Chicago Civil War Roundtable March 2017 - Paul Kahan: Simon Cameron, Lincoln's 1st Sec of War

Simon Cameron (1799–1889) was one of the nineteenth century’s most prominent political figures. From abject poverty, he rose to undisputed political boss of Pennsylvania, Lincoln’s secretary of war, senator, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and a founder of the Republican Party. In his wake, however, he left a series of questionable political and business dealings and, at the age of eighty, even a sex scandal.

In the popular mind, Simon Cameron is chiefly remembered for two things, his breathtaking personal corruption and a dismal record of incompetence as Abraham Lincoln's first Secretary of War.

On March 10th Cameron’s latest biographer, Paul Kahan, will contend that both conclusions are grossly oversimplified. In Kahan's view, there is much to admire in Cameron, who rose to the heights of state and national power, demonstrating along the way strong loyalty to friends and allies while spending an entire political career tirelessly promoting the interests of his home state of Pennsylvania. An anti-slavery moderate, he was also comparatively liberal on race.

Paul Kahan is a lecturer at Ohlone College in Fremont, California. Dr. Kahan earned a Ph.D. in U.S. history from Temple University, an M.A. in Modern American History & Literature from Drew University and B.A.s in history and English (with minors in medieval/Renaissance studies and music) from Alfred University. In 2008, Dr. Kahan published his first book, Eastern State Penitentiary: A History. His most recent book, Amiable Scoundrel: Simon Cameron, Lincoln's Scandalous Secretary of War, was published in 2016. Kirkus called it "A fine political biography" while the San Francisco Book Review said it was "Essential for any Civil War historian’s library."

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