Lewis Clephane
American abolitionist, politician under Lincoln, and civic leader in Washington, D.C. / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lewis Clephane was an American politician, businessman, and civic leader in 19th-century Washington, D.C. Clephane was an organizer and co-founder of the Republican Party, early abolitionist, and Postmaster of Washington, D.C., appointed by Abraham Lincoln. Lewis Clephane co-founded the National Republican (newspaper) with his company, Lewis Clephane & Co., serving as publisher. He is known as the "Pioneer Washington Republican"[1] and is best known for his 1889 retrospective address titled "The Birth of the Republican Party."[2] He is part of the Clephane family who were early settlers of Washington, D.C. His younger brother, James O. Clephane, is known as "Father of the Linotype" machine and provided instruction and financial backing to Ottmar Mergenthaler for the invention of the typewriter and similar mass-printing inventions. Lewis Clephane was also a co-founder of the Washington, D.C., arm of The Metropolitan Club.[3]
Born | March 13, 1824Washington, D.C. |
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Died | February 12, 1897 (aged 72)Washington, D.C. |
Role | Postmaster General,Publisher of National Republican |
Family | James O. Clephane |