Stanton, Edwin McMasters (1814-1869), an American statesman, served as secretary of war in the Cabinet of President Abraham Lincoln. Stanton later played a major part in the impeachment of President Andrew Johnson.
Stanton was born on Dec. 19, 1814, in Steubenville, Ohio, and was educated at Kenyon College. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1836. In 1856, he settled in Washington, D.C., and argued many cases before the Supreme Court. President James Buchanan appointed him attorney general in 1860, and President Lincoln made him secretary of war two years later.
Stanton was outspoken, and he made many enemies. As secretary of war, he sometimes quarreled with Lincoln. But despite his many conflicts, Stanton was recognized as an efficient manager of the Department of War.
When Andrew Johnson became President, he and Stanton clashed repeatedly over the treatment of the South. Stanton cooperated with Johnson’s enemies in Congress, and when Johnson removed Stanton from the office of secretary of war, the House of Representatives impeached the President. Johnson was acquitted by one vote, and Stanton finally left office in May 1868 (see Johnson, Andrew (Increased tension) ). Stanton died four days after being appointed to the Supreme Court by President Ulysses S. Grant. He died on Dec. 24, 1869.
