John G. Nicolay met Abraham Lincoln in the fall of 1856 while serving as editor of the county paper in Pittsfield. The town was in intense political excitement during a large meeting for which Nicolay served on the committee. Two notable speakers, Lincoln and Trumbull, had been scheduled so that only one would appear in each county among the 100 counties to be covered, but through a misunderstanding both arrived in Pittsfield. Nicolay watched as Trumbull greeted the stranger, who was Lincoln, and as a committee member he was presented to both men before the speeches began. After that first brief handshake and word of greeting on the speakers' platform, Nicolay became an ardent personal follower of Abraham Lincoln.