Born in
West Liberty,
Ohio County,
Virginia (now
West Virginia), he was the son of
American Revolutionary War veteran George Ewing. After studying at
Ohio University and
reading law under
Philemon Beecher, Ewing began practicing law in
Lancaster, Ohio, in 1816. In 1824, he was joined in that practice by
Henry Stanbery. by
Mathew BradyFrom left to right:
William B. Preston, Thomas Ewing,
John M. Clayton,
Zachary Taylor,
William M. Meredith,
George W. Crawford,
Jacob Collamer and
Reverdy Johnson, (1849). As a colorful
country lawyer, he was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1830 as a Whig and served a single term. He was unsuccessful in seeking a second term in 1836. Ewing served as
Secretary of the Treasury in 1841, serving under Presidents
William Henry Harrison and
John Tyler. He resigned on September 11, 1841, along with the entire cabinet (except
Secretary of State Daniel Webster), in protest of Tyler's veto of the Banking Act. Ewing was later appointed to serve as the first
Secretary of the Interior by President
Zachary Taylor. Ewing served in the position from March 8, 1849, to July 22, 1850, under Taylor and
Millard Fillmore. As
James G. Blaine later wrote: As first secretary, Ewing consolidated bureaus from various Departments, such as the Land Office from the Treasury Department and the Indian Bureau from the War Department. The bureaus were being kicked out of their offices as unwanted tenants in their former departments. However, the Interior Department had no office space, so Ewing rented space. Later, the Patent Office building, with a new east wing, provided permanent space in 1852. Ewing initiated the Interior Department's culture of corruption by wholesale replacement of officials with political patronage. Newspapers called him "Butcher Ewing" for his efforts. In 1850, Ewing was appointed to the Senate to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of
Thomas Corwin, and served from July 20, 1850 – March 3, 1851. Ewing was unsuccessful in seeking re-election in 1850. In 1861, Ewing served as one of Ohio's delegates to the
peace conference held in Washington in hopes of staving off civil war. Ewing was a defender of slavery at this conference, and frequently deflected attacks on the institution by Britain, stating that 'we have no slavery or misery to be compared with that existing in the India provinces.' After the war, Ewing was appointed by President
Andrew Johnson to a third cabinet post as
Secretary of War in 1868 following the firing of
Edwin M. Stanton but the Senate, still outraged at Johnson's firing of Stanton – which had provoked Johnson's impeachment – refused to act on the nomination. Ewing married Maria Wills Boyle, a Roman Catholic, and raised their children in her faith. His foster son was the famous general
William Tecumseh Sherman. Sherman eventually married Thomas Ewing Sr.'s daughter,
Ellen Ewing Sherman. Ewing's namesake son,
Thomas Ewing Jr., was an
American Civil War Union army general and two-term U.S. Congressman from
Ohio. Two of Ewing's other sons –
Hugh Boyle Ewing and
Charles Ewing – also became generals in the Union army during the Civil War. Through Ellen and Sherman, Ewing also had a namesake grandson,
Thomas Ewing Sherman. Ewing was born a
Presbyterian, but for many years attended Catholic services with his family. He was formally baptized into the Catholic faith during his last illness. Ewing remained a Whig following his joining of the party in 1833, even when the national Whig Party collapsed and was replaced by the Republican Party. This makes Ewing one of the only federal politicians to remain a member the Whig Party when many others bolted to the Republican or American parties. Prior to his death on October 26, 1871, Ewing had been the last surviving member of the Harrison and Tyler Cabinets. Future
President and
Governor of Ohio Rutherford B. Hayes was a
pallbearer at his funeral. He is buried in Saint Mary Cemetery, Lancaster, Fairfield County, Ohio. ==See also==