"All the Good I Can"
A Portrait of William Henry Seward

October 18 - December 23, 2001

William Henry Seward was one of the most enlightened and courageous political visionaries of nineteenth-century America. He played a central role in advancing the cause of human rights and human dignity, his efforts helped secure the outcome of the Civil War, and he was critical in shaping the geographic and commercial destinies of our republic. A lawyer all his life, Seward was drawn to politics at an early age, and served as New York state senator, New York state governor, United States senator, and Secretary of State.

Seward was a leader of the Anti-Slavery movement, a pioneer in prison reform, a champion of humane treatment for the insane, a friend of the immigrant, a progressive on education, and a strong advocate of infrastructure improvements, including canals, railroads, and telegraphs. In the months before the Civil War he worked tirelessly to keep the Union intact and avert the impending crisis. He was one of President Lincoln's closest confidants and as Secretary of State, he played a critical role in keeping Britain from involvement in the Civil War on the Confederate side. Surviving an assassination attempt the night Lincoln was killed, Seward continued to serve as Secretary of State for Andrew Johnson. During this time, he negotiated the purchase of Alaska, attempted the purchase of other territories, strengthened good relations with Latin America, pushed for expanded commerce with Asia, and advocated the building of a canal through Panama and a transcontinental railroad.

There have been few American leaders as complex as William Henry Seward – by turns both idealistic and pragmatic, shrewd and indiscreet, charming and obstreperous. His apparent inconsistencies may have cost him the recognition he deserves. Although he belongs among the familiar pantheon of nineteenth-century American history – Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Susan B. Anthony, Frederick Douglass, Daniel Webster, Harriet Tubman, Robert E. Lee, Henry Clay, Ulysses S. Grant – he is often overlooked. However, his legacy of political accomplishment stands as a reminder of his enduring importance to American history.

    Frances Adeline Seward and
   William Henry Seward,
   J.C. Buttre engravings from
   William Henry Seward: An Autobiography (1891)
    courtesyof Schaffer Library,Union College

Prominent Candidates for the Republican
Presidential Nomination at Chicago
May 12, 1860
engraving from Harper's Weekly
courtesy of Special Collections, Schaffer Library, Union College

The Big Thing, April 20, 1867 engraving from Harper's Weekly
courtesy of Special Collections, Schaffer Library, Union College

Attempted Assassination of Wm. H. Seward C. 1865
from Trial of the Assassins and Conspirators for the Murder
of Abraham Lincoln       
courtesy of Special Collections, Schaffer Library, Union College

Letter from Abraham Lincoln to W. H. Seward, December 8, 1860
ink on paper
courtesy of Rare Books, Special Collections and Preservation, University of Rochester Library

Dedicated to the memory of Ruth Anne Evans
Professor Emerita, Union College 1924 - 2001

This exhibition is dedicated to the memory of Ruth Anne Evans, a Union college librarian from 1952 until her retirement in 1989. While working at the library, Ruth Anne held various positions including cataloger, acting librarian, and assistant librarian. In 1973 she was made full professor and was the first woman on the union College faculty to be given that rank. After her retirement in 1989, Ruth Anne continued to come to Schaffer Library nearly every day to work on two projects: the Diaries of Jonathan Pearson and the Dictionary of Union College History. Ruth Ann's knowledge of Union College's history was broad and deep. She was an active member of the Nott Memorial Exhibitions Committee and was unfailingly generous with her time and knowledge.

Seward Stamp, 1909
courtesy of Special Collections, Schaffer Library, Union College