Remembering Benjamin Harrison
On March 13, 1901 (112 years ago today) Benjamin Harrison, the 23rd President of the United States, died at his home in Indianapolis, Indiana at the age of 67.
Harrison has the distinction of being the only president to be the grandson of another president (William Henry Harrison). He was born in North Bend, Ohio, and moved to Indianapolis, Indiana, at age 21, eventually becoming a prominent politician there. During the Civil War, he served as a brigadier general in Union Army 's Army of the Cumberland. After the war, he unsuccessfully ran for Governor of Indiana, but was later elected to the U.S. Senate by the Indiana legislature.
Harrison was elected to the presidency in 1888, defeating the Democratic incumbent Grover Cleveland. His administration is remembered most for economic legislation, including the McKinley Tariff and the Sherman Antitrust Act. His administration was the first in which annual federal spending reached one billion dollars. Democrats attacked the "Billion Dollar Congress." They used the issue, along with the growing unpopularity of the high tariff, to defeat the Republicans, in both the 1890 mid-term elections and in Harrison's bid for re-election in 1892. As President Harrison unsuccessfully advocated for federal education funding and legislation to protect voting rights for African Americans. He also saw the admission of six states into the Union.
Defeated by Cleveland in his bid for re-election in 1892, Harrison returned to private life in Indianapolis. He later represented the Republic of Venezuela in an international case against the United Kingdom. In 1900, he traveled to Europe as part of the case and, after a brief stay, returned to Indianapolis. He died the following year from complications from influenza.
In the American Presidents Series biography of Harrison entitled Benjamin Harrison by Charles W. Calhoun, the author concludes the book on Harrison at pages 165-6 as follows:
In early March 1901, Harrison again fell ill with an acute case of the grippe, which soon progressed into pneumonia. With his wife of five years the only family at his bedside, he died on March 13, 1901. The next day President McKinley issued a proclamation of mourning, noting that "in the high office of President," Harrison had "displayed extraordinary gifts as an administrator and statesman."
To himself, McKinley perhaps also acknowledged that he owed something of his own success in the White House to the example Harrison had set. Benjamin Harrison had not set out to transform the presidency, but he was hardly a mere caretaker between the two terms of Grover Cleveland. In his own right, Harrison made important contributions to the evolution of the office. He entered the presidency strongly committed to a set of principles and policies. In defense of those ideas and in pursuit of what he thought to be his duty, he expanded the boundaries of presidential activism. Both publicly and behind the scenes, he effectively intervened in the deliberations of Congress and posted a remarkable record of legislative achievement. He resisted the dictation of party bosses in the matter of appointments, thereby risking his own reelection for the sake of presidential independence. He frequently operated as the nation's chief diplomat and shaped its aspirations in foreign affairs. Through a skillful use of the press and in widespread travels, he took the presidency to the American people. In these and other ways, he unwittingly taught his successors new uses of power and techniques of leadership. The solipsistic and ham-handed Grover Cleveland took cues from Harrison, but William McKinley proved one of his most astute students. As a member of the Fifty-first Congress, McKinley watched Harrison firsthand. A half decade later, borrowing much from Harrison's methods and purposes but unburdened by many of his obstacles and shortcomings, McKinley fashioned a popular and successful administration. Scholars may regard the latter man as the first modern president, but Benjamin Harrison had clearly pointed the way.
Harrison has the distinction of being the only president to be the grandson of another president (William Henry Harrison). He was born in North Bend, Ohio, and moved to Indianapolis, Indiana, at age 21, eventually becoming a prominent politician there. During the Civil War, he served as a brigadier general in Union Army 's Army of the Cumberland. After the war, he unsuccessfully ran for Governor of Indiana, but was later elected to the U.S. Senate by the Indiana legislature.
Harrison was elected to the presidency in 1888, defeating the Democratic incumbent Grover Cleveland. His administration is remembered most for economic legislation, including the McKinley Tariff and the Sherman Antitrust Act. His administration was the first in which annual federal spending reached one billion dollars. Democrats attacked the "Billion Dollar Congress." They used the issue, along with the growing unpopularity of the high tariff, to defeat the Republicans, in both the 1890 mid-term elections and in Harrison's bid for re-election in 1892. As President Harrison unsuccessfully advocated for federal education funding and legislation to protect voting rights for African Americans. He also saw the admission of six states into the Union.
Defeated by Cleveland in his bid for re-election in 1892, Harrison returned to private life in Indianapolis. He later represented the Republic of Venezuela in an international case against the United Kingdom. In 1900, he traveled to Europe as part of the case and, after a brief stay, returned to Indianapolis. He died the following year from complications from influenza.
In the American Presidents Series biography of Harrison entitled Benjamin Harrison by Charles W. Calhoun, the author concludes the book on Harrison at pages 165-6 as follows:
In early March 1901, Harrison again fell ill with an acute case of the grippe, which soon progressed into pneumonia. With his wife of five years the only family at his bedside, he died on March 13, 1901. The next day President McKinley issued a proclamation of mourning, noting that "in the high office of President," Harrison had "displayed extraordinary gifts as an administrator and statesman."
To himself, McKinley perhaps also acknowledged that he owed something of his own success in the White House to the example Harrison had set. Benjamin Harrison had not set out to transform the presidency, but he was hardly a mere caretaker between the two terms of Grover Cleveland. In his own right, Harrison made important contributions to the evolution of the office. He entered the presidency strongly committed to a set of principles and policies. In defense of those ideas and in pursuit of what he thought to be his duty, he expanded the boundaries of presidential activism. Both publicly and behind the scenes, he effectively intervened in the deliberations of Congress and posted a remarkable record of legislative achievement. He resisted the dictation of party bosses in the matter of appointments, thereby risking his own reelection for the sake of presidential independence. He frequently operated as the nation's chief diplomat and shaped its aspirations in foreign affairs. Through a skillful use of the press and in widespread travels, he took the presidency to the American people. In these and other ways, he unwittingly taught his successors new uses of power and techniques of leadership. The solipsistic and ham-handed Grover Cleveland took cues from Harrison, but William McKinley proved one of his most astute students. As a member of the Fifty-first Congress, McKinley watched Harrison firsthand. A half decade later, borrowing much from Harrison's methods and purposes but unburdened by many of his obstacles and shortcomings, McKinley fashioned a popular and successful administration. Scholars may regard the latter man as the first modern president, but Benjamin Harrison had clearly pointed the way.