John George Nicolay (1832 - 1901)

John George Nicolay (born February 26, 1832, as Johann Georg in Essingen, Rhenish Bavaria – September 26, 1901) was an American (German-born) biographer, secretary of US President Abraham Lincoln and member of the German branch of the Nicolay family. In 1838, he immigrated to the United States with his father, attended school in Cincinnati. He later went to Illinois, where he edited the Pike County Free Press at Pittsfield, and became a political power in the state. Then he became assistant to the secretary of state of Illinois. While in this position, he met Abraham Lincoln and became his devoted adherent.