Thursday, June 16, 2016

What is Benjamin Harrison best known for?

Benjamin Harrison (1833–1901), a grandson of President William Henry Harrison, was the 23rd President (1889–93) of the United States. He is best known for serving between the two non-consecutive terms of Grover Cleveland; Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th President of the nation. Harrison narrowly defeated him in the 1888 presidential election. Therefore, Harrison's presidency was an interregnum.
Nevertheless, Harrison was a man of considerable ability. He had a great memory and was a nonpareil speaker. Harrison excelled in college and then set up his own law practice. His legal career was interrupted by his service in the Civil War, during which he became a general. After the war, he returned to his legal work and ran unsuccessfully for the governorship of Indiana and successfully for a seat in the U.S. Senate. He served as a senator from 1881 to 1887.
In the 1888 presidential election against Cleveland, he narrowly lost the popular vote but won in the Electoral College. Also, there had been a fair amount of corruption in the campaign—especially in Indiana.
In a recent survey of political scientists, Harrison was ranked a mediocre 32nd among all the presidents.

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