King of the Lobby
Kathryn Allamong Jacob, author of King of the Lobby: The Life and Times of Sam Ward, Man-About-Washington in the Gilded Age (Johns Hopkins UP 2009), for an evening presentation on Thursday September 23rd at 6pm at the Colony House on Washington Square.
King of the Lobby tells how Sam Ward, a colorful character with a Newport connection and brother to Julia Ward Howe, harnessed delicious food, fine wine and good conversation to become the most influential lobbyist of the Gilded Age. Scion of an old and honorable family, best friend of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and charming man-about-Washington, D.C., Ward lived by the motto that the shortest route between a pending bill and a congressman’s “aye” was through his stomach, he elegantly entertained political elites in return for their votes.
At a time when waves of scandal washed over Washington, D.C., the popular press railed against the wickedness of the lobby, and self-righteous politicians predicted that special interests would cause the downfall of democratic government, Sam Ward still reigned supreme. By the early 1870s, he had earned the title “King of the Lobby” and the style of lobbying he cultivated is alive today.
The Wall Street Journal writes that, “Jacob’s trim and surprising biography brilliantly shows how, in the hands of a master, lobbying can be lifted to the level of art.” The Washington Post commented that, “[Sam Ward] was an immensely able, influential and engaging character who has been rescued from obscurity by Kathryn Allamong Jacob.”
General admission costs $5 per person, $1 for Newport Historical Society members. Reservations requested; persons with mobility issues should call in advance. 401-841-8770 A book signing will follow the presentation.
