William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States for 31 days in 1841, becoming the first president to die in office and the shortest-serving U.S.
Freehling calls him "the most dominant figure in the evolution of the Northwest territories into the Upper Midwest today". ==Early life and education== Harrison was the seventh and youngest child of Benjamin Harrison V and Elizabeth (Bassett) Harrison, born on February 9, 1773 at Berkeley Plantation, the Harrison family home along the James River in Charles City County, Virginia.
His Episcopalian father removed him from the college, possibly for religious reasons, and he briefly attended a boys' academy in Southampton County, Virginia before being transferred to Philadelphia in 1790. He boarded with Robert Morris and entered the University of Pennsylvania in April 1791, where he studied medicine under Doctor Benjamin Rush and William Shippen Sr.
His Episcopalian father removed him from the college, possibly for religious reasons, and he briefly attended a boys' academy in Southampton County, Virginia before being transferred to Philadelphia in 1790. He boarded with Robert Morris and entered the University of Pennsylvania in April 1791, where he studied medicine under Doctor Benjamin Rush and William Shippen Sr.
His father died in the spring of 1791, shortly after he began his medical studies.
He was only 18 and Morris became his guardian; he also discovered that his family's financial situation left him without funds for further schooling, so he abandoned medical school in favor of a military career after being persuaded by Governor Henry Lee III, a friend of Harrison's father. ===Early military career=== On August 16, 1791, Harrison was commissioned as an ensign in the Army in the 1st Infantry Regiment within 24 hours of meeting Lee.
He was initially assigned to Fort Washington, Cincinnati in the Northwest Territory where the army was engaged in the ongoing Northwest Indian War. Harrison was promoted to lieutenant after Major General "Mad Anthony" Wayne took command of the western army in 1792 following a disastrous defeat under Arthur St.
In 1793, he became Wayne's aide-de-camp and learned how to command an army on the American frontier; he participated in Wayne's decisive victory at the Battle of Fallen Timbers on August 20, 1794, which ended the Northwest Indian War.
Under the terms of the treaty, a coalition of Indians ceded a portion of their lands to the federal government, opening two-thirds of Ohio to settlement. Following his mother's death in 1793, Harrison inherited a portion of his family's Virginia estate, including approximately of land and several slaves.
During his early military career, he participated in the 1794 Battle of Fallen Timbers, an American military victory that effectively ended the Northwest Indian War.
In 1793, he became Wayne's aide-de-camp and learned how to command an army on the American frontier; he participated in Wayne's decisive victory at the Battle of Fallen Timbers on August 20, 1794, which ended the Northwest Indian War.
He was serving in the Army at the time and sold his land to his brother. Harrison was promoted to Captain in May 1797 and resigned from the Army on June 1, 1798. ===Marriage and family=== Harrison met Anna Tuthill Symmes of North Bend, Ohio in 1795 when he was 22.
They then eloped and were married on November 25, 1795 at the North Bend home of Dr.
He was serving in the Army at the time and sold his land to his brother. Harrison was promoted to Captain in May 1797 and resigned from the Army on June 1, 1798. ===Marriage and family=== Harrison met Anna Tuthill Symmes of North Bend, Ohio in 1795 when he was 22.
He was promoted to major general in the Army in the War of 1812, and in 1813 led American infantry and cavalry at the Battle of the Thames in Upper Canada. Harrison began his political career in 1798, when he was appointed Secretary of the Northwest Territory, and in 1799 he was elected as the territory's delegate in the House of Representatives.
He was serving in the Army at the time and sold his land to his brother. Harrison was promoted to Captain in May 1797 and resigned from the Army on June 1, 1798. ===Marriage and family=== Harrison met Anna Tuthill Symmes of North Bend, Ohio in 1795 when he was 22.
The story is considered unlikely, given Harrison's continued residence in predominantly non-slaveholding areas from age seventeen. ==Political career== Harrison began his political career when he resigned from the military on June 1, 1798 and campaigned among his friends and family for a post in the Northwest Territorial government.
President John Adams appointed Harrison to the position in July 1798.
by one vote to become the Northwest Territory's first congressional delegate in 1798 at age 26.
He was promoted to major general in the Army in the War of 1812, and in 1813 led American infantry and cavalry at the Battle of the Thames in Upper Canada. Harrison began his political career in 1798, when he was appointed Secretary of the Northwest Territory, and in 1799 he was elected as the territory's delegate in the House of Representatives.
The Northwest Territory's population reached a sufficient number to have a delegate in Congress in October 1799, and Harrison ran for election.
He served in the Sixth United States Congress from March 4, 1799 to May 14, 1800.
He served in the Sixth United States Congress from March 4, 1799 to May 14, 1800.
He became chairman of the Committee on Public Lands and promoted the Land Act of 1800, which made it easier to buy land in the Northwest Territory in smaller tracts at a low cost.
The two new territories were formally established in 1800 following the passage of . On May 13, 1800, President John Adams appointed Harrison as the governor of the Indiana Territory, based on his ties to the west and seemingly neutral political stances.
His governorship was confirmed by the Senate and he resigned from Congress to become the first Indiana territorial governor in 1801. ===Indiana territorial governor=== Harrison began his duties on January 10, 1801 at Vincennes, the capital of the Indiana Territory.
He founded Jefferson University at Vincennes in 1801 which was incorporated as Vincennes University on November 29, 1806. Harrison had wide-ranging powers in the new territory, including the authority to appoint territorial officials and to divide the territory into smaller political districts and counties.
Presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison were both members of the Democratic-Republican Party, and they reappointed him as governor in 1803, 1806, and 1809.
He was eager to expand the territory for personal reasons, as well, as his political fortunes were tied to Indiana's eventual statehood. President Jefferson reappointed Harrison as the Indiana territorial governor on February 8, 1803, and he also granted him the authority to negotiate and conclude treaties with the Indians.
Between 1803 and 1809, he supervised 11 treaties with Indian leaders that provided the federal government with more than , including the southern third of Indiana and most of Illinois.
In 1803, he lobbied Congress to suspend Article VI of the Northwest Ordinance for 10 years, a move that would allow slavery in the Indiana Territory.
In 1803 and 1805, Harrison and the appointed territorial judges enacted laws that authorized indentured servitude and gave masters authority to determine the length of service. The Illinois Territory held elections to the legislature's upper and lower houses for the first time in 1809.
The Territory's general assembly convened in 1810, and its anti-slavery faction immediately repealed the indenturing laws enacted in 1803 and in 1805.
He resigned on December 28, 1812 to resume his military career during the War of 1812. Harrison was assigned to administer the civilian government of the District of Louisiana in 1804, a part of the Louisiana Territory that included land north of the 33rd parallel.
The 1804 Treaty of St.
In 1803 and 1805, Harrison and the appointed territorial judges enacted laws that authorized indentured servitude and gave masters authority to determine the length of service. The Illinois Territory held elections to the legislature's upper and lower houses for the first time in 1809.
The Territory's general assembly convened in 1810, and its anti-slavery faction immediately repealed the indenturing laws enacted in 1803 and in 1805.
Jefferson and Lemen were instrumental in defeating Harrison's attempts in 1805 and 1807 to expand slavery in the territory. ==Army general== ===Tecumseh and Tippecanoe=== An Indian resistance movement had been growing against American expansion through the leadership of Shawnee brothers Tecumseh and Tenskwatawa (The Prophet) in a conflict that became known as Tecumseh's War.
Presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison were both members of the Democratic-Republican Party, and they reappointed him as governor in 1803, 1806, and 1809.
He founded Jefferson University at Vincennes in 1801 which was incorporated as Vincennes University on November 29, 1806. Harrison had wide-ranging powers in the new territory, including the authority to appoint territorial officials and to divide the territory into smaller political districts and counties.
Jefferson and Lemen were instrumental in defeating Harrison's attempts in 1805 and 1807 to expand slavery in the territory. ==Army general== ===Tecumseh and Tippecanoe=== An Indian resistance movement had been growing against American expansion through the leadership of Shawnee brothers Tecumseh and Tenskwatawa (The Prophet) in a conflict that became known as Tecumseh's War.
Presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison were both members of the Democratic-Republican Party, and they reappointed him as governor in 1803, 1806, and 1809.
Between 1803 and 1809, he supervised 11 treaties with Indian leaders that provided the federal government with more than , including the southern third of Indiana and most of Illinois.
In 1803 and 1805, Harrison and the appointed territorial judges enacted laws that authorized indentured servitude and gave masters authority to determine the length of service. The Illinois Territory held elections to the legislature's upper and lower houses for the first time in 1809.
After 1809, Harrison's political authority declined as the Indiana territorial legislature assumed more authority and the territory advanced toward statehood.
The Territory's general assembly convened in 1810, and its anti-slavery faction immediately repealed the indenturing laws enacted in 1803 and in 1805.
He encouraged resistance by telling the tribes to pay white traders only half of what they owed and to give up all the white man's ways, including their clothing, muskets, and especially whiskey. In August 1810, Tecumseh led 400 warriors down the Wabash River to meet with Harrison in Vincennes.
Later, he led a military force against Tecumseh's confederacy at the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811, where he earned the nickname "Old Tippecanoe".
After the meeting, Tecumseh journeyed to meet with many of the tribes in the region, hoping to create a confederation to battle the United States. Tecumseh was traveling in 1811 when Harrison was authorized by Secretary of War William Eustis to march against the confederation as a show of force.
He was promoted to major general in the Army in the War of 1812, and in 1813 led American infantry and cavalry at the Battle of the Thames in Upper Canada. Harrison began his political career in 1798, when he was appointed Secretary of the Northwest Territory, and in 1799 he was elected as the territory's delegate in the House of Representatives.
Two years later, he became governor of the newly established Indiana Territory, a post he held until 1812.
After the War of 1812, he moved to Ohio where he was elected to represent the state's in the House in 1816.
He resigned on December 28, 1812 to resume his military career during the War of 1812. Harrison was assigned to administer the civilian government of the District of Louisiana in 1804, a part of the Louisiana Territory that included land north of the 33rd parallel.
Many of the Sauk greatly resented this treaty and the loss of lands, especially Black Hawk, and this was a primary reason that they sided with the British during the War of 1812.
By 1812, he had moved away and resumed his military career. Jefferson was the primary author of the Northwest Ordinance, and he had made a secret compact with James Lemen to defeat the nascent pro-slavery movement eventually led by Harrison.
The dispute was the catalyst of a disagreement between Harrison and the Department of War which continued into the War of 1812. The press did not cover the battle at first, and one Ohio paper misinterpreted Harrison's first dispatch to mean that he was defeated.
Congress declared war on June 18, 1812, and Harrison left Vincennes to seek a military appointment. ===War of 1812=== The outbreak of war with the British in 1812 led to continued conflict with Indians in the Northwest.
Congress awarded Harrison a gold medal for his services during the War of 1812. Harrison and Michigan Territory's Governor Lewis Cass were responsible for negotiating the peace treaty with the Indians.
President Madison appointed Harrison in June 1815 to help in negotiating a second treaty with the Indians that became known as the Treaty of Springwells, in which the tribes ceded a large tract of land in the west, providing additional land for American purchase and settlement. ==Postwar life== ===Ohio politician=== John Gibson replaced Harrison as Indiana territorial governor in 1812, and Harrison resigned from the army in 1814 and returned to his family in North Bend.
The Democrats, in turn, ridiculed Harrison by calling him "Granny Harrison, the petticoat general" because he resigned from the army before the War of 1812 ended.
He was promoted to major general in the Army in the War of 1812, and in 1813 led American infantry and cavalry at the Battle of the Thames in Upper Canada. Harrison began his political career in 1798, when he was appointed Secretary of the Northwest Territory, and in 1799 he was elected as the territory's delegate in the House of Representatives.
The territorial capital was moved to Corydon in 1813, and Harrison built a second home at nearby Harrison Valley.
He received reinforcements in 1813, then took the offensive and led the army north to battle.
His army defeated the British on October 5, 1813 at the Battle of the Thames, in which Tecumseh was killed.
The house was his military headquarters from 1813 to 1814, and is the only remaining building in Ohio associated with him. ==See also== Curse of Tippecanoe List of presidents of the United States List of presidents of the United States by previous experience List of presidents of the United States who died in office Presidents of the United States on U.S.
This pivotal battle is considered to be one of the great American victories in the war, second only to the Battle of New Orleans. In 1814, Secretary of War John Armstrong divided the command of the army, assigning Harrison to a "backwater" post and giving control of the front to one of Harrison's subordinates.
President Madison appointed Harrison in June 1815 to help in negotiating a second treaty with the Indians that became known as the Treaty of Springwells, in which the tribes ceded a large tract of land in the west, providing additional land for American purchase and settlement. ==Postwar life== ===Ohio politician=== John Gibson replaced Harrison as Indiana territorial governor in 1812, and Harrison resigned from the army in 1814 and returned to his family in North Bend.
The house was his military headquarters from 1813 to 1814, and is the only remaining building in Ohio associated with him. ==See also== Curse of Tippecanoe List of presidents of the United States List of presidents of the United States by previous experience List of presidents of the United States who died in office Presidents of the United States on U.S.
President Madison appointed Harrison in June 1815 to help in negotiating a second treaty with the Indians that became known as the Treaty of Springwells, in which the tribes ceded a large tract of land in the west, providing additional land for American purchase and settlement. ==Postwar life== ===Ohio politician=== John Gibson replaced Harrison as Indiana territorial governor in 1812, and Harrison resigned from the army in 1814 and returned to his family in North Bend.
After the War of 1812, he moved to Ohio where he was elected to represent the state's in the House in 1816.
He was elected in 1816 to complete John McLean's term in the House of Representatives, where he represented Ohio's 1st congressional district from October 8, 1816 to March 3, 1819.
He declined to serve as Secretary of War under President Monroe in 1817.
He was elected in 1816 to complete John McLean's term in the House of Representatives, where he represented Ohio's 1st congressional district from October 8, 1816 to March 3, 1819.
He was elected to the Ohio State Senate in 1819 and served until 1821, having lost the election for Ohio governor in 1820.
He was elected to the Ohio State Senate in 1819 and served until 1821, having lost the election for Ohio governor in 1820.
He was an Ohio presidential elector in 1820 for James Monroe and for Henry Clay in 1824. Harrison was appointed in 1828 as minister plenipotentiary to Gran Colombia, so he resigned from Congress and served in his new post until March 8, 1829.
He was elected to the Ohio State Senate in 1819 and served until 1821, having lost the election for Ohio governor in 1820.
He ran for a seat in the House but in 1822 lost by 500 votes to James W.
In 1824, he was elected to the U.S.
Senate in 1824, where he served until May 20, 1828.
He was an Ohio presidential elector in 1820 for James Monroe and for Henry Clay in 1824. Harrison was appointed in 1828 as minister plenipotentiary to Gran Colombia, so he resigned from Congress and served in his new post until March 8, 1829.
Senate; his term was truncated by his appointment as Minister Plenipotentiary to Gran Colombia in May 1828.
Senate in 1824, where he served until May 20, 1828.
He was an Ohio presidential elector in 1820 for James Monroe and for Henry Clay in 1824. Harrison was appointed in 1828 as minister plenipotentiary to Gran Colombia, so he resigned from Congress and served in his new post until March 8, 1829.
He arrived in Bogotá on December 22, 1828 and found the condition of Colombia saddening.
He was an Ohio presidential elector in 1820 for James Monroe and for Henry Clay in 1824. Harrison was appointed in 1828 as minister plenipotentiary to Gran Colombia, so he resigned from Congress and served in his new post until March 8, 1829.
Andrew Jackson took office in March 1829, and he recalled Harrison in order to make his own appointment to the position. ===Private citizen=== Harrison returned to the United States from Colombia and settled on his farm in North Bend, Ohio, living in relative retirement after nearly four decades of government service.
In an address to the Hamilton County Agricultural Board in 1831, he said that he had sinned in making whiskey and hoped that others would learn from his mistake and stop the production of liquors. In these early years, Harrison also earned money from his contributions to James Hall's A Memoir of the Public Services of William Henry Harrison, published in 1836.
Afterward, he returned to private life in North Bend, Ohio until he was nominated as the Whig Party candidate for president in the 1836 election; he was defeated by Democratic vice president Martin Van Buren.
In an address to the Hamilton County Agricultural Board in 1831, he said that he had sinned in making whiskey and hoped that others would learn from his mistake and stop the production of liquors. In these early years, Harrison also earned money from his contributions to James Hall's A Memoir of the Public Services of William Henry Harrison, published in 1836.
Between 1836 and 1840, he served as Clerk of Courts for Hamilton County.
Harrison campaigned for president a second time in 1840; more than a dozen books had been published on his life by then, and he was hailed by many as a national hero. ===1836 presidential campaign=== Harrison was the Northern Whig candidate for president in 1836, one of only two times in American history when a major political party intentionally ran more than one presidential candidate (the Democrats ran two candidates in 1860).
economy caused by the Panic of 1837. The Whigs nicknamed Van Buren "Van Ruin" in order to blame him for the economic problems.
Silbey, ed., A Companion to the Antebellum Presidents 1837–1861 (2013), pp. 155–72. Skaggs, David Curtis.
They defeated Van Buren in the 1840 United States presidential election, making Harrison the first Whig to win the presidency. At 68 years of age at the time of his inauguration, Harrison was the oldest person to assume the U.S.
Between 1836 and 1840, he served as Clerk of Courts for Hamilton County.
This was his job when he was elected president in 1840.
Harrison campaigned for president a second time in 1840; more than a dozen books had been published on his life by then, and he was hailed by many as a national hero. ===1836 presidential campaign=== Harrison was the Northern Whig candidate for president in 1836, one of only two times in American history when a major political party intentionally ran more than one presidential candidate (the Democrats ran two candidates in 1860).
A swing of just over 4,000 votes in Pennsylvania would have given that state's 30 electoral votes to Harrison and the election would have been decided in the House of Representatives. ===1840 presidential campaign=== Harrison was the Whig candidate and faced incumbent Van Buren in the 1840 election.
the Sly Fox: The 1840 Election and the Making of a Partisan Nation (U of Kansas Press, 2020) online review Graff, Henry F., ed.
William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States for 31 days in 1841, becoming the first president to die in office and the shortest-serving U.S.
He took the oath of office on Thursday, March 4, 1841, a cold and wet day.
The session would have begun on May 31 as scheduled if Harrison had lived. === Administration and cabinet === ==Death and funeral== On March 26, 1841, Harrison became ill with cold-like symptoms.
Harrison died on April 4, 1841, nine days after becoming ill and exactly one month after taking the oath of office; he was the first president to die in office.
Tyler obliged and was sworn into office on April 6, 1841.
The precedent that he set in 1841 was followed on seven occasions when an incumbent president died, and it was written into the Constitution in 1967 through Section One of the Twenty-fifth Amendment. More generally, Harrison's death was a disappointment to Whigs, who hoped to pass a revenue tariff and enact measures to support Henry Clay's American system.
She also received the right to mail letters free of charge. Harrison's son John Scott Harrison represented Ohio in the House of Representatives between 1853 and 1857.
She also received the right to mail letters free of charge. Harrison's son John Scott Harrison represented Ohio in the House of Representatives between 1853 and 1857.
Harrison campaigned for president a second time in 1840; more than a dozen books had been published on his life by then, and he was hailed by many as a national hero. ===1836 presidential campaign=== Harrison was the Northern Whig candidate for president in 1836, one of only two times in American history when a major political party intentionally ran more than one presidential candidate (the Democrats ran two candidates in 1860).
Anna was frequently in poor health during the marriage, primarily because of her many pregnancies, yet she outlived William by 23 years, dying on February 25, 1864 at 88. Prof.
Arthur each served in 1881. ==Legacy== ===Historical reputation=== Among Harrison's most enduring legacies is the series of treaties that he either negotiated or signed with Indian leaders during his tenure as the Indiana territorial governor.
Harrison's grandson Benjamin Harrison of Indiana served as the 23rd president from 1889 to 1893, making William and Benjamin Harrison the only grandparent-grandchild pair of presidents. ===Honors and tributes=== On February 19, 2009, the U.S.
Harrison's grandson Benjamin Harrison of Indiana served as the 23rd president from 1889 to 1893, making William and Benjamin Harrison the only grandparent-grandchild pair of presidents. ===Honors and tributes=== On February 19, 2009, the U.S.
The precedent that he set in 1841 was followed on seven occasions when an incumbent president died, and it was written into the Constitution in 1967 through Section One of the Twenty-fifth Amendment. More generally, Harrison's death was a disappointment to Whigs, who hoped to pass a revenue tariff and enact measures to support Henry Clay's American system.
presidency, a distinction he held until 1981, when Ronald Reagan was inaugurated at age 69.
The Presidencies of William Henry Harrison and John Tyler (U of Kansas Press, 1989). as read to the Filson Club. Shade, William G.
Harrison's grandson Benjamin Harrison of Indiana served as the 23rd president from 1889 to 1893, making William and Benjamin Harrison the only grandparent-grandchild pair of presidents. ===Honors and tributes=== On February 19, 2009, the U.S.
He rode through the streets in the inaugural parade, stood for a three-hour receiving line at the White House, and attended three inaugural balls that evening, including one at Carusi's Saloon entitled the "Tippecanoe" ball with 1,000 guests who had paid $10 per person (equal to $297 in 2020). The inaugural address was a detailed statement of the Whig agenda, essentially a repudiation of Jackson's and Van Buren's policies.
the Sly Fox: The 1840 Election and the Making of a Partisan Nation (U of Kansas Press, 2020) online review Graff, Henry F., ed.
All text is taken from Wikipedia. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License .
Page generated on 2021-08-05