Louis McLane

Louis McLane (May 28, 1786 – October 7, 1857) was an American lawyer and politician from Wilmington, in New Castle County, Delaware, and Baltimore, Maryland. He was a veteran of the War of 1812, a member of the Federalist Party and later the Democratic Party. He served as the U.S. representative from Delaware, U.S. senator from Delaware, the tenth U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, the twelfth U.S. Secretary of State, ambassador (Minister Plenipotentiary) to Great Britain, and president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. As a member of President Andrew Jackson's Cabinet, McLane was a prominent figure during the Bank War. McLane pursued a more moderate approach towards the Second Bank of the United States than the President, but agreed with Jackson's decision in 1832 to veto a Congressional bill renewing the Bank's charter. He also helped draft the Force Bill in 1833. He was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1831. Early life and family Louis McLane was born in Smyrna, Delaware, on May 28, 1786 to Allan McLane and Rebecca Wells McLane. McLane's father, was a veteran of the American Revolutionary War, appointed by George Washington in 1797 to the lucrative federal position of Customs collector for the Port of Wilmington. As a well-known and fervently loyal Federalist, he received the strong backing of James A. Bayard, enabling him to keep his appointment despite the election of a political opponent, Thomas Jefferson. Allan McLane retained the position for over 30 years, under presidents of both parties, until his death during the administration of Andrew Jackson. Much of his income came from the seizure of contraband. Louis McLane inherited much of this wealth, along with legal issues that lasted well beyond the death of his father.