| Frederick William Seward | |
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| In office March 6, 1861 – March 4, 1869 March 16, 1877 – October 31, 1879 |
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| Preceded by | William H. Trescot John Cadwalader |
| Succeeded by | J.C. Bancroft Davis John Hay |
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| Born | July 8 1830 Auburn, New York, U.S. |
| Died | April 25 1915 (aged 84) New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Anna Wharton Seward |
| Profession | Lawyer, Writer, Editor, Politician |
Frederick William Seward (July 8, 1830 – April 25, 1915) was the Assistant Secretary of State during the American Civil War, serving in Abraham Lincoln's administration as well as under Andrew Johnson during Reconstruction and for over two years under Rutherford B. Hayes.
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Early life and career
Seward was born in Auburn, New York, the son of United States Secretary of State William Henry Seward, Sr. and Frances Adeline Seward and older brother of General William Henry Seward, Jr.. He attended Union College and graduated in 1849 and was admitted to the bar in Rochester, New York in 1851. He served as a secretary to his father from 1849 to 1857 along with working the as associate editor of the Albany Evening Journal from 1851 to 1861.
Role in the Baltimore Plot of 1861
On February 21, 1861, Seward arrived at the Continental Hotel in Philadelphia carrying valuable information in the form of a letter from his father William Seward for President-elect, Abraham Lincoln. The letter contained information gathered by Colonel Charles P. Stone and General Winfield Scott. Colonel Charles P. Stone had stationed three detectives from the New York police department in Baltimore to gather any assassination plot information. Lincoln was making his way from Illinois to Washington D.C. for his inauguration. The next scheduled stop on his tour was supposed to be Baltimore, Maryland. According to information gathered by Colonel Charles P. Stone's three detectives, secessionists were plotting an assassination attempt on Lincoln's life during his stop in Baltimore. The information that Seward carried for Lincoln would be one of the contributing factors to Lincoln's decision to pass through Baltimore under the cover of night rather than make a public appearance. Although Allan Pinkerton also warned the President-elect of the dangers that awaited him in Baltimore, it was Seward's information that confirmed everyone's fears.
Civil War
When his father was appointed Secretary of State in 1861, Seward became Assistant Secretary of State in charge of consular service under Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson. He served this position until 1869.
Lewis Paine Incident
On April 14, 1865, Frederick Seward, serving as Secretary of State for his injured father at the time, as well as several others were injured when Lewis Powell a.k.a. "Lewis Paine" attempted to kill his father William Seward in his father's home. Powell was an associate of John Wilkes Booth and had been assigned to kill Secretary of State Seward to put the government into chaos since Vice President Andrew Johnson and President Lincoln were also to be killed that same evening. Powell entered the house by telling Seward's servant William Bell that he was there to deliver medicine. Fred Seward tried to get Powell to leave, suspecting that he was up to no good, but the assassin was determined to serve his duty and tried to shoot Frederick in the head. However, the gun failed to fire when the trigger was pulled and Powell quickly smashed the pistol over Seward's head, causing several skull injuries. Seward collapsed and fell to the floor at the top of the stairs. Powell then burst into William Seward's room and stabbed him several times in the face and neck. Powell also injured a number of other bystanders, including Fred's sister Fanny, his brother Augustus, his father's nurse Sergeant George F. Robinson and messenger Emerick Hansell, but no one was killed. Seward's mother was sure that he was going to die; instead, she died on June 21, 1865 of a heart attack. His sister, Fanny, too died the next year in October, 1866. Powell was hanged on the gallows on July 7, 1865, along with David Herold, George Atzerodt, and Mary Surratt, who were also involved in the conspiracy.
Later life and career
Frederick's father died on October 10, 1872. In 1874, Seward was elected to the New York State Assembly and once again served as Assistant Secretary of State under William M. Evarts from 1877 to 1879 during Rutherford B. Hayes' presidency. Frederick also edited and published his father's autobiography and letters. He married Anna Wharton of Albany, New York and spent the latter part of his life in a house he built in Montrose, New York. Mostly, his life after 1881 was devoted to the practice of his legal profession and to lecturing and writing. Seward died at the age of 85. He was intered with his family in Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn, New York. In 1916, a year after his death, his book Reminiscences of a War-Time Statesman and Diplomat, 1830-1915, a five-hundred page book about the Civil War and politics, was published by G.P. Putnam's Sons.
| Preceded by William H. Trescot |
United States Assistant Secretary of State March 6, 1861 – March 4, 1869 |
Succeeded by J.C. Bancroft Davis |
| Preceded by John Cadwalader |
United States Assistant Secretary of State March 16, 1877 – October 31, 1879 |
Succeeded by John Hay |
References
- Saving Mr. Lincoln: CIA Site by CIA 2007
- [1] Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, Volume 1, Ohio State University Online
- [2] The University of Rochester Library: Rare Books and Special Collections
