Phoenixville attorney Isaac Wayne MacVeagh helped Rutherford B. Hayes retain the White House in the 1876 Election Race amid allegations of voter fraud in three Southern states, writes Mark E. Dixon for the Main Line Today.
MacVeagh attended the Freeland Seminary (now Ursinus College) before earning his law degree from Yale University in 1853. After starting his legal practice, he married Letty Lewis, the daughter of Joseph Lewis, owner of the Chester County Times, which supported the new Republican party and abolition.
By 1859, he was serving as the district attorney of Chester County. His national prominence grew during the infamous William Udderzook trial in 1873, where, despite losing the case, he showed considerable legal skill.
In 1877, Republican Rutherford B. Hayes recruited MacVeagh to help settle the election dispute where Hayes faced Democrat Samuel J. Tilden.
MacVeagh headed a commission of five senior statesmen that played a critical role in defusing tensions involving Florida, South Carolina, and Louisiana, and ensuring Hayes secured the presidency.
In his later career, MacVeagh served as U.S. attorney general under President James Garfield.
Read more about Isaac Wayne MacVeagh in the federal government in the Main Line Today.
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