Hiram Ulysses Grant, 1822 - 1885
ca. 1876
Born: 27 April 1822, Point Pleasant, Ohio
Died: 23 July 1885, Mount McGregor, New York
Born to Pennsylvania natives Jesse Root Grant and Hannah Simpson Grant, the family moved to Georgetown, Ohio the year after he was born. His mother called him "Lys". Congressman Thomas Hamer nominated him to the US Military Academy at West Point, New York, but didn't have the 17-year-old Grant's full name in front of him. Remembering the boy's mother's maiden name he created "Ulysses S. Grant of Ohio" on paper. The initials appealed to the new cadet, his classmates called him "Sam". He was known as a fearless expert horseman, graduating 21st in a class of 39 in 1843. Despite his equestrian skills he was assigned to the Quartermaster Corps. During the Mexican-American War he got close enough to the front lines to be breveted for bravery twice, but was close enough to command to observe the actions of colonels and generals. One of only fifty captains in the post-war army, he abruptly resigned his commission in 1854 and went home to his wife and children on a farm near St Louis, Missouri. Farming and several small business ventures did not pay well and he answered the call for volunteers in 1861 after the Confederacy seceded. Grant's battle record was mixed until he was put in charge of the attack on Vicksburg in the summer of 1862, a campaign that Grant concluded on 4 July 1863 in what was seen as a tactically brilliant effort. Lincoln promoted him to Major General. Grant went to Chattanooga to take charge of relieving the besieged Union forces, he was promoted to Lieutenant General, the first since Washington, then made general-in-chief of the armies. When Congress authorized the rank of General of the Army of the United States, with four stars, President Andrew Johnson promoted Grant to that rank the same day, although they didn't get along that well. Rumors of Grant's drinking were probably overblown by his rivals but held some truth.
He was nominated as the Republican candidate for president in 1868 and became the 18th US president, serving two terms (1869 - 1877). In office, Grant tended to appoint men who had served with him in the Army, without regard to their qualifications or honesty, and there were a number of major scandals during his administration, none of which he benefited from. Grant spent two years on a world tour, triumphantly visiting numerous heads of state. On his return he made an attempt at a third term but the Republicans chose James A. Garfield to run in 1880. The world tour was expensive, and presidents received no pension a the time, so he invested his remaining assets in a Wall Street firm with Ferdinand Ward, who decamped with the assets leaving both the firm and the former president bankrupt. At about the same time, Grant learned he had throat cancer and turned to writing to get his family out of debt and improve his reputation. He wrote several articles related to his Civil War service for The Century Magazine which were well received, and Mark Twain offered him a 75% royalty for his memoirs which are still regarded as one of the best works of its kind ever.
Biography from Wikipedia and the White House
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Ulysses S. Grant quotes:
Quotes found : 39 — (15 per page, this is page 1 of 3) 1 2 3 Next
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- Although a soldier by profession, I have never felt any sort of fondness for war, and I have never advocated it, except as a means of peace. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - But this war was a fearful lesson, and should teach us the necessity of avoiding wars in the future. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - Personal Memoirs of General U. S. Grant (1885) - Every human being, of whatever origin, of whatever station, deserves respect. We must each respect others even as we respect ourselves. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - Everyone has his superstitions. One of mine has always been when I started to go anywhere, or to do anything, never to turn back or to stop until the thing intended was accomplished. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - God gave us Lincoln and Liberty, let us fight for both. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - A toast at dinner during Vicksburg Campaign (22 February 1863) - I believe that our Great Maker is preparing the world in His own good time to become one nation, speaking one language, when armies and navies will no longer be required. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - Second Inaugural Address (4 March 1873) - I don't underrate the value of military knowledge, but if men make war in slavish obedience to rules, they will fail. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - I feel that we are on the eve of a new era, when there is to be great harmony between the Federal and Confederate. I cannot stay to be a living witness to the correctness of this prophecy; but I feel it within me that it is to be so. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - Personal Memoirs of General U. S. Grant (1885) - I felt like anything rather than rejoicing at the downfall of a foe who had fought so long and valiantly, and had suffered so much for a cause, though that cause was, I believe, one of the worst for which a people ever fought, and one for which there was the least excuse. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - Personal Memoirs of General U. S. Grant (1885) - I have made it a rule of my life to trust a man long after other people gave him up, but I don't see how I can ever trust any human being again. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - I know only two tunes: one of them is 'Yankee Doodle', and the other one isn't. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - I leave comparisons to history, claiming only that I have acted in every instance from a conscientious desire to do what was right, constitutional, within the law, and for the very best interests of the whole people. Failures have been errors of judgment, not of intent. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - State of the Union Address (5 December 1876) - I never knew what to do with a paper except to put it in a side pocket or pass it to a clerk who understood it better than I did. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - I never wanted to get out of a place as much as I did to get out of the presidency. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - I propose to fight it out on this line, if it takes all summer. permalink
Ulysses S. Grant - Dispatch to Washington from Spotsylvania Court House (11 May 1864)
Quotes found : 39 — (15 per page, this is page 1 of 3) 1 2 3 Next
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