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ALMOST PRESIDENT: HANNIBAL HAMLIN, PART I

© John S. Cooper

Hannibal Hamlin missed being President by five weeks. Most history students know that Abraham Lincoln’s Vice President was Andrew Johnson, who became President when Lincoln was assassinated. But few know that Johnson was Vice President for only five weeks. The Vice President during the four years of Lincoln’s first term was Hannibal Hamlin. One of the first members of the Republican Party, Hamlin was dropped from the ticket in 1864 in favor of Johnson who would bring more votes to the difficult re-election campaign.

Hannibal Hamlin was born in Paris Hill, Maine on August 27,1809. His father, Cyrus Hamlin, was a physician who had graduated from Harvard. Hannibal grew up in prosperous surroundings, and had a good education. Always active physically, he was athletic as well as being an avid reader. After local public schools, he attended Hebron Academy.

His goal was to become a lawyer, but events conspired against him in this. His older brother, who helped their father run the farm, became ill. Hannibal had to leave school to take his older brother’s place on the farm. His father died shortly thereafter, and Hannibal was required to stay and take care of his mother until he came of age at twenty-one. When he became a legal adult, he left home and read law in the offices of Fessenden and Deblois under the guidance of the senior partner, Samuel C. Fessenden. Samuel Fessenden was the father of Hamlin’s future political rival, William Pitt Fessenden. Samuel Fessenden was an ardent abolitionist, and his influence led Hamlin to also become a strong abolitionist throughout his career. After becoming an attorney, Hamlin established his own law practice in 1833 and soon became the town attorney for Hampden, Maine.

Maine at that time was a solidly Democratic state and, accordingly, the ambitious Hamlin joined the Democratic Party. In 1835, he was elected to the state house of representatives. Hamlin quickly became a popular and respected member of the legislature. He gained a reputation for being able to maintain good relations with all members and get things done. In 1838, he was elected speaker of the Maine House of Representatives. While in the state legislature, he led the fight to abolish the death penalty. In spite of his efforts and influence, the death penalty in Maine was not eliminated until the 1880s.

In 1840, Hamlin ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives and lost. He ran again in the next election (which was actually not held until 1843 due to delays in completing the re-districting of the state after the census) and won. In Congress, Hamlin quickly joined the Jacksonian forces, and denounced Henry Clay’s economic program. In the House, Hamlin served as chairman of the Committee on Elections and also won a seat on the prestigious and powerful House Rules Committee. In one piece of very good luck, Hamlin missed sailing on the frigate U.S.S. Princeton, the Presidential yacht at the time, and so was not present when a demonstration of the new naval cannon called the Peacemaker went wrong. The cannon exploded, killing a number of important government officials, including the Secretary of State and the Secretary of the Navy. As a leading member of Congress, Hamlin would have occupied an honored position and might well have been among the casualties.

Hannibal Hamlin in his younger days

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