Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ) (April 27, 1822 – July 23, 1885) was general-in-chief of the Union Army from 1864 to 1869 during the American Civil War and the 18th President of the United States from 1869 to 1877.
The son of an Appalachian Ohio tanner, Grant entered the United States Military Academy at age 17. In 1846, three years after graduating, Grant served as a lieutenant in the Mexican–American War under Winfield Scott and future president Zachary Taylor. After the Mexican-American War concluded in 1848, Grant remained in the Army, but abruptly resigned in 1854. After struggling through the succeeding years as a real estate agent, a laborer, and a county engineer, Grant decided to join the Northern effort in the Civil War.
Appointed brigadier general of volunteers in 1861 by President Abraham Lincoln, Grant claimed the first major Union victories of the war in 1862, capturing Forts Henry and Donelson in Tennessee. He was surprised by a Confederate attack at the Battle of Shiloh; although he emerged victorious, the severe casualties prompted a public outcry. Subsequently, however, Grant's 1863 victory at Vicksburg, following a long campaign with many initial setbacks, and his rescue of the besieged Union army at Chattanooga, established his reputation as Lincoln's most aggressive and successful general. Named lieutenant general and general-in-chief of the Army in 1864, Grant implemented a coordinated strategy of simultaneous attacks aimed at destroying the South's armies and its economy's ability to sustain its forces. In 1865, after mounting a successful war of attrition against his Confederate opponents, he accepted the surrender of Confederate General Robert E. Lee at Appomattox Court House.
Popular due to the Union victory in the war, Grant was elected President of the United States as a Republican in 1868 and re-elected in 1872, the first President to serve two full terms since Andrew Jackson 40 years before. As President, Grant led Reconstruction by signing and enforcing Congressional civil rights legislation. Grant built a powerful, patronage-based Republican Party in the South, straining relations between the North and former Confederates. His administration was marred by scandal, sometimes the product of nepotism; the neologism Grantism was coined to describe political corruption.
Grant left office in 1877 and embarked upon a two-year world tour. Unsuccessful in winning the nomination for a third term in 1880, left destitute by bad investments, and near the brink of death, Grant wrote his Memoirs , which were enormously successful among veterans, the public, and critics. However, in 1884, Grant learned that he was suffering from terminal throat cancer and, two days after completing his writing, he died at the age of 63. Presidential historians typically rank Grant in the lowest quartile of U.S. presidents for his tolerance of corruption, but in recent years his reputation has improved among some scholars impressed by his support for civil rights for African Americans.
Early life and family
Grant was born in Point Pleasant, Ohio, to Jesse Root Grant (1794–1873), a tanner, and Hannah Simpson Grant (1798–1883), both Pennsylvania natives. At birth, Grant was named Hiram Ulysses. In the fall of 1823, the family moved to the village of Georgetown in Brown County, Ohio.
Education and the Mexican-American War
At the age of 17, Grant entered the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, New York, after securing a nomination through his U.S. Congressman, Thomas L. Hamer, who erroneously nominated him as "Ulysses S. Grant of Ohio." Grant adopted the form of his new name with middle initial only. Because "U.S." also stands for "Uncle Sam," Grant's nickname became "Sam" among his army colleagues. He graduated from USMA in 1843, ranking 21st in a class of 39. At the academy, he established a reputation as a fearless and expert horseman. Although this made him seem a natural for cavalry, he was assigned to duty as a regimental quartermaster, managing supplies and equipment.
Mexican–American War
Lieutenant Grant served in the Mexican–American War (1846–1848) under Generals Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott, where, despite his assignment as a quartermaster, he got close enough to the front lines to see action, participating in the battles of Resaca de la Palma, Palo Alto, Monterrey (where he volunteered to carry a dispatch on horseback through a sniper-lined street), and Veracruz. During one battle, Grant saw Fred Dent, his friend, later to become his brother-in-law, lying in the middle of the battlefield; he had been shot in the leg. Grant ran furiously into the open to rescue Dent; as they were making their way to safety, a Mexican soldier was sneaking up behind Grant, but the Mexican was shot by a fellow U.S. soldier. Grant was twice brevetted for bravery: at Molino del Rey and Chapultepec. He was a remarkably close observer of the war, learning to judge the actions of colonels and generals. In the 1880s, he wrote that the war was unjust, accepting the theory that it was designed to gain land open to slavery. He wrote in his memoirs about the war against Mexico: "I was bitterly opposed to the measure, and to this day, regard the war, which resulted, as one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation."
Between wars
The Mexican-American War concluded on February 2, 1848.
On August 22, 1848, Grant married Julia Boggs Dent (1826–1902), the daughter of a slave owner. Together, they had four children: Frederick Dent Grant, Ulysses S. "Buck" Grant, Jr. , Ellen Wrenshall "Nellie" Grant, and Jesse Root Grant.
Grant remained in the army and was moved to several different posts. He was sent to Fort Vancouver in the Washington Territory in 1853, where he served as quartermaster of the 4th Infantry Regiment. His wife, eight months pregnant with their second child, could not accompany him because his salary could not support a family on the frontier. In 1854, Grant was promoted to captain, one of only 50 still on active duty, and assigned to command Company F, 4th Infantry, at Fort Humboldt, California. Grant abruptly resigned from the Army with little notice on July 31, 1854, offering no explanation for his decision. Rumors persisted in the Army for years that his commanding officer, Bvt. Lt. Col. Robert C. Buchanan, found him intoxicated on duty as a pay officer and offered him the choice between resignation or court-martial. However, the War Department stated, "Nothing stands against his good name."
At age 32, Grant struggled through seven lean years. From 1854 to 1858, he labored on a family farm near St. Louis, Missouri, using slaves owned by his father-in-law, but it did not prosper. Grant acquired one of those slaves in 1858 (and manumitted him the next year, when the Grants returned to Illinois) and his wife owned four slaves. From 1858–1859, he was a bill collector in St. Louis. Failing at everything, he asked his father for a job, and in 1860 was made an assistant in the leather shop owned by his father in Galena, Illinois. Grant & Perkins sold harnesses, saddles, and other leather goods and purchased hides from farmers in the prosperous Galena area.
Although Grant was not affiliated with any political party, his father-in-law was a prominent Democrat in St. Louis, a fact that lost Grant the job of county engineer in 1859. In 1856, he voted for Democrat James Buchanan for president to avert secession and because "I knew Frémont" (the Republican candidate). In 1860, he favored Democrat Stephen A. Douglas but did not vote. In 1864, he allowed his political sponsor, Congressman Elihu B. Washburne, to use his private letters as campaign literature for Abraham Lincoln and the Union Party, which combined both Republicans and War Democrats. Grant announced his affiliation as a Republican in 1868, after years of apoliticism.
Civil War
Western Theater: 1861–63
Shortly after Confederate forces fired upon Fort Sumter, President Abraham Lincoln put out a call for 75,000 militia volunteers. Grant helped recruit a company of volunteers and accompanied it to Springfield, the capital of Illinois. Grant accepted a position offered by Illinois Governor Richard Yates to recruit and train volunteers, which he accomplished with efficiency. Grant pressed for a field command; Yates appointed him a colonel in the Illinois militia and gave him command of the undisciplined and rebellious 21st Illinois Infantry in June 1861.
Grant was deployed to Missouri to protect the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad. Under pro-Confederate Governor Claiborne Jackson, Missouri had declared it was an armed neutral in the conflict and would attack troops from either side entering the state. By the August 1 the Union army had forcibly removed Jackson and Missouri was controlled by Union forces, who had to deal w
Gov Grant Money-About Us
Why GovGrantMoney.com? GovGrantMoney.com was founded to provide information and resources to help people from all walks of life in their quest to obtain grant money.
Free Government Grants For Housing, College, Business, And Women
Canadian Grant Information; Government Grant Assessment; Housing Grants; Personal ... Government Grants, Free Government Money. For over 50 Years the US Government has been giving free ...
Justice Department: ACORN mismanaged grant money - US Message Board ...
ACORN mismanaged grant money Because the Justice Department's review found only small amounts of taxpayer dollars going to ACORN, it is imperative that the Inspectors General from ...
US Government Grants | Individual Grant Money
Government grants are usually offered by most of the government department that is in existence. These grants are offered by various departments that help
Government Grants, US Free Grant Money! ...
Government Grants, US Free Grant Money! (Don't Miss This!) Jul 13, 2008 12:19 AM
w a n d e r l i s t - Scholarship Money
money grants for college, college money loan money, graduating sr high school scholarship money, free college grant scholarship money, grant money educational institutions, us ...
US to boost grant money for security at New York area ports
By DEVLIN BARRETT Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON - Annual funding to protect the perimeters of New York's and New Jersey's ports will be boosted nearly fourfold, the Department ...
REF: Grant Money - USMilitary.com Forums
There are so many spam emails about grant money, is it really that easy to get grant money? Can anyone qualify? I would be interested in a small
FREE US GRANT MONEY
* Grants for Minorities * Federal Grant Programs * Federal Loan Programs * Government Resources Directory * Government Agencies Listings * Business Development
Home: Message List - Government Grants, US Free Grant Money! (Don't ...
I have two questions befoe I look into this any further. First question: Do you guarantee that I will be able to recieve grant money? Second question: