Lamon, Ward Hill

By 1852 [Ward Lamon] had become the Danville law partner of Abraham Lincoln and, together with other circuit-riding attorneys, including William Herndon and David Davis, was an intimate friend of the future president. Lamon was described by Stephen Oates as a "legendary boozer, who spent much of his time in the saloon under his office, where he sang lewd and comic songs" and by David Donald as one "famous for his rendition of Southern songs, for his wide assortment of smutty jokes, for his vocabulary of profanity, and for his capacity for liquor." Lamon remained close to Lincoln until his assassination in 1865. He helped organize Lincoln's 1858 senatorial campaign against Stephen Douglas and his 1860 presidential campaign. In February 1861 Lamon undertook to serve as Lincoln's bodyguard, replete with "two revolvers, two derringers, and two large knives," as the president-elect was secretly transported to Washington prior to his inauguration.