Lewis Payne was an associate of Abraham Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth, who made an attempt on Secretary of State William Seward's life on the same night, April 14, 1865, by breaking into his bedroom and stabbing him repeatedly. A neckbrace worn by Seward helped to save his life.

Payne was born in Alabama and served in the Confederate army. Payne, Booth and others also planned to kill Andrew Jackson and Ulysses S. Grant, though those attempts never took place. Payne was excecuted on July 7, 1865, for the attempt on Seward's life.