Governor Lot Myrick Morrill

LOT M. MORRILL, brother of Maine governor Anson P. Morrill, was born in Belgrade, Maine on May 3, 1813. His education was attained at the Belgrade Academy, and at Waterville College (Colby College today). He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1837, and established successful legal practices in Readfield and Augusta. Morrill entered politics in 1854, serving as a Democratic member of the Maine House of Representatives, a position he held until 1855. In 1856, Morrill broke away from the Democratic Party due to their national stance on slavery. That same year, he was elected as Republican to the Maine State Senate, where he also served as senate president. Morrill won the 1857 Republican gubernatorial nomination, and was elected Maine’s twenty-eighth governor by a popular vote. He was reelected to a second term in 1858, as well as to a third term in 1859. During his tenure, he publicly supported the candidacy of Abraham Lincoln, and he openly contested the elimination of Maine’s prohibition law. After completing his term, Morrill left office on January 2, 1861. He then served as a member of the U.S. Senate from 1861 to 1869 and 1871 to 1876, was the secretary of the U.S. Treasury from 1876 to 1877, and served as Collector of Customs for the port of Portland from 1877 to 1883. Governor Lot M. Morrill passed away on January 10, 1883, and was buried at the Forest Grove Cemetery in Augusta, Maine.