote, "I wish to say to you that under no circumstances or contingency will it answer to even dream of putting Simon Cameron in the Cabinet. He is corrupt beyond belief. He is rich by plunder—and can not be trusted any where." Upon his arrival in Springfield, Cameron met with Lincoln for several hours, first at
5000-413: The cabinet. Cameron still wanted the Treasury position, which went to Chase, and only reluctantly accepted War. After discussions between the two on February 28 and March 1, 1861, Lincoln nominated Cameron to be Secretary of War on March 5, 1861, the day after he took office as president. He broke with Lincoln and openly advocated emancipating the slaves and arming them for the army at a time when Lincoln
5100-478: The candidate with the most support. Although Lincoln had instructed his people to make no deals that would bind him, his manager, David Davis , reasoned that Lincoln, not present at the convention, was in no position to judge what had to be done to get him the nomination, and would have to fulfill whatever deals they made. It is unclear if an explicit deal was made to bring Cameron aboard the Lincoln bandwagon, but at
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#17327717975005200-403: The caucuses met in early 1855, Cameron was the choice of the Know Nothing caucus, but disputes about voting meant about half the caucus left and refused to be bound by the outcome. When the legislature voted on February 13, 1855, Cameron had a plurality, but not a majority. Faced with a deadlock, the legislature postponed its voting for two weeks, but when voting resumed, it remained deadlocked, and
5300-622: The construction of canals in Pennsylvania. A delegate from Dauphin County to the Harrisburg State Convention of the Democratic-Republicans in 1824, Cameron was slow to support the presidential candidacy of General Andrew Jackson in the 1824 election , despite Jackson's broad support in Pennsylvania, and only did so because he supported Calhoun for vice president. Secretary of State John Quincy Adams
5400-489: The cry is 'Cameron, Cameron!' ... The Pennsylvania people say: 'If you leave out Cameron you disgrace him. ' " Lincoln decided not to offer Cameron the Treasury post, but to hold out the possibility of another appointment. On January 13, Lincoln sent Cameron a letter stating he meant no offense by the previous letter, and stating that he had no doubt Cameron would perform the duties of a cabinet secretary "ably and faithfully". Cameron continued to press Lincoln by displaying
5500-422: The election, Cameron was omitted. Given the divisions between Cameron and Curtin supporters in Pennsylvania, Lincoln planned to exclude Cameron from the cabinet, hoping both factions would accept New Jersey 's William Dayton , like Cameron a strong protectionist. Within days, though, Lincoln began receiving many letters urging him to make Cameron Secretary of the Treasury. Lincoln may still have been unaware of
5600-499: The fall elections, the Pennsylvania Whigs carried the state for Taylor and Fillmore (who were elected), with a majority for their party in both houses of the state legislature. Cameron's term in the Senate was up in 1849; the Whigs wanted to elect one of their own, while many Democrats still resented the manner in which he had been elected. Cameron apparently had no supporters in the Democratic caucus; he received no votes in
5700-509: The first ballot. In the election on January 13, 1857, Cameron was elected without a vote to spare, to the shock of many legislators and observers. The three Democrats were expelled from their hotels in Harrisburg, and each lost his re-election bid. Cameron was informed of his election by his son, Donald Cameron , who leapt out of a window at the rear of the legislative chamber, and raced to his father's hotel. The election of Cameron, given
5800-447: The former president to run again in 1844, and those who supported the administration of Governor David R. Porter . Both Cameron and Senator Buchanan joined the latter camp, and were known as "Improvement Men", and supported continued public improvements, a protective tariff, and the establishment of a state bank. A supporter of Buchanan, Cameron was strongly opposed to the presidential candidacy of Van Buren in 1844, and supported those at
5900-406: The former secretary might get, Cameron sent Mississippi Senator Jefferson Davis a thirty-year-old news article showing that Buchanan had signed an anti-slavery petition. In response, Buchanan had friendly newspapers attack Cameron. The two battled at the 1851 Democratic state convention which nominated William Bigler for governor; though Bigler was elected, Buchanan blamed Cameron for the fact that
6000-637: The general election. In 1865, McClure was elected again to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives as a Union Party member. After the war, McClure traveled extensively in the Western United States to recoup personal wealth lost during the war. He became an investor and officer of the Philadelphia-based Montana Gold and Silver Mining Company and was superintendent of one of the company's mills at
6100-400: The legislature asking the Senate to investigate the circumstances of Cameron's election, but the Senate soon dropped the matter, finding there was no proof of wrongdoing. Nevertheless, like the Winnebago matter, the circumstances of the 1857 election gave Cameron a reputation for corruption that proved impossible to shake. Cameron quickly became one of the leaders of the Republican minority in
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#17327717975006200-415: The legislature prepared for an election to fill the remaining four years of his term. Governor Shunk's faction nominated George W. Woodward , as they had to fill Sturgeon's seat, and he gained a majority in the Democratic legislative caucus, though some legislators remained away. Cameron worked to unite the minority of the Democratic Party with the Whigs and Native American Party (or Know Nothings) to gain
6300-461: The legislature's balloting for senator, in which Whig James Cooper was elected. Once his term in the Senate expired in March 1849, Cameron returned to Pennsylvania and devoted his time to his business enterprises. This did not mean he cloistered himself from politics; his business activities, including railroads and banking, routinely brought him into contact with politicians, and he retained his interest in public affairs. The Democrats recaptured
6400-564: The libraries of Dr. Grahl and his neighbors. In Sunbury, he met and got to know Lorenzo da Ponte , a librettist for Mozart and other composers. In December 1813, Simon visited Philadelphia with him. Soon after his 17th birthday, Cameron apprenticed himself as a printer with Andrew Kennedy, publisher of the Sunbury and Northumberland Gazette and Republican Advertiser . In 1817, Kennedy, who had suffered financial troubles, released Cameron from his indentures, and he went to Harrisburg , where he indentured himself to James Peacock, publisher of
6500-560: The lobby of his hotel, and at his room. Tired of this, he hinted he might keep holdovers from the Buchanan cabinet rather than appoint Cameron. Cameron's opponents in Pennsylvania, likely out of fear the state would go unrepresented in the cabinet, dropped their opposition to him. When Lincoln stopped in Philadelphia, a group of supporters of Governor Curtin told him that Curtin now supported Cameron's cabinet bid. Lincoln still made no decision until after he reached Washington, D.C., when after much soul-searching he decided to appoint Cameron to
6600-449: The minimum, Davis and others pledged that Cameron would be treated as generously as if he had supported Lincoln from the start. William Herndon , Lincoln's law partner, later wrote that Davis and his fellow managers "negotiated with the Indiana and Pennsylvania delegations and assigned places in the cabinet to Simon Cameron and Caleb Smith , beside making other ‘arrangements’ which [Davis] expected Mr. Lincoln to ratify. Of this he [Lincoln]
6700-457: The nation's transportation infrastructure, financed by high tariffs, policies Cameron supported. By the time the administration lost control of Congress in 1827, Cameron began to gravitate away from Adams and towards Jackson. In doing so, Cameron followed a new political ally, Pennsylvania Congressman James Buchanan . His support for Jackson in his successful run for the presidency in 1828 was only lukewarm. Cameron's support for Jackson grew in
6800-552: The newspaper to Adolph Ochs . He lost much of his fortune in the stock market but was able to obtain an appointment as prothonotary of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania . He also worked to heal sectional divisions between Union and former Confederate forces, including participating at the unveiling of the monument to Confederate General George Pickett at the Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia . In 1886 McClure wrote The South: Its Industrial, Financial, and Political Condition , which included material on race relations in
6900-466: The other contenders, former representative Abraham Lincoln of Illinois, played down suggestions Lincoln might take second place on a ticket led by Cameron, Lincoln's supporters discussed the possibility of Cameron as vice presidential candidate, hoping it might win the crucial state of Pennsylvania. The year also would see elections for governor of Pennsylvania, and for a legislature that would choose who would fill Senator Bigler's seat. In February 1860,
7000-555: The party state convention endorsed Cameron as Pennsylvania's favorite son candidate for the Republican nomination for president, and chose Andrew Curtin as gubernatorial candidate. There was a strong dislike between the two men, and their supporters, but no one wanted a breach within the party. Curtin had little appetite for a deal between Cameron and Seward, since if Seward headed the ticket, his unpopularity in Pennsylvania might affect Curtin's own election. In mid-March, Cameron told Seward that he wanted to meet with Weed in advance of
7100-410: The people of Pennsylvania had no desire to interfere with slavery in Southern states where it was legal. Cameron's view on slavery prior to 1861 was that it should be the decision of each state or territory whether to be slave or free, but he sought to guard Pennsylvania's interest by limiting the spread of slavery. He expected that in due course, Southern states would themselves abolish slavery. Polk
7200-501: The president's first term, though he was busy with his involvement in banking, founding the Bank of Middletown, and canal and railroad construction. Jackson found Cameron to be a useful lieutenant in Pennsylvania. The president had originally pledged to serve only one term, in changing his mind he enlisted Cameron to get the Pennsylvania legislature to pass a resolution urging him to change his mind and run again in 1832. Calhoun had broken with
7300-417: The president-elect's conduct, but did and said nothing publicly, and in fact arranged for Lincoln and his family to use a luxurious Pennsylvania Railroad car for the journey to Washington. In early January, after meeting with Chase, who he wanted in the cabinet, Lincoln told two of his advisers, "I am in a quandary. Pennsylvania is entitled to a cabinet office. [Lincoln had received] hundreds of letters, and
7400-483: The president-elect's law office and then at the senator's hotel. Both men were personable in nature, and the meetings were enjoyable; at their conclusion, Lincoln offered Cameron a place in the cabinet, either as Secretary of the Treasury or of War. At Cameron's request, Lincoln gave him the offer in writing, which he regretted soon thereafter, as no sooner had Cameron left town, that a fresh flood of anti-Cameron communications came to him, and he met with Alexander McClure ,
7500-429: The presidential candidate, pledging that Pennsylvania would vote for him, and "the state is for you and we all have faith in your good intentions to stand by her interests". Cameron also sent a contribution of $ 800 to Davis. To establish his soundness on the tariff question, which was important in Pennsylvania, Lincoln had Davis show Cameron excerpts from speeches he had given in the 1840s; Cameron wrote to Lincoln that he
7600-424: The presidential election was over, Republicans considered how to obtain the Democratic votes needed to gain the senatorship. Cameron had the support of Representatives David Wilmot and Thaddeus Stevens of Pennsylvania, who were convinced Cameron could win. Cameron kept his plans as quiet as possible; unnerved by rumors and the memories of Cameron's controversial victory in 1845, Democrats nominated John W. Forney ,
7700-573: The rank of major on September 6, 1862. He was tasked with raising seventeen Pennsylvania regiments for induction into the U.S. Army and served until he resigned his commission on February 27, 1863. During the U.S. Civil War , Confederate forces threatened McClure's home in Chambersburg several times. McClure was captured but released when General J.E.B. Stuart entered Chambersburg on his raid around McClellan's army in October 1862. The following July, Confederates under then Colonel Eppa Hunton crossed
7800-523: The rank, which he used as a title throughout his life, of general. With his appointment to that position, Cameron, who had sold his stake in the Intelligencer and brought one in the Pennsylvania Reporter and Democratic Herald , divested himself of his interest in the printing trade and ceased to be an active journalist, though he ensured his state contracts would be transferred to his brother James. Shulze also awarded Cameron contracts for
7900-405: The residence time for immigrants to gain citizenship. To the outrage of the mainstream Democratic Party, on March 13, 1845, Cameron was elected on the fifth ballot with 66 votes (including 16 from Democrats), to 55 for Woodward, and six votes scattered. Cameron began his first term in the Senate with little long-term support in the legislature, since he was alienated from many of the Democrats and
8000-488: The senatorial election was postponed, effectively until the next legislature met in 1856, allowed Governor James Pollock to make a temporary appointment. When the 1856 legislature met, the Democrats had a majority, and Cameron did not attempt to win the seat, which went to Bigler. The various factions that opposed the Democrats and the Kansas-Nebraska Act began to coalesce by 1856 into what became known as
8100-500: The state House of Representatives, although Democrats maintained a one-vote majority in the state Senate, Democrats previously had a majority of Pennsylvania's seats in the federal House of Representatives; they were reduced to five out of twenty-five seats. Cameron's influence in Harrisburg allowed him to choose the new officers of the state House, and continued victories in the 1859 state elections magnified his status in Pennsylvania. A persistent opponent of slavery, Cameron switched to
8200-410: The state legislature in 1850, and Cameron hoped to succeed Sturgeon in the election the following January, but failed to gain enough votes. Nevertheless, the new senator, Richard Brodhead , soon became a political ally of Cameron. Cameron and Buchanan continued to grow apart, even as Buchanan prepared to seek the 1852 Democratic presidential nomination. In 1850, trying to diminish any southern support
8300-422: The third parties intrusted with the certificates; but the charges ... remain unproved". The impression of corruption long clouded Cameron's reputation, with his enemies mocking him, to his anger, as the "Great Winnebago Chief". Somewhat shunned after the Winnebago affair, Cameron continued to support Buchanan. The defeat of Van Buren for re-election in 1840 divided Pennsylvania Democrats into those who backed
8400-514: The third, on which Lincoln was nominated, Lincoln's Pennsylvania vote increased to 52. The understanding between Lincoln's backers and Cameron's became public almost at once, with one newspaper printing that the senator had been promised the Treasury Department . In the campaign, Cameron was a strong supporter of Lincoln, stating that he welcomed Lincoln's nomination "in a most cordial and emphatic manner". In August, Cameron wrote to
8500-464: The third-largest circulation in the city, with 32,500 copies sold daily. Though the Public Ledger maintained its circulation lead through the end of the 19th century, the Times effectively competed with its older rival, and in 1900 both papers claimed a daily circulation of about 70,000 copies. Adolph Ochs became proprietor and editor of the Times in 1901. The following year, he purchased
8600-494: The town was unable to pay ransom demanded by General Jubal Early , Confederates burned McClure's home, Norland along with much of the rest of the town, The home was rebuilt and sold to Wilson College . The building that housed the Franklin Repository newspaper operations was also destroyed in the blaze. In 1864, McClure moved to Philadelphia, opened a law office and helped Lincoln carry Pennsylvania again in
8700-699: The understanding made at the convention; his advisor, Leonard Swett , wrote to Cameron on November 27, 1860, that Lincoln was not bound by any such bargain. Swett sent a copy to the president-elect, who did nothing initially, but asked Weed for his view on Cameron on December 20. Cameron had reneged on his support for Seward, Weed's candidate, and Weed advised excluding Cameron in favor of a trustworthy Southerner . Cameron would not visit Lincoln's hometown of Springfield, Illinois without an invitation, and, after sending Swett to Pennsylvania to confer with him, Lincoln felt compelled to invite Cameron, who arrived on December 30, 1860. Others urged Lincoln to leave Cameron out of
8800-399: The vague assertions of corruption, became a hallmark of this scandal, and it is one of the reasons why it is so hard for historians to assess who was actually telling the truth." According to another biographer, Erwin S. Bradley, "briefly, Cameron's part in the Winnebago affair may be stated as follows: he did exceed his instructions and showed poor business acumen in failing to require bond of
8900-550: The way to the bill's enactment. A longtime supporter of the annexation of Texas , Cameron backed the declaration of war against Mexico and the Mexican–American War , He opposed, however, the annexation of land where slavery might flourish, and supported the Wilmot Proviso (introduced by Pennsylvania Congressman David Wilmot ) which would ban slavery from lands gained from Mexico. At the same time, he stated that
9000-751: Was a tailor and tavern keeper in Maytown, but was less than successful in those occupations. In 1808, he moved from Lancaster County north to Sunbury , in Northumberland County , but within two years was living alone with his wife in Lewisburg . He died in January 1811, and his children then boarded with other families. Simon was sent to live with the family of Dr. Peter Grahl, a Jewish physician in Sunbury. The Grahls, childless, treated him like their son, and he expanded his rudimentary education in
9100-683: Was an American businessman and politician who represented Pennsylvania in the United States Senate and served as United States Secretary of War under President Abraham Lincoln at the start of the American Civil War . A native of Maytown, Pennsylvania , Cameron made a fortune in railways, canals, and banking. He was elected to the United States Senate as a member of the Democratic Party in 1845. A persistent opponent of slavery , Cameron briefly joined
9200-461: Was born on January 9, 1828, in Sherman's Valley , Perry County, Pennsylvania , to Alexander and Isabella Anderson McClure. He grew up on a farm and received little formal education. At the age of fourteen, he moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and apprenticed as a tanner . He traveled west as far as Iowa but returned to Pennsylvania after failing in the tannery business. He worked as a printer at
9300-532: Was elected, and made Senator Henry Clay of Kentucky his successor at the State Department. In that capacity, Clay was responsible for selecting three printers in each state to print the laws and resolutions of Congress, and since Cameron was not known as an ardent Jacksonian, his firm became one of the official printers. Cameron corresponded extensively with Clay, offering him political advice on Pennsylvania affairs. Adams advocated internal improvements to
9400-595: Was named as one of the two commissioners, and in August 1838, journeyed to Prairie du Chien , Wisconsin Territory . There, they adjudicated the traders' claims, and also those of people of part-Native American blood who sought compensation. Many of the latter were represented by whites, and there were allegations of abuses, both at the time and since, though documentary evidence was never presented. According to Cameron biographer Paul Kahan, "the lack of evidence, coupled with
9500-569: Was not a candidate for re-election in 1848, and Secretary of State Buchanan sought the Democratic presidential nomination. Cameron was a delegate from Pennsylvania to the 1848 Democratic National Convention and in common with the state's other delegates, supported Buchanan on each ballot. The nomination went to Michigan Senator Lewis Cass , and Cameron was accused of working behind the scenes to defeat Buchanan. The Whigs nominated General Zachary Taylor of Louisiana for president, with his running mate former congressman Millard Fillmore of New York. In
9600-667: Was not a delegate to the 1835 Democratic National Convention , Cameron supported the nomination of Van Buren for president and Congressman Richard M. Johnson of Kentucky for vice president, and campaigned for them; both were elected. Still seeking a federal position, he asked Buchanan for help being appointed a commissioner under the 1837 treaty with the Winnebago Indians , who ceded land in exchange for payments to tribe members as well as to those who had part-Native American descent. The commissioners were to pass on claims by traders to whom recipients were said to owe money. Cameron
9700-548: Was not successful, but the following year, Cameron prevailed on Jackson to give Pennsylvania's senior senator, William Wilkins , a diplomatic post, opening a seat that Buchanan might fill. His success in getting Buchanan elected on the fourth ballot pleased both the new senator and Vice President Van Buren, and increased his influence in Washington. Nevertheless, when Cameron sought appointment by Jackson in 1835 as governor of Michigan Territory , he did not get it. Although he
9800-436: Was pleased with their content. Cameron also campaigned for Curtin, though antagonism between the two continued. On October 9, 1860, Pennsylvania state elections were held. Curtin was easily elected, and Republicans increased their margins in both houses of the legislature. This meant that Senator Bigler would almost certainly be replaced by a Republican, and if Cameron resigned to accept high office, his successor would also be
9900-489: Was undoubtedly unaware." According to Bradley, Cameron could not have delivered the delegation to Seward had he wanted to, given the opposition to the New Yorker in the state. On the first ballot, a divided Pennsylvania delegation came together to cast 47 1 / 2 votes of 54 for Cameron, as Seward had a plurality, with Lincoln behind him and Cameron third. On the second ballot, Lincoln received 48 votes from Pennsylvania, as he almost erased Seward's lead. On
10000-467: Was viewed by the Whigs as the lesser evil to Woodward, to be replaced in better times. Alleging that Cameron had gained the seat by corrupt means, the Democratic caucus sent letters to Vice President George M. Dallas (a Pennsylvanian) and also to Buchanan. The two officials, in their replies, refrained from attacking Cameron personally, though they decried the lack of party loyalty which made his election possible. Although nothing came of this, it added to
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