The Less Recognizable Gilded Presidents
Chester A. Arthur (1881-1885)
Arthur is one of the least famous presidents in history, many even consider him less famous than James Garfield even though Arthur served longer. Chester was born in Vermont and lived a pretty simple life of attending school and preparing to head off to college at Union College. There he acquired the liking of politics and law. He eventually graduated, taught school for awhile, and then was accepted into the bar and studied law in New York8. He associated with the Republican Party and was added as a VP for the Republican Nominee ticket and became Vice President serving James Garfield. Unfortunately Garfield was assassinated and Arthur became the second VP to assume office after an assassination. In his presidency he is mainly known for renovating the White House for the first time and ffixing it up as it hadn't been touched in a long time. He was also known for vetoeing many things like the chinese immigrant ban and the Harbors Act of 18828. After four years he didn't win re-election and died shortly after of a kidney disease that he kept secret. Another reason he went down as an unrecognizable president was becasue he ordered the burning of all his work. Any books or newspapers that he wrote; he asked them to be burnt and destroyed.
Grover Cleveland (1885-1889, 1893-1897)
Grover Cleveland had a very different childhood than the rest as he had to quit education to help his newly widowed mother support the family. He worked as an aide for a law firm and even though he wasn't highly educated was accepted into the BAR. He would work in Erie County and continue to strive until he turned 44 and started his path on politics. It took him only three years after he started his political run for him to reach the white house. Leading up to his presidency he was a mayor of Buffalo and then a governor of New York9. When becoming president he was hit with a lot of backlash from both sides for his personal life. He was first criticized for paying a volunteer to take his spot in the Civil War, and then he was accused of assaulting a woman and impregnating her9. Cleveland battled a lot of allegations his first term but was also known for how much overturning or vetoes he gave out. By the end of his second term he recorded so many vetoes that to this day he still is at the top of the list for most vetoes handed out by a president. A lot of the issues that Cleveland had to deal with in his first term was with private organizations and asking for money, which would ultimately lead to a lot of vetoes. Another big deal in his presidency was the railroad strikes which accured in his second term. Overall Cleveland is looked at as a president with a shady past and an angry presidency. The comic on this page depicts a perfect example of how many people viewd Cleveland by the end of his first term. After all the allegations of his sexual assault and carelessness in handeling it, it looked as if he was not a huge supporter of women and their suffrage movements at the time.
Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893)
Benjamin Harrison was a man that prided himself on self succession. He wanted to earn every bit of glory that he would recieve and wanted to be the most helpful he could be. He was educated all the way through college and worked in many law firms over his early years. After many years of work he enlisted in the army and quickly rose through the ranks due to his hard work and dedication10. Harrison had a more interesting presidency as he didn't fill his time with allegations but actually production. He is known for working on tarrifs, social reform, naval reconstruction, and his strong backbone in the executive office11. He never shadowed/coward away in the shadows of his cabinet members but rather stood tall in the executive office and strided for change in America. While he was not remembered for having huge impacts on the American nation he lead a quieter term that accomplished a little more than the past ones.
William McKinley (1897-1901)
William Mckinley is yet another president that was born in Ohio and was breed with a strong work ethic and good morals. He was educated in a local school and started college before dropping out due to an illness. He than went on to serve in the military under command of Rutherford B. Hayes who slowly turned into McKinley's mentor12. When McKinley was elected into office in 1897 he had his hands full. He had a lot of domestic relations to cover and foreign affairs to solve. He was largely known for the start of the Spanish-American War, but it was an issue that started under Cleveland that was never solved and passed on to McKinley13. After dealing with that ordeal, the U.S. wallked away with Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Phillipines. McKinley was also known for really starting the trading bus with China and starting a foundation of open trade with them. In the end McKinley was assassinated but will go down as someone who really was the last president that followed the "old way"13. Many people sometimes draw him into the progressive era while some consider him an old way politician due to his active service in the civil war.
8.“Chester A. Arthur.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 21 Aug. 2019, 15 April 2023. https://www.biography.com/political-figures/chester-a-arthur#.
9.“Grover Cleveland.” WHHA (En-US), 15 April 2023. https://www.whitehousehistory.org/bios/grover-cleveland.
10.“The Civil War.” Benjamin Harrison, 17 Jan. 2020, 15 April 2023. https://bhpsite.org/learn/benjamin-harrison/the-civil-war/.
11. Calhoun Charles W., "Benjamin Harrison," Journal of American History Vol. 93, Issue 1 (June 2006): pp.229-230, https://doi.org/10.2307/4486136
12.Lewis L. Gould “William McKinley: Life before the Presidency.” Miller Center, 24 July 2017, April 15 2023. https://millercenter.org/president/mckinley/life-before-the-presidency.
13. Robert P. Saldin, "William McKinley and the Rhetorical Presidency," Presidential Studies Quarterly Vol. 41, Issue 1 (2011): pp. 119-134, https://www.jstor.org/stable/23884758