A collection of family correspondence related to Leonard Swett, Illinois lawyer and advisor to President Abraham Lincoln.

Leonard Swett (1825-1889) was born in Maine and educated at Waterville College; he married Laura R. Quigg on July 20, 1854 and their son, Leonard Herbert Swett, was born in 1859. Leonard Swett was an active worker in Illinois politics and elected to the state legislature in 1858; he was also a friend and advisor of Abraham Lincoln. Swett was employed in legal work in government cases, the best known being the California quick-silver litigation in 1863. In 1865 Swett moved to Chicago, where he became a prominent civil and criminal lawyer. After the death of his first wife, Swett married his law office manager, Marie A. H. Decker on July 14, 1887; Swett died in Chicago on June 8, 1889.

2.67 Linear Feet (4 boxes)

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