The Civil War Governor

Richard Yates moved from Kentucky to Jacksonville in 1831 and four years later became the first graduate of Illinois College. He and Abraham Lincoln admired Henry Clay, actively supported the Whig Party, and strongly opposed Stephen A. Douglas and his Kansas-Nebraska Act, with Yates calling Lincoln's speech against the act the strongest he had ever heard on the subject. Yates served in the Illinois House and the U.S. House of Representatives, but he is best known as the Radical Republican governor of Illinois during the Civil War. Called the Soldier's Friend, he worked to keep Illinois soldiers well equipped, visited and encouraged Illinois troops, and twice traveled by steamboat to support the sick and wounded at Pittsburg Landing. In 1860, both Lincoln and Yates ran on the Republican ticket, Lincoln for president and Yates for governor, and Yates received 1,000 more votes in Illinois than Lincoln, helping his friend carry the state. Under Yates, Illinois raised more troops for the Civil War than any other state. He supported Lincoln's war policies and independently sent the Illinois militia to St. Louis to take possession of the arsenal for the Union Army. Peace Democrats in the Illinois legislature opposed him, and House Democrats refused to support his efforts to raise troops for the Union Army. In response to this constant opposition, Yates prorogued the legislature and suspended the General Assembly, leaving the House Democrats unable to act even though they remained for two weeks. After the Civil War, Yates became a member of the U.S. Senate, and he was among the last persons with whom Lincoln visited on the day before his death.

Jacksonville, Illinois · United States