William H. Seward - Later Life

Later Life

Seward retired as Secretary of State after Ulysses S. Grant took office as president. During his last years, Seward traveled and wrote prolifically. Most notably, he traveled around the world in fourteen months and two days from August, 1870 to October, 1871. On October 10, 1872, Seward died in his office in his home in Auburn, New York, after having difficulty breathing. He was buried in Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn, New York, with his wife and two children, Cornelia and Fanny.

His son, Frederick, edited and published his memoirs in three volumes.

In 1967, a century after the Alaska Purchase, the actor, Joseph Cotten, portrayed Seward in "The Freeman Story", a part of his NBC anthology series, The Joseph Cotten Show. Virginia Gregg played Fanny Seward. Popular actor, Richard Mulligan, portrayed William Seward in the 1988 Lincoln mini-series, "Random Letters."

Seward was portrayed by Bruce Davison in the 2012 film Saving Lincoln, which tells President Lincoln's story through the eyes of Ward Hill Lamon, a former law partner of Lincoln who also served as his primary bodyguard during the American Civil War. He was played by David Strathairn in the 2012 Steven Spielberg film Lincoln.