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Presidential Pardon of Louis Lindauer by Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant · 1870

A pardon signed by President Grant in 1870 for Louis Lindauer, convicted of illegal lottery dealing, as reported in a Philadelphia newspaper.

Grant personally signed this pardon in 1870, exercising his presidential power of clemency.

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Newspaper clipping titled 'A Lottery Dealer Pardoned.' It reports that Louis Lindauer, who pleaded guilty to violating Internal Revenue laws by non-payment of a special lottery dealer tax and was sentenced to five months' imprisonment, was pardoned by the President after serving half his term.
Pardon of Louis Lindauer by President Ulysses S. Grant, 1870, as reported in the Philadelphia Inquirer, 24 June 1870.

About this source

What it is

This document is a presidential pardon issued by Ulysses S. Grant in 1870 for Louis Lindauer, who had been convicted of dealing lottery tickets without paying the required tax and sentenced to imprisonment. News of the pardon was reported in the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Why it matters

The pardon shows Grant using one of the president's constitutional powers, granting clemency to an individual citizen. The text explains that citizens had argued Lindauer's past character was good and that he had already been punished enough, and that a U.S. Attorney doubted his real guilt. It is a small case, but it reveals how presidential pardons worked and the kinds of arguments that could persuade a president to grant one.

Look closer

  • What reasons are given in the document for pardoning Lindauer?
  • Why might ordinary citizens have petitioned the president on Lindauer's behalf?
  • What does this pardon reveal about the limits and uses of presidential power?

This document is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Ulysses S Grant on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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