William Henry Harrison
From Ballotpedia
William Henry Harrison
Prior offices
President of the United States
Personal
William Henry Harrison (b. on February 9, 1773, in Charles City County, Virginia) was the ninth president of the United States. He served from when he was sworn in on March 4, 1841, until his death on April 4, 1841. Harrison died of pneumonia 31 days after being sworn into office.
Harrison was a member of the Whig Party. His vice president was John Tyler, who succeeded him upon his death.
Harrison's presidency was the shortest in the history of the U.S., and Harrison was the first U.S. President to die in office. Harrison's grandson, Benjamin Harrison, became the 23rd president. Harrison's father, Benjamin Harrison, signed the Declaration of Independence, and he was a member of the Continental Congress. Harrison's brother, Carter Harrison, was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.[1]
Prior to serving as president, Harrison served as a congressional delegate of and, later, the secretary of, the Northwest Territory—land encompassing the future states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin—and as the governor of the Indiana territories. Prior to running for president, he represented Ohio in Congress. He also served as a military commander in battles against Native Americans and in the War of 1812.[1]
Biography
Timeline of life events
Below is an abbreviated outline of Harrison's professional and political career:[1]
- 1773: Born in Charles City County, Virginia
- 1791: Joined the army
- 1798: Defeated Arthur St. Clair Jr., by one vote to be elected as the Northwest Territory's congressional delegate
- 1800: Appointed as governor of the Indiana Territory
- 1811: Led troops in the Battle of Tippecanoe
- 1813: Led troops to defeat the British at the Battle of the Thames
- 1814: Resigned from the army
- 1816: Elected to finish the term of John McLean representing Ohio in the U.S. House of Representatives
- 1817: Declined an appointment to the position of Secretary of War under President Monroe
- 1819: Elected as an Ohio State Senator
- 1820: Lost an election for Ohio governor
- 1822: Lost an election for U.S. House
- 1824: Elected to the U.S. Senate
- 1836: Lost the presidential election
- 1840: Elected president
- 1841: Died of pneumonia 30 days after being sworn in as president
Before the presidency
Harrison attended Hampden-Sydney College, where he studied classics and history, and the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied medicine. In 1791, he joined the army. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1792. He resigned from the military in 1798 and was appointed by President John Adams in July 1798 to the position of secretary of the Northwest Territory, which contained large portions of what became Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Also in 1798, Harrison defeated Arthur St. Clair Jr. by one vote to be elected as the Northwest Territory's congressional delegate, a non-voting position. After being influential in the division of the Northwest Territory into the Northwest and Indiana territories, Harrison was appointed by President John Adams as the governor of the Indiana Territory in 1801. He served as governor of the territory until 1813, after being reappointed by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in 1803, 1806, and 1809.[1]
In 1811, Harrison led soldiers in the Battle of Tippecanoe against Native Americans led by Tecumseh. The Battle of Tippecanoe featured in Harrison's later political campaigns. In 1813, Harrison was victorious in the Battle of Thames against British forces.[1]
After the war of 1812, Harrison represented Ohio as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1816 through 1819 and was in the Ohio State Senate from 1819 to 1821. From 1825 through 1828, Harrison was a member of the U.S. Senate representing Ohio.[1]
Presidency
In 1836, Harrison ran for the presidency but was defeated by Democrat Martin Van Buren. In 1840, however, he ran again and defeated Van Buren. Harrison took 234 electoral votes to Van Buren's 60. The popular vote margin between them was about 150,000—8.9 percent of the 1.7 million votes cast.[1]
Harrison was sworn into office on March 4, 1841. He fell ill and died of pneumonia on March 26, 1841, making his presidency the shortest in the history of the office.[1]
On March 17, 1841, Harrison called for a special session of Congress to discuss and attempt to resolve "the condition of the revenue and finance of the country." The session was scheduled to convene on May 31, 1841.[2]
Personal
On November 25, 1795, Harrison married Anna Tuthill Symmes. They had ten children.[3]
Elections
1840 presidential election
In 1840, Harrison defeated by Martin Van Buren in the general election for the United States presidency.
| U.S. presidential election, 1840 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Electoral votes | |
| Whig |  William Henry Harrison/John Tyler |
52.9% | 1,275,583 | 234 | |
| Democratic | Martin Van Buren/Richard M. Johnson | 46.8% | 1,129,645 | 60 | |
| Liberty | James G. Birney/Thomas Earle | 0.3% | 7,453 | 0 | |
| Other | Others | 0% | 13 | 0 | |
| Total Votes | 2,412,694 | 294 | |||
| Election results via: Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections |
1836 presidential election
In 1836, Harrison was defeated by Martin Van Buren in the general election for the United States presidency.
| U.S. presidential election, 1836 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | Electoral votes | |
| Democratic | Martin Van Buren |
45.2% | 762,678 | 170 | |
| Whig | William H. Harrison | 43.6% | 735,651 | 73 | |
| Whig | Hugh L. White | 8.7% | 146,107 | 26 | |
| Whig | Daniel Webster | 2.4% | 41,201 | 14 | |
| Independent | W.P. Mangum | 0% | 0 | 11 | |
| Total Votes | 1,685,637 | 294 | |||
| Election results via: 1836 official election results |
See also
External links
Footnotes
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Martin Van Buren (D) |
President of the United States 1841-1841 |
Succeeded by John Tyler |
