1860 Republican National Convention

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The 1860 National Conventionof the Republican Party of the United States, held in Chicago, Illinois, nominated former U.S. Representative Abraham Lincoln of Illinois for President and U.S. Senator Hannibal Hamlin of Maine for Vice President. This was only the second national nominating convention for the Republican Party.

Other candidates at the convention included former New York Governor William Seward, U.S. Senator Salmon P. Chase of Ohio, former U.S. Representative Edward Bates of Missouri, and U.S. Senator Simon Cameron of Pennsylvania.

Seward had been the favorite going into the convention, and led on the first two ballots. His lead soon melted away to the dark horse Lincoln, who captured the nomination on the third ballot.

Lincoln-Hamlin went on to defeat three other major tickets that year, including Democratic nominee Stephen A. Douglas, U.S. Senator from Illinois.

The 1860 Convention was held in a building known as "The Wigwam." Based on reports in the then-fairly-new Chicago Tribune, the building was located at the corner of Lake and Wacker, just south of the current site of 333 Wacker.