Were Lincoln and Ward Hill Lamon law "partners?"

[Rob Wick]

When practicing law, Lincoln had three law partners, John Todd Stuart, Stephen T. Logan, and William Herndon.

However, from time to time, I see it mentioned that Lincoln and Ward Hill Lamon were also law partners. Did they ever have a formal agreement of a partnership, or was the arrangement (if it existed) just in effect when Lincoln was trying a case in Danville? It seems that calling them partners was more an invention of either Lamon or Clint Clay Tilton to puff up Lamon's biography, but if that isn't the case, then why not say Lincoln had four law partners?

Best
Rob

[RJNorton]

Rob, I always thought this was more of an informal relationship, rather than a formal partnership. Lamon and Lincoln worked as co-counsels in many cases, but this was done more as legal associates rather than formal partners. Lamon worshiped Lincoln, so I wonder if their legal relationship...i.e. calling them partners... was really an embellishment (by Lamon) of actual fact. Perhaps Lamon told people Lincoln was his law partner when, in fact, they were really just associates in cases. I stand to be corrected on what I have said, as I am just going by my own impression of their relationship.

[LincolnMan]

I have heard that Lamon's book on Lincoln-written after the assassination is not reliable due to certain "embellishments" he took in the telling of the story. I have never read his book. Any input from Forum members on this?

[Rob Wick]

Roger,

I think you're right. I don't think Lincoln or Lamon ever had a formal partnership. Kind of like Lamon being Lincoln's bodyguard.

The reason I bring this up has to do with my work on Sandburg. One of the major claims against Sandburg was that he made several mistakes. While that was true to a point, I wonder if it hasn't been overblown. One of the things I want to do in my book is to compare other biographies of the time with Sandburg's and see how they compare.

I put Sandburg's mistakes into three categories. First is major mistakes, or mistakes that change the way the story is remembered. Second is minor mistakes, or mistakes that resulted from transcription errors or simple human frailties, and finally questions of interpretation, or some call it a mistake when in fact they disagree with the conclusion.

Best
Rob

[RJNorton]

Without looking it up, did Sandburg include the story of Lincoln not showing up for his own wedding? Based on what I have read that story is probably apocryphal.

[Rob Wick]

Roger,

Off the top of my head, I'm not sure. When I get home I'll look it up.

Best
Rob

[Donna McCreary]

The story of Lincoln not showing up for his own wedding is fiction -- pure fiction. However, Miss Todd was stood up at her wedding. No, not Mary Todd, but her sister Ann Todd. It has always been my theory that when the gossips of Springfield retold the story of Miss Todd being jilted, the 'historians' of the day assumed it was Mary Ann Todd.

[RJNorton]

Thank you, Donna! Did Herndon fabricate the story to hurt Mary?

P.S. Rob, I didn't word that very well. The reference to "without looking it up" was a reference to my own laziness in not going to look it up. I have since acquired the energy to get out of this chair and look it up. Sandburg writes, "The wedding was set for New Year's Day, 1841. In the kitchen of the Edwards house the wedding cakes were put in the oven. And then something happened. The bride was ready. The groom didn't come. It was a phantom wedding, mentioned in hushes. There was gossip and dispute about whether the wedding had been set for that date at all."

[Houmes]

(08-14-2012 03:28 PM)Rob Wick Wrote:  When practicing law, Lincoln had three law partners, John Todd Stuart, Stephen T. Logan, and William Herndon.

However, from time to time, I see it mentioned that Lincoln and Ward Hill Lamon were also law partners. Did they ever have a formal agreement of a partnership, or was the arrangement (if it existed) just in effect when Lincoln was trying a case in Danville? It seems that calling them partners was more an invention of either Lamon or Clint Clay Tilton to puff up Lamon's biography, but if that isn't the case, then why not say Lincoln had four law partners?

Best
Rob

Lincoln and Lamon were not established legal partners. They frequently joined forces when Lincoln was in the area during his circuit work. Lamon was quite proud of this relationship, even advertising a notice in the local Iroquois Journal July 6, 1853, that "Lincoln & Lamon, Attorneys at Law, having formed a co-partnership, will practice..." Lincoln was supposedly amused and did not object. Lamon even had business cards printed with the same information--if you compare the card with the newspaper advertisement, it's clearly the same ad only printed on a business card. They have a framed card at Lamon's house in Danville, IL.

[Rob Wick]

Roger,

I knew what you meant. I didn't think this was a trivia question.

But your example is a good one. Could we register this as a mistake that Sandburg made up from whole cloth? No, since it didn't originate with him. Can we say Sandburg was too gullible in accepting Herndon's word? Ida Tarbell and William E. Barton disagreed with it, but in Tarbell's case much of that came about because of her intense dislike of Herndon.

Albert J. Beveridge, on the other hand, accepts it, and points out that Elizabeth Edwards made the comment three times, only to be shushed by her husband when she was talking to Jesse Weik about it. Of course, Beveridge wanted use of the Herndon-Weik papers since he could not get past Robert Todd Lincoln to use Lincoln's papers.

This, I believe, fits into my third category, as an interpretative question. Given the evidence available to him in 1924-1926, Sandburg could have gone either way, but chose to believe Herndon. Maybe it was for the drama, but I think at the time it still could be considered an honest interpretation.

Oh, and thanks Blaine for your information. I sincerely appreciate it.

Best
Rob

[Rogerm]

Rob. Did Sandburg ever meet Robert Lincoln?

[LincolnMan]

Rob: I think I remember Sandburg saw RTL at Knox College. Am I correct? Sandburg was pretty young. I don't know if they "met" per se. Rob?

[Donna McCreary]

(08-15-2012 11:17 AM)Donna McCreary Wrote:  The story of Lincoln not showing up for his own wedding is fiction -- pure fiction. However, Miss Todd was stood up at her wedding. No, not Mary Todd, but her sister Ann Todd. It has always been my theory that when the gossips of Springfield retold the story of Miss Todd being jilted, the 'historians' of the day assumed it was Mary Ann Todd.

I am going to move this topic to the "Mary and the Boy" section -- especially since Roger inquired about Herndon.

[Rob Wick]

Sandburg was in the crowd when RTL spoke at Galesburg, but I know of no meetings between them. I asked Jason Emerson if he ever saw any correspondence between Sandburg and RTL in the 1920s, and he said that he never did, which goes along with what I've found looking in the finding aid for Sandburg's papers.

Best
Rob

[LincolnMan]

Well, at least Sandburg laid his eyes on him!