Lot M. Morrill

Lot M. Morrill

Lot Myrick Morrill (May 3, 1813 – January 10, 1883) was an American statesman who served as the 28th Governor of Maine, in the United States Senate and as Secretary of the Treasury appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant. Morrill was an accomplished politician serving several elected and appointed offices throughout his lifetime. Morrill, as Secretary of Treasury, was devoted to hard currency rather than paper money and dedicated himself to serve the public good rather than party interests. Morrill was popularly received as Treasury Secretary in the American press and Wall Street, known for his financial and political integrity. Morrill was President Grant's fourth and last U.S. Secretary of Treasury.

A native of Maine, Morrill was educated in public school and after briefly attending Waterville College served as principle of a private school in New York. He studied law and passed the bar in 1839, afterwards setting up law practices in Readfield and Augusta, Maine. Morrill, known for his eloquent speaking, soon become popular among Democrat friends advocating temperance. Morrill was elected Maine's House of Representatives in 1854 as a Democrat and served as Chairman of the Maine's Democratic Party. However, as the nation divided over slavery during the 1850s, Morrill's politics changed and he went over to the Republican Party opposed to the expansion of slavery. He was elected Maine's state senator in 1856 as a Republican, and elected Governor of Maine in 1858, serving until 1861 during the outbreak of the American Civil War. Morrill was elected Maine's U.S. Senator in 1861 when a vacancy was opened in the U.S. Senate, after Sen. Hannibal Hamlin assumed the office of Vice President under President Abraham Lincoln. Morrill's extended tenor for almost 15 years as U.S. Senator took place during the Civil War and Reconstruction. Morrill sponsored legislation that outlawed slavery in Washington D.C. and advocated education and suffrage for African American freedman.

In 1876, Sen. Morrill was appointed U.S. Secretary of the Treasury by President Grant to fill in a vancancy after Sec. Benjamin Bristow resigned from office. His political rival James G. Blaine was appointed Maine's Senator after Morrill had retired from the Senate and accepted the position of Secretary of Treasury. Morrill's tenor was less than a year, and he was not able to pass any significant legislation. Upon his retirement from the Treasury Department, President Rutherford B. Hayes appointed Morrill to the Collector of Customs in Portland, Maine, where he held this position until his death in 1883.

Read more about Lot M. Morrill:  Early Life, State Political Career, Secretary of The Treasury, Later Career, Death, Famous Quotes By Senator Morrill

Famous quotes containing the word lot:

    No grand idea was ever born in a conference, but a lot of foolish ideas have died there.
    F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896–1940)