Trivia 4-6-17 First act

[Trivia Master]

What was Abraham Lincoln's first official act as President?

credit: @JohnW.

 

[donna]

Lincoln's first official act as President was the appointment of John Nicolay as his personal secretary.

 

[Copperhead-mi]

Lincoln's first official act was to appoint John Nicolay as his personal secretary.

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

To take his hand off the Bible at his swearing-in.

 

[FarawayFriend]

His first offical act as President was the Inaugural Address, held Monday, March 4th, 1861

http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres31.html

 

[William G Hendry]

https://arago.si.edu/exhibit_246_10.html

Lincoln's First Act As President

Free franked envelope sent by Lincoln's private secretary, John Nicolay, to the Judge Advocate General.

Lincoln won the presidency in November 1860, and was inaugurated on March 4, 1861. His first act as commander and chief was the appointment of a personal secretary, John Nicolay. This envelope (at left) sent "from the President of the United States" was signed by Nicolay as Lincoln's private secretary. Prior to his work at the White House, Nicolay worked as a journalist and clerk for the Illinois Secretary of State. Throughout the majority of Lincoln's presidency, he aided the president with various diplomatic affairs and organized many social events. Nicolay's service ended at the beginning of Lincoln's second term, just a few weeks before his assassination at Ford's Theatre.

 

[hughes]

President Lincoln appointed John Nicolay as his secretary.

 

[Study the Past]

The appointment of a personal secretary, in this case it was John Nicolay.

 

[Wallyfish]

Lincoln's first official act was the naming of his cabinet.



https://books.google.com/books?id=6...ncoln first official act as president&f=false

 

[Stony]

His first act as commander and chief was the appointment of a personal secretary, John Nicolay.
source-https://arago.si.edu/exhibit_246_10.html
source- wiki via John George Nicolay.

 

[kholland]

Appoint John Nicolay as his personal secretary.

https://books.google.com/books?id=N...oln's first official act as president&f=false

 

[adisciu9]

Sign John G. Nicolay's appointment as private secretary. (Nicolay to Bates, 5 March 1861, John G. Nicolay Papers, Library of Congress, Washington, DC.)

 

[ErnieMac]

"President's first official act is to sign John G. Nicolay's appointment as private secretary."
http://www.thelincolnlog.org/Results.aspx?type=CalendarDay&day=1861-03-04

 

[JohnW.]

credit for question

 

[Reb]

Very interesting question. I find his first official anything was to make his nominations for his cabinet picks on March 5, 1861. Although I can not find the exact date, Lincoln's appointment of Johann (John) George Nicolay as his private secretary, was the first official act of his new administration.

http://www.mrlincolnswhitehouse.org...s/relatives-residents-john-nicolay-1832-1901/

 

[DBF]

President Lincoln's first official act is to sign John G. Nicolay's appointment as his private secretary.
http://www.thelincolnlog.org/Results.aspx?type=CalendarMonth&year=1861&month=3

 

[Schwallanscher]

that needs to be giving his inaugural address

 

[JOHN42768]

In 1861, Lincoln appointed Nicolay as his private secretary, which was the first official act of his new administration
John George Nicolay (February 26, 1832 – September 26, 1901)
Source:

 

[MaryDee]

The answer was amazingly hard to find--I started with Godwin's Team of Rivals, which I just finished--no luck there on his first official act. Several sources said his first official act was to announce his cabinet. I did find two sources for the answer I've given.

Per https://books.google.com/books?id=NOG2uDoD2B4C&pg=PA90&lpg=PA90&dq=Abraham+Lincoln+first+official+act+as+President&source=bl&ots=tlgUeLoLEi&sig=0hETUbuPeBJ21MHZ2XIEKUZpj24&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj59ZXVn5DTAhWLg1QKHaVkCnwQ6AEIRjAH#v=onepage&q=Abraham%20Lincoln%20first%20official%20act%20as%20President&f=false (Abraham Lincoln's Extraordinary Era: The Man and His Times, by
K. M. Kostyal)
his first official act was to appoint John George Nicolay as his private secretary.

Confirmed by wikipedia article, "John George Nicolay":
"In 1861, Lincoln appointed Nicolay as his private secretary, which was the first official act of his new administration."

Per Goodwin, op. cit., p. 264, Lincoln had hired Nicolay as his assistant right after the Republican nominating convention. However, that obviously was not an official presidential act.

 

[57th Indiana Infantry]

Appointment of a personal secretary, John Nicolay.