Richard Yates

Richard Yates was the Governor of Illinois during the American Civil War and has been considered one of the most effective war governors. He took energetic measures to secure Cairo and St. Louis against rebel attack. Nicknamed the "Soldiers' Friend", he helped organize the Illinois contingent of Union soldiers, including commissioning Ulysses S. Grant as a colonel for an Illinois regiment. He supported the Emancipation Proclamation. He also represented Illinois in the United States House of Representatives (1851–1855) and in the U.S. Senate (1865–1871). As a Senator, he voted and spoke in favor of removing President Andrew Johnson from office.