Benjamin Harrison

Aug 20, 1833-March 13, 1901

By; Alan Lopez & Brenda Esqueda

Background/family• Born in North Bend Ohio • Grandson of William Henry Harrison

(9th president of U.S, elected in 1840) • Great grandfather, John Scott

Harrison signed Declaration of Independence

• Graduated from Miami University. Oxford, Ohio, 1852

• Studied law for 2 years• Moved to Indianapolis, Indiana and

kept his study mode• Elected as senator of Indiana • Republican/ known as good

politician,• 1862 organized the Union’s 70th

Indiana Infantry and commissioned as it’s colonel. Volunteer , knew nothing about war and lucky assigned to guard the Louisville and Nashville Railroad

while at Farmer’s college, Harrison met Caroline Lavinia Scott, daughter of University’s president.

Married in Oxford and had two children.

Harrison’s rise in politics• Practically born in the political life. Father ex-

Ohio congressman, grandfather William Henry Harrison (9th president). Great-grandfather John Scott Harrison ,signing the declaration of independence.

• By the age of 22 he had already begun to find success in life. Due to his family background he had politics in mind.

• Grandfather and father; new members of the now-defunct Whig party which led to join the new republican party…Harrison followed as well.

• Served in several political capacities before Civil War. Campaigning for republican presidential candidates in 1856.

• Several local positions: City attorney of Indianapolis & Secretary of the Indiana State Republican Campaign Committee.

• During war; joined an infantry unit and rose quickly through the military ranks until becoming Brigadier General.

Rise in Politics cont. • 1889 became president! • Announced several courses of action

in inaugural address-the issue of protective tariff.

• Like most republican members; favored a high protective tariff. Viewed by many as “too high.”

• Primary results of Harrison term in office, passage of even higher tariff (sponsored by: William McKinley)

• Under the McKinley tariff, tariff was raised

• Harrison had an uneasy feeling of this so he decided to offset the unneeded revenue by removing sugar and helped a few in the south

Rise in Politics cont.• The Sherman Antitrust Act . John

Sherman sponsored a second bill.(passed)

• Legacy of Harrison- Three pieces of legislation, good or bad were passed in 1900.

• Election of 1892 was exclusive in American History-major candidates, Harrison & Cleveland

• Due to the state of national economy and Harrison’s failure to earn support of his own party Victory for Cleveland!

Intellectual• Decisions: Mythical and legalistic,

actions unhurried and maturely deliberated

• Strong intellectuality, summoning of lofty principle provided a ready wherewithal for rebuffing those who sought consideration or favor

• Some found him impatient, brusque, & even irascible

Technology• Science was growing through out

Harrison’s time in office • Earliest President who’s voice was

known to be preserved • Had electricity installed for the first

time by Edison General Electric Company

• Himself and wife would not touch light switches due to fear

Religion

• Presbyterian- from college days onward, appears to be quite devout

• Became a church elder and taught Sunday school

• His religious faith installed in him a sense of duty which underplayed his political activities

Economic

• Although family was old and distinguished he did not grow up in a wealthy household, as most of John Scott Harrison’s income was expanded to his children’s education

Key Domestic Policy Issues• Many major businesses were plagued

by exclusive services and high prices. • Attempt to limit this was Sherman

Anti-trust Act of 1890 • Act passed unanimously thus both

parties had promised trust regulations in their platforms

• Act was vague/weak• Tariff major issue-republicans spoke

in favor of a high protective tariff • Granger movement became more

powerful during this time. Reached the highest point of the election of 1892 and Omaha platform.

Key Foreign Policy Issues• Secretary of state was James G.

Blaine; very aggressive when settling disputes and acquiring territory for the U.S

• Samoan conflict- Second Samoa Civil war and the nations resolved their issues, establishing Samoa as per the Treaty of Berlin, 1899.

• Island under the control of U.S Navy from 1900-1951

Famous Quote

• “We Americans have no commission from God to police the world.”

“One word”

• Lapsed • As history continued, Benjamin

Harrison is forgotten by all but the most passionate students of American History which is a shame!

Impacts/TodayHarrison was not favored by his fellow troops , nevertheless he did create an impact to

the United States. Until date, “The Sherman Antitrust Act 1890” still forms the basis for most antitrust litigation by the U.S government. It’s claimed to have little to do with trust. “Antitrust” known as “competition law”. The purpose was to oppose the combination of something that has existence which can harm competition for example; monopolies or cartels.

Cabinet Members• Executive Department Secretary Service Dates• Secretary of State James G. Blaine 1889-92• John W. Foster 1892-93• Secretary of the Treasury William Windom 1889-91• Charles Foster 1891-93• Secretary of War Redfield Proctor 1889-91• Stephen B. Elkins 1891-93• Attorney General William H. H. Miller 1889-93• Postmaster General John Wanamaker 1889-93• Secretary of the Navy Benjamin F. Tracy 1889-93• Secretary of the Interior John W. Noble 1889-93• Secretary of Agriculture Jeremiah M. Rusk 1889-93

Bibliography

• http://www.bookrags.com/biography/benjamin-harrison/• http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.whitehousehistory.org/whha_features/i

mages/feature_transitions-02.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.whitehousehistory.org/whha_features/features_media/feature_transitions-monkman-02.html&usg=__LHxHhoc_dhsqiTJpNuzv5HmFx3g=&h=300&w=231&sz=64&hl=en&start=1&tbnid=cbQsykzj_gjulM:&tbnh=116&tbnw=89&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbenjamin%2Bharrison%2Bfamily%26gbv%3D2%26hl%3Den - Foto/Fam

• http://americanhistory.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_rise_of_benjamin_harrison • http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Pages/Politics/Images/Republican-Logo.jpg• http://americanhistory.suite101.com/article.cfm/president_benjamin_harrison• http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/imh/100.4/images/frantz_fig05b.jpg• http://library.thinkquest.org/11492/cgi-bin/pres.cgi/harrison_benjamin?domestic• http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/55/Supreme_Court_History-antitrust.jpg• http://wpcontent.answers.com/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/McKinley_Destroys_Imperial

ism_Straw_Man.jpg/180px-McKinley_Destroys_Imperialism_Straw_Man.jpg• http://www.art-for-a-change.com/blog/images/april07/ron_cobb.gif• http://www.teachersparadise.com/ency/en/media/1/1b/electoralcollege1888_large.png• http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0760608.html. • http://www.danablankenhorn.com/images/teddy_roosevelt_trustbuster.jpg• http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3530/3240812318_e4f66a5fd4.jpg• The American Pageant Chapter 23 & 27 pgs.522-23 & 630

BRENDA ESQUEDA&

ALAN LOPEZTEAM MEMBERS

AKA: MRS. WEIRS FAV