Edward McMasters Stanton served as U.S. attorney general from 1860 to 1861 under President James Buchanan. Buchanan, by then a lame duck president, appointed Stanton in hopes of convincing the southern states not to secede from the Union because of the election of Abraham Lincoln. Stanton went on to serve in the cabinets of Lincoln and Andrew Johnson, drawing controversy each time he served. His bid to become a Supreme Court justice was only prevented by his untimely death.

Stanton was born on December 19, 1814 in Steubenville, Ohio. After attending Kenyon College he decided to become a lawyer. Like most attorneys of his day, Stanton served a legal apprenticeship with a local Ohio attorney. Stanton performed clerical duties, researched the law and received tutoring from the attorney in the firm. He was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1836 and set up a solo practice in a small Ohio town. After...