Lessons on American Presidents.
Ready-To-Print Handouts, MP3 & Online Quizzes - Rutherford Hayes

Rutherford Birchard Hayes was born in Ohio in 1822. He was the 19th President of the United States. He at Harvard Law School and then worked as a for five years. In 1850, he to Cincinnati, where he flourished as a young Whig lawyer. He gained a political reputation for defending fugitive slaves and was nominated for several legal positions.

He fought in the Civil War and was in action five times. He earned a reputation for bravery and rose to the of major general. While still in the Army, Cincinnati Republicans him for the House of Representatives. He accepted the nomination and was elected by a majority. Hayes entered Congress in December 1865. Between 1867 and 1876 he served three as Governor of Ohio.

In 1876, Hayes ran against Samuel J. Tilden in the closest election in U.S. history. Disputes over the vote counting meant that if all the disputed went to Hayes, he would win; a single one would Tilden. Hayes was elected days before inauguration day after a compromise with the Democrats that he would remove all troops from the South. The final electoral was 185 to 184.

Hayes pledged protection of the of black slaves in the South. He hoped the withdrawal of troops there would to reconciliation. Many Southern leaders approved of Hayes’ economic and financial conservatism. He reformed the civil service and saw the beginning of an of greater prosperity. He left office in 1881 and died of a heart at his home in January 1893, aged 70.