John Sherman

John Sherman
Photograph by Mathew Brady, 1865–1880
35th United States Secretary of State
In office March 6, 1897 – April 27, 1898
President	William McKinley
Preceded by	Richard Olney
Succeeded by	William R. Day
Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference
In office September 2, 1884 – December 1885
Preceded by	Henry B. Anthony
Succeeded by	George F. Edmunds
In office December 1891 – March 4, 1897
Preceded by	George F. Edmunds
Succeeded by	William B. Allison
President pro tempore of the United States Senate
In office December 7, 1885 – February 26, 1887
Preceded by	George F. Edmunds
Succeeded by	John James Ingalls
United States Senator from Ohio
In office March 4, 1881 – March 4, 1897
Preceded by	Allen G. Thurman
Succeeded by	Mark Hanna
In office March 21, 1861 – March 8, 1877
Preceded by	Salmon P. Chase
Succeeded by	Stanley Matthews
32nd United States Secretary of the Treasury
In office March 10, 1877 – March 3, 1881
President	Rutherford B. Hayes
Preceded by	Lot M. Morrill
Succeeded by	William Windom
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio's 13th district
In office March 4, 1855 – March 21, 1861
Preceded by	William D. Lindsley
Succeeded by	Samuel T. Worcester
Personal details
Born	(1823-05-10)May 10, 1823 Lancaster, Ohio, U.S.
Died	October 22, 1900(1900-10-22) (aged 77) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Resting place	Mansfield City Cemetery
Political party	Whig (before 1854) Oppositionist (1854–1858) Republican (1858–1900)
Spouse	Margaret Stewart ​ (m. 1848)​
Children	Mary Sherman (adopted)
Relatives	Charles Taylor Sherman (brother) William Tecumseh Sherman (brother) Hoyt Sherman (brother)
Signature

John Sherman (May 10, 1823 – October 22, 1900) was an American politician from Ohio who served in federal office throughout the Civil War and into the late nineteenth century. A member of the Republican Party, he served in both houses of the U.S. Congress. He also served as Secretary of the Treasury and Secretary of State. Sherman sought the Republican presidential nomination three times, coming closest in 1888, but was never chosen by the party.

Born in Lancaster, Ohio, Sherman later moved to Mansfield, Ohio, where he began a law career before entering politics. He was the younger brother of Union general William Tecumseh Sherman, with whom he had a close relationship. Initially a Whig, Sherman was among those anti-slavery activists who formed what became the Republican Party. He served three terms in the House of Representatives. As a member of the House, Sherman traveled to Kansas to investigate the unrest between pro- and anti-slavery partisans there. He rose in party leadership and was nearly elected Speaker in 1859. Sherman was elected to the Senate in 1861. As a senator, he was a leader in financial matters, helping to redesign the United States' monetary system to meet the needs of a nation torn apart by civil war. He also served as the Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee during his 32 years in the Senate. After the war, he worked to produce legislation that would restore the nation's credit abroad and produce a stable, gold-backed currency at home.

Serving as Secretary of the Treasury in the administration of Rutherford B. Hayes, Sherman continued his efforts for financial stability and solvency, overseeing an end to wartime inflationary measures and a return to gold-backed money. He returned to the Senate after his term expired, serving there for a further sixteen years. During that time he continued his work on financial legislation, as well as writing and debating laws on immigration, business competition law, and the regulation of interstate commerce. Sherman was the principal author of the Sherman Antitrust Act, which was signed into law by President Benjamin Harrison in 1890. In 1897, President William McKinley appointed him Secretary of State. Failing health and declining faculties made him unable to handle the burdens of the job, and he retired in 1898 at the start of the Spanish–American War. Sherman died at his home in Washington, D.C., in 1900 at age 77.