William Henry Harrison: President for 31 Days
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William Henry Harrison, the very first Whig president, died shortly after taking office. He didn’t live long enough to enact his ambitious program, it would be a severe error to underestimate his contribution to the American story. Richard Lim, host of the This American President podcast (https://www.thisamericanpresident.com/), describes why Harrison matters.
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Script:
The 1840 presidential election included one of the most well-known political mottos in American history. You may have heard of it: “Tippecanoe and Tyler, too!”
The “Tyler” of the slogan was John Tyler, the vice-presidential prospect.
But who was Tippecanoe?
It wasn’t an individual. It was the site of a famous fight. The general who won that fight was William Henry Harrison, the man who became the ninth president of the United States.
Born into a leading Virginia family on February 9th, 1773, his daddy, Benjamin Harrison V, was among the fifty-six men who signed the Declaration of Independence.
William, the youngest of 7 kids, matured on the household’s big estate. When his dad passed away all of a sudden, the cushy life of his youth quickly became a memory. Like many Virginia planters, the estate was more financial obligation than revenue. And at 18, William was on his own.
He signed up with the army and was posted to the Northwest Territory– a location that includes what is now Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.
Harrison rapidly established himself as a brave soldier and competent administrator. In 1801, when Harrison was just 27, President John Adams appointed him guv of the whole area– a workplace Harrison would hold for 12 years.
As governor, Harrison was an enthusiastic promoter of westward expansion. He negotiated 7 treaties with the tribes of the region, acquiring about 50 million acres of land for the United States in the process.
While many of the Indians adapted to changing situations and melded into the new settlements and towns, some refused to. These gathered under the banner of the Shawnee chief Tecumseh.
In November 1811, Tecumseh’s warriors, led by his sibling Tenskwatawa, launched a surprise attack on Harrison’s forces near the Tippecanoe River in what is now Indiana. After taking initial losses, Harrison and his guys turned the tide and emerged triumphant. The Battle of Tippecanoe made Harrison a nationwide hero.
But his greatest accomplishment was yet to come.
Harrison dominated. Tecumseh died in the fight. The triumph offered a major morale boost for the American people throughout a war in which triumphes were few and far in between.
His hero status secured, Harrison settled in North Bend, Ohio. He took advantage of his military record to get himself elected to Congress in 1816 and after that to the Senate in 1824.
By 1829, the American political landscape had significantly changed. As the population of the nation grew and ballot rights expanded, the “typical male” demanded to be heard.
The guy who acknowledged this much better than anybody was the new president, Andrew Jackson. The hero of the Battle of New Orleans wrote the political playbook of the 19th century: the rough guy of humble beginnings increases versus all chances to excellent heights.
Jackson’s political challengers, the Whigs, combated him throughout his two presidential terms, and got nowhere. When Jackson stepped down in 1837, and his vice president, Martin Van Buren, took the leading spot, the Whigs saw their opportunity. It likewise assisted that the nation had fallen into a significant monetary crisis: the Panic of 1837.
Taking a page out of Jackson’s playbook, the Whigs turned to Harrison, who, like Jackson, was a military hero.
However that wasn’t quite enough. They needed to reword Harrison’s bio. No longer was he a Virginia patrician. Now he was a hard drinking log cabin frontiersman.
The strategy worked. The 68-year-old Harrison easily beat Van Buren in the 1840 election, ending up being the very first Whig president. He was also, at that time, the earliest man to reach the greatest office.
Eager to show that he was hardy sufficient to do the task, he demanded providing a two-hour long inaugural address– to this day, the longest ever provided– without a hat, coat, or gloves on a freezing March afternoon.
For the full script, check out: https://www.prageru.com/video/william-henry-harrison-president-for-31-days
source
William Henry Harrison, the first Whig president, passed away soon after taking workplace. Richard Lim, host of the This American President podcast (https://www.thisamericanpresident.com/), describes why Harrison matters.
The general who won that battle was William Henry Harrison, the guy who became the ninth president of the United States.
After taking preliminary losses, Harrison and his males turned the tide and emerged victorious. The 68-year-old Harrison quickly beat Van Buren in the 1840 election, ending up being the very first Whig president.
