Lew Wallace

Lewis "Lew" Wallace was an American lawyer, Union general in the American Civil War, territorial governor and statesman, politician and author. Wallace served as Governor of the New Mexico Territory at the time of the Lincoln County War and worked to bring an end to the fighting. Of his novels and biographies, he is best known for his historical novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ , a bestselling book since its publication, and called "the most influential Christian book of the nineteenth century." It has been adapted four times for films. Wallace was born in Brookville, Indiana, to David... Wallace and Esther French Test Wallace. His father was a graduate of the United States Military Academy and served as lieutenant governor and Indiana Governor. When Wallace's father was elected as lieutenant governor of Indiana, he moved his family to Covington, Indiana. Wallace's autobiography contains many stories from his boyhood in Covington, including the account of the death of his mother in 1834. In 1836, at the age of nine, he joined his brother in Crawfordsville, Indiana, where he briefly attended Wabash Preparatory School.
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