John Locke Scripps, the first Abraham Lincoln biographer


Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I laud John Locke Scripps, born in Missouri, February 27th 1818. He practiced law before co-founding the Chicago Tribune and working as chief editor. His political allegiance was to the anti-slavery Free Soil Party until the Republican Party emerged.


During the 1860 presidential campaign, Scripps published a sixteen thousand word biography of Abraham Lincoln. It helped get him elected. Sources were interviews with the Republican nominee and his associates as well as press accounts of various events.

President Lincoln named him postmaster at Chicago. Scripps innovated the practice of distributing mail by streetcar. He and his wife were friends of the First Couple. His cousin Edward established the Scripps media company.

John Locke Scripps was remembered as "a man of high scholarly attainments, great purity of character and amiable disposition."

Back to Basics for the Republican Party is my civil rights history of the GOP. To quote the book: "The more we Republicans know about the history of our party, the more Democrats will worry about the future of theirs. For more information, see www.grandoldpartisan.com. 

Here is a YouTube Video about this article.

Here is a TikTok Video about this article.

Here is an Instagram Video about this article.

Here is my Substack about this article.

Michael Zak is author of Back to Basics for the Republican Party, a history of GOP civil rights achievement.


Each day, his YouTube videos and TikTok videos and Rumble videos and Grand Old Partisan blog celebrate more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. And, see Speech Raves for audience feedback from his presentations in thirty-one states.

Clarence Thomas cited Back to Basics for the Republican Party in a Supreme Court decision.

"This is the most amazing book about politics that I have ever read. The Overview should be required reading for anyone with even a minor interest in government. The remainder is an enthralling history lesson that I will never forget. For years, we have all been misled about the true nature of the GOP. This is the real deal! Read it and be proud!"

"Your book is a national treasure. I'm always recommending it."

"Michael Zak wrote the definitive history of the GOP."

"Back to Basics for the Republican Party is the most significant contribution to the Republican Party in the last twenty years apart from Ronald Reagan."

"Back to Basics for the Republican Party is more important to our party now than ever before."

and

"one of the best books I ever read"

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