Simon Cameron
Simon Cameron (
1799 -
1889), born in
Maytown, Pennsylvania, was the
Secretary of War for
Abraham Lincoln. He became a
Whig Party member, and later became a member of the
United States Democratic Party, before being elected to replace
James Buchanan in the
Senate in 1845. He switched to the Republican party and was nominated for president, but gave his support for Lincoln at the Republican Convention of 1860. Lincoln, appreciative of Cameron's support, named him Secretary of War. Because of allegations of corruption, however, he was forced to resign early in 1862.