Gilded Age Presidents

1. Rutherford B. Hayes

1.1. Election - The election of 1876. He's a Republican and his running mate is William Wheeler, and he ran against Democrat Samuel Tilden. Both candidates focused on swing states. November 11, Tilden had 184 electoral votes and Hayes had 164, but there was a dispute over 20 votes from Florida, Louisiana, Oregon and South Carolina. In January 1877,President Grant and Congress made a bipartisan Electoral Commission to determine who would get the 20 electoral votes. The Commission gave the votes to Hayes.

1.2. Major Issues - Many democrats didn't consider his election legitimate so they referred to him as "Rutherfraud". He ended the Reconstruction in April 1877 by withdrawing troops. The Great Railroad Strike of 1877 was an interstate strike and he had to send troops to stop the riots. In September of 1877, Hayes issued an executive order that forbade federal office holders from being required to make campaign contributions. Chester Arthur, Alonzo Cornell, and George Sharpe (congressmen) refused to follow these orders and Hayes wanted their resignations.

1.3. Success and Failure - He succeeded in recovering the economy by allowing the resumption of gold payments for Civil War greenbacks, so the gold supply would grow and the insurance of silver coins increase. He failed in protecting the rights of Southern Blacks and convincing the South of accepting the ideas of racial equality, and he didn't appropriate the funds to enforce the Civil Rights laws either.

2. Grover Cleveland 2

2.1. Election - The election of 1892. Cleveland is a Democrat, his running mate was Isaac Gray and he ran against President Harrison. There was also James Weaver of the Populist Party. The election was quiet and the candidates didn't campaign much because of Harrison's wife's death from tuberculosis on October 25. Cleveland still won by a large amount in electoral and popular vote.

2.2. Major Issues - The Panic of 1893 began after a company in Philadelphia went bankrupt on May 4, and the decline of the stock market in New York followed. The "Army of the Commonwealth of Christ", led by Populist Jacob Coxey, marched to Washington DC to take action and alleviate the economic depression by providing jobs to the unemployed. But he and those who marched with him were arrested for trespassing. On August 8, 1894, the US government recognizes the Republic of Hawaii. Another issue was when the US intervened in a boundary dispute between Venezuela and Britain. The US invoked the Monroe Doctrine and Britain agrees with arbitration instead of going to war with the US.

2.3. Success and Failure - He succeeded in adopting a policy of neutrality when a revolution began in Cuba against Spain in February of 1895. Cleveland failed in controlling Eugene Debs (starting May 1894) as he organized a strike of the Pullman Railway Car Company. The strike spread and effected 27 and territories, but Cleveland sent in troops on July 3 and arrested Debs. The whole strike officially ended December 1901 though.

3. William McKinley

3.1. Election - The election of 1896. He's a Republican and his running mate is Garret Hobart, while he ran against William Bryan. McKinley was the first to run the "Front Porch Campaign". He also won 51% of the vote and majority of the electoral college.

3.2. Major Issues - On July 24, 1897, McKinley signed the Dingley Tariff Act, which raised custom cuties even though American industries didn't need the protection against foreign goods. In December of 1897, he gave a speech to Congress saying that the Spanish government should be given time to reform its behavior in Cuba. But after the US sent the Maine battleship to Cuba, it explodes and sinks on February 15 in Havana Harbor. People suspect it was Spanish sabotage, but a month later it turned out to be from external factors. Then on February 6, 1899, the Senate ratifies a peace treaty between the US and Spain. McKinley signs the Gold Standard Act in March, which fixes the standard of the value of all money issued or coined by the US.

3.3. Success and Failure - McKinley failed in resolving the problem with Cuba as quickly as possible. He instead made it worse by blockading Cuban ports and using armed force when intervening with Cuba to end the Civil War they were in. The US also declared war on Spain in April 25, 1898. But he somewhat succeeded in December 1898 when the US and Spain signed the Treaty of Paris, and the US gaining official control of Cuba a month later.

4. James Garfield

4.1. Election - The election of 1880. He's a Republican and his running mate was Chester Arthur, and he ran against Democratic Winfield Hancock. Garfield won the electoral vote 214 to 155 and the popular vote by a small margin.

4.2. Major Issues - Garfield had constant issues with Conkling because Garfield promised to consult him on nominations, and Garfield doesn't appoint him to any spots to have influence over New York. Another issue was getting shot by Charles Guiteau at the railroad station on July 2 of 1881, along with dying on September 19 the same year from blood poisoning and complication with the surgeons not finding the bullet.

4.3. Success and Failure - A success is in the Treaty of Washington, which was signed between the US and Britain where it provided an arbitration procedure to settle Alabama claims. The US demanded that Britain pay for damages to American ships during the Civil War caused by Confederate ships built in England. But he failed by not handling Conkling well, and not keeping his promise to Conkling which caused him to cause trouble for Garfield.

5. Grover Cleveland 1

5.1. Election - The election of 1884. He's a Democrat and his running mate was Thomas Hendricks, and he ran against Republican James Blaine. The campaign focused on the moral standards of the candidates. Cleveland won the popular vote and the electoral vote 219 to 182.

5.2. Major Issues - Vice President Hendricks died November 25 of 1885. Then on May 11 of 1886, there was the issue of accepting France's gift of the Statue of Liberty since it commemorated their alliance during the Revolutionary War. The Tenure of Office Act of 1867 is repealed after Cleveland challenged its Constitutionality. One February 2, 1887, he signed the Dawes General Allotment Act, which tried to assimilate Native Americans into society by parceling out reservation lands to people. This act also set up a procedure that would grant Indians citizenship if they renounced their tribal land holdings, so the Dawes Act didn't really benefit the Indians.

5.3. Success and Failure - He succeeded in signing the Presidential Succession Act on January 19, 1886, which specified who would succeed the president in their absence. But Cleveland failed in signing the Chinese Exclusion Act on October 8 of 1888, which restricted the Chinese immigration to the US, and the ban didn't help with the anti-sentiment growing towards the Chinese.

6. Benjamin Harrison

6.1. Election - The election of 1888. Harrison is a Republican, his running mate was Levi Morton and Grover Cleveland was his opponent. Harrison did a Front Porch Campaign. He lost the popular vote but he did win win electoral vote 233 to 168.

6.2. Major Issues - On April 29, 1889, the Berlin Conference on Samoan Affairs with the US, Germany, and UK concluded on "The Final Act of the Berlin Conference on Samoan Affairs". Then in October 2 of 1889, there was the Pan-America Conference. But many South and Central American nations didn't trust the US so the delegates settled for a clause that encouraged reciprocity agreements. On July 2, 1890, the Sherman Anti-Trust Act is enacted to forbid business practices that restrain commerce or attempt to create monopolies. Again on July 14, 1890, the Sherman Silver Purchase Act is signed into law, allowing the Treasury to buy silver. But this law has little effect on the economy.

6.3. Success and Failure - Harrison succeeded with territories (North and South Dakota, Montana, Washington, Idaho, and Wyoming) becoming states. He also succeeded in signing the measure to create the nine Circuit Courts of Appeals on March 3, 1891. But he failed in allowing the tensions to rise with Chile. He allowed for the US to seize a Chilean rebel ship that was carrying arms from San Diego, and there was also a brawl between American sailors and Chilean nationals; both caused tensions to rise and cause people to fear in an outbreak of war.