John Bigelow

Born in New York in 1817, John Bigelow built an unusually varied career as a lawyer, journalist, author, and public servant. He edited and wrote for influential newspapers, including the New York Evening Post, and became known as a sharp political voice with strong antislavery views.

During the American Civil War, he served in Paris as U.S. consul and later minister to France. Sources credit him with helping block the delivery of warships being built in France for the Confederacy, an effort that mattered greatly to Union diplomacy.

Bigelow also left a lasting mark as a man of letters. He edited the works of Benjamin Franklin and is especially associated with recovering and publishing Franklin’s long-lost autobiography from the original manuscript. In later years he continued writing on history, politics, and public life, and he also played a role in the founding of the New York Public Library.