John Nicolay, Lincoln’s Chief of Staff, Influential Immigrant Leader

       This is the fourth extract from my book, “Civil War Immigrant Leaders,” about a man who was at Abraham Lincoln’s side throughout his presidency. The book can be purchased at: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Gene-Schmiel/author/B00HV4SSWK

John G. Nicolay, Lincoln’s private secretary during his presidency, was a German immigrant who first met Lincoln as a clerk in the Office of the Illinois State Secretary. Lincoln came to like Nicolay and eventually appointed him as secretary during his presidential campaign of 1860 and then as his private secretary in the White House. In the latter role, Nicolay would become a de facto White House chief of staff. Along with future Secretary of State John Hay, the two young men had immense influence in the White House making Nicolay arguably the most powerful immigrant leader during the Civil War. 

       Nicolay was born in Bavaria in 1832, and he and his family emigrated to the U.S. six years later.  The family lived in Ohio and Indiana for a time before settling in Pike County, Illinois, where they operated a flour mill.  When Nicolay’s father died in 1846, their neighbor Zachariah Garbut, editor of the newspaper, the Pike County Free Press, became a father figure and hired Nicolay as an apprentice.  Over time Nicolay rose to leadership at the newspaper, which supported the new Republican Party, including a rising party leader, Abraham Lincoln.  Nicolay sold the paper in 1856, and in 1858 he became secretary of state of the Illinois government in Springfield. 

During his time in Springfield, Nicolay developed a close relationship with Lincoln, who in 1860 appointed him as his personal secretary, a position he would hold until Lincoln died.  Along with Hay and a few other subordinates, Nicolay would play the role which today hundreds play in running the White House and managing the Executive Office of the President.  Nicolay and Hay were the gatekeepers and the order writers, and Nicolay often was also sent on special missions. 

After his tenure in the White House, Nicolay became a consul in the U.S. embassy in Paris for four years.  From 1872 to 1887 he was marshal of the U.S. Supreme Court, a sinecure which allowed him to work with Hay on the organization of Lincoln’s public papers and the writing of a ten-volume biography of the deceased president, published in the 1890’s.  This work is the basis for much of the popular understanding of Lincoln and his presidency. 

Below is a photo of, from left, Nicolay, Lincoln, and Hay taken during the presidency.