Profiles Index

Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois, Debated Lincoln and Defended Slavery
Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois is best remembered for the famed Lincoln-Douglas debates, but he was also one of the most influential figures in the US government in the 1850s, and played a crucial role in legislation that propelled the United States toward the Civil War.

Horace Greeley, Brilliantly Eccentric Editor of the New York Tribune
Horace Greeley, founded and editor of the New York Tribune, was one of the most influential Americans of the 1800s. He battled against slavery, supported various reform causes, and even ran as a major candidate for president.