Lew Wallace(1827-1905)
- Writer
The son of the governor of Indiana, Lew Wallace lived in Indianapolis
as a young boy. He served in the Mexican War, and afterwards became a
lawyer and was elected to the state Senate. He served again in the
Union army during the Civil War, reaching the rank of major general. He
was noted for repulsing an attempted raid by Confederate Gen. Jubal
Early on Washington, DC, in 1864. After the Civil War, Wallace was
appointed governor of New Mexico Territory and later minister to
Turkey. He was a prolific author, although he is most famous for "Ben
Hur: A Tale of the Christ", which was turned into a play that was
produced on Broadway and later filmed several times, the most famous
one being Ben-Hur (1959).
