Gideon Welles Correspondence, 1865-1878 | Illinois History and Lincoln Collections

Scope and Contents:

The collection is comprised of correspondence discussing suffrage in the south, the rights of formerly enslaved African Americans, the disorder of government administration following the Civil War, and other topics. Correspondents include Charles Sumner, Edward Bates, Montgomery Blair, James C. Wellington, and Orville Hickman Browning. The collection also includes a letter to Welles from D. Kaine regarding Abraham Lincoln's ancestry, and a letter from Orville Hickman Browning to Welles's wife after his death.

Biographical/Historical Context:

Gideon Welles (1802-1878) was a newspaper editor and politician from Connecticut. He served as U.S. Secretary of the Navy under Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson.

Acquisition Source: These items are photostats of original letters from the Gideon Welles Papers at the Library of Congress.