Lewis “Lew" Wallace (April 10, 1827 – February 15, 1905) was American lawyer, soldier, diplomat, politician and author well known for the popular novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. Born in Indiana, his father was a lawyer and West Point graduate who served in the Indiana legislature and then as lieutenant governor, governor, and member of Congress.  Lew left school at age 16 to work at the county and study law at his father’s office. He joined the army of Zachary Taylor during the Mexican-American war but did not see combat. He was admitted to the bar in 1849, served briefly as a prosecuting attorney and was elected to the state senate in 1856. With the onset of the Civil War he joined the Union Army under U.S. Grant and became the youngest major general at age 34.  He was blamed for actions that caused major casualties at the battle of Shiloh, accusations which he felt were wrongful and for which he sought vindication. Following the war he returned to law and eventually served as Governor of the New Mexico Territory from 1878 – 1881, where he had dealings with outlaw Billy the Kid. He later served as U.S. Minister to the Ottoman Empire in 1881 – 1885, after which he returned to Indiana and continued to write.  He completed Ben-Hur during his tenure in New Mexico and it became a best seller, making Wallace a wealthy man. A statue of Wallace in military dress stands in the National Statuary Collection in the U.S. Capitol, the only novelist so honored.