Two 19th Century lives established Logan County, changed Illinois and the U.S. for the better

 

[January 09, 2019] 

LINCOLN 

Chuck McCue knows a few things about central Illinois and Logan County in the 19th century, and the unique people who inhabited it.

That is why the Logan County Genealogical and Historical Society invited him to address their annual holiday meeting held on November 19th at the Blue Dog Inn.

McCue’s topic was Richard J. Oglesby, a resident of central Illinois, contemporary and friend of Abraham Lincoln.

McCue served twenty years in the Air Force, spent time in Elkhart living on Governor Oglesby Street, volunteers at the Mount Pulaski courthouse. He has also been involved in restoring the Daughters of the American Revolution “Lincoln Circuit Markers Program.” The DAR placed markers throughout central Illinois early in the 20th Century to mark locations where Mr. Lincoln practiced law.

Chuck McCue likes to say that Richard Oglesby and Abraham Lincoln lived parallel lives.

Like Abraham Lincoln, Richard Oglesby and his family migrated to Illinois from Kentucky. Oglesby was born in 1824, fifteen years after Mr. Lincoln’s birth in 1809. Even though there was an age difference, during their political activity in Illinois later in the 19th Century, they were often referred to as “the boys from Kentucky,” two men whose combined political savvy changed the course of American history.

Abraham Lincoln was born into poverty. Richard Oglesby was born into wealth and privilege.

In 1832, Abraham Lincoln lived in New Salem, and was a member and leader in a militia unit. Richard Oglesby’s parents died in 1832, and he came to Decatur to live with an uncle.

It is as if a magnet was drawing the two men's lives together. They first met in 1840 when Lincoln was in the state legislature and a lawyer. Oglesby was then sixteen years old and a junior Whig, attending the Whig party convention, where he met Abraham Lincoln.

The Whig party was the predecessor of the Republican Party.

Earlier in his life Lincoln studied law as an apprentice. Richard Oglesby studied law in the same manner with a mentor in Springfield.

Richard Oglesby practiced law on the Eighth Judicial Circuit in Sullivan. Lincoln rode the entire Eighth Judicial Circuit as part of his law practice. Their lives continued to grow closer in a parallel track.

After a few years of legal apprenticeship, Oglesby returned to Kentucky to attend a formal law school. He was acclaimed in his home state, and was eventually elected Chief Justice to the Kentucky Supreme Court.

Richard Oglesby and Abraham Lincoln parted ways in 1846. Mr. Lincoln was then elected to the U.S. Congress, and opposed the hot button issue of the time, the Mexican War, while Oglesby enlisted in the military and was deployed to Mexico to fight.

Mr. Lincoln was castigated for his stance opposing the war and lost a re-election bid in 1848. Oglesby distinguished himself in the military at the battle of Cerro Gordo.

After the war, Abraham Lincoln rode the Eighth Judicial Circuit as a lawyer, while Oglesby succumbed to the lure of quick riches during the California Gold Rush.

Oglesby struck it rich in the gold fields right away. Instead of remaining in California, Oglesby filled the need for supplies and a dependable mail system for the 49ers by setting up a successful general store and mail service. He became even wealthier.

Lincoln continued to ride the circuit.

Oglesby returned to Decatur in 1852 to resume his law practice. But the wanderlust overcame him once again, and he headed off for an extended stay touring Europe. He met heads of state and famous Americans such as Mark Twain and Samuel Colt. His experience observing European governments headed by royalty confirmed his belief that America had the true answer to a fair government.

The lives of Oglesby and Lincoln really meshed during the later years of the 1850’s.

The Whig party no longer represented the progressive views of Lincoln and Oglesby. They were among the first members of the newly formed Republican Party. In the late 1850’s Lincoln’s mentor and friend David Davis wanted Mr. Lincoln to run for President. Richard Oglesby was selected to run the Lincoln for President effort. He took part in the Decatur State Republican Convention and then was instrumental in the Chicago National Convention that finally nominated Mr. Lincoln for President.

Oglesby was the marketing genius who came up with the “Railsplitter” idea to define Mr. Lincoln as a man of the people. “It is said that Oglesby sold pieces of the logs that Lincoln was purported to have split, more logs than Lincoln could have split in a lifetime, to fund the campaign,” said Chuck McCue with a laugh.

Oglesby also was elected in 1860 to a term in the Senate.

He soon resigned to enlist in the Union Army during the Civil War. He once again distinguished himself as a brilliant military officer and strategist. When he was wounded, his friend in the White House arranged a special train to take him home to Illinois to recover.

Richard Oglesby was first elected Governor of Illinois in 1864.

While in office, Governor Oglesby traveled to Washington D.C. to visit with his friend the President. On the evening of April 14, 1865, President Lincoln invited his good friend Richard Oglesby to attend the performance of “Our American Cousin” at Ford’s Theater with him. Oglesby had other plans for the evening, and declined. The rest is history.

Oglesby was by the President’s side when he passed away on the morning of April 15th.

When Richard Oglesby’s first term as Illinois Governor ended, he did not seek reelection due to the trauma of his wife’s death. He did run again in 1872 and won. His term was short lived as he resigned to take an appointment to the U.S. Senate.

His Senate term seemed to bore him, so he took off to the silver fields of Colorado hoping to repeat the good fortune he had in the California Gold Rush. It was not to be, and he returned to Illinois having lost a substantial part of his fortune.

In 1884, he ran for governor again and won, thus making him the only man to be Illinois governor in three non-consecutive terms.

Chuck McCue discussed Richard Oglesby’s legacy as an Illinois politician. As governor, he worked hard to eliminate the Illinois black laws, the discriminatory laws that made Illinois treatment of African Americans harsh and unfair. Richard Oglesby supported the union members who fought for their rights in the Haymarket Riot in Chicago against unfair labor laws. He remained true to the ideals of his friend Abraham Lincoln.

Richard Oglesby died in 1899 after an accident. He was honored at his funeral with some of the largest crowds ever seen for an Illinois leader. To add to his stellar reputation in Illinois, his coffin was draped with the same American flag that covered the coffin of his good friend Abraham Lincoln.

Chuck McCue concluded his discussion by reiterating that Abraham Lincoln and Richard Oglesby, the boys from Kentucky, had a profound effect on Illinois and the United States during their lifetimes, and on each other. Both were born in Kentucky, both moved to Illinois, both became lawyers and served in the military, both became successful politicians, and both were honored in their passing. They also left their marks on central Illinois and Logan County, having lived and worked in our neck of the woods for most of their lives.

The Logan County Genealogical and Historical Society regular monthly meetings are on the third Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at the research facility across from the Lincoln Depot. They invite interesting speakers from the area with presentations about central Illinois history. The public is always welcome.

[Curtis Fox]