Rutherford B. Hayes

I

Introduction

Rutherford B. Hayes (1822-1893), 19th president of the United States (1877-1881). He achieved the presidency in the closest electoral contest in U.S. history, winning over Samuel J. Tilden by one electoral vote. During his term of office, Hayes supported measures he felt right and just, without fear of making political enemies. While his achievements as president were not as dramatic as his election, he helped heal the wounds of the Civil War (1861-1865) by taking the last federal troops out of the South and thus ending the post-war period known as Reconstruction.

II

Early Life

Rutherford B. Hayes was born in Delaware, Ohio, on October 4, 1822, two months after his father's death. He was the fifth child of Rutherford Hayes, Jr., and Sophia Birchard Hayes. A generous uncle, Sardis Birchard, financed Rutherford's education at Norwalk Academy in Ohio and then at a private school in Middletown, Connecticut. From there, Hayes went to Kenyon College at Gambier, Ohio, graduating in 1842 as valedictorian of his class. After ten months' work in a law office in Columbus, Hayes entered Harvard Law School. He studied there for a year and a half, and in 1845 he became a licensed attorney.

A

Law Practice

Hayes opened a law office at Lower Sandusky (now Fremont), Ohio. He did not work very strenuously at the practice of law, however. For the next several years he cultivated his tastes for literature and natural science. In January 1850, after extensive travel in the United States and Canada, Hayes opened a law office in Cincinnati, Ohio. There he won considerable prominence as a criminal lawyer. He was often assigned by the court to defend obviously guilty people. By his clever arguments he managed to get the lightest possible sentences for them.

Hayes worked hard and made money, but he managed also to find time for the cultural activities of Cincinnati. He attended plays, lectures, and concerts. As a member of the Literary Club of Cincinnati he sponsored a visit by American writer and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson. Hayes also joined two lodges, the Odd Fellows and the Sons of Temperance.

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B

Marriage

In December 1852, Hayes married Lucy Ware Webb, a childhood sweetheart. She shared his intellectual interests and his enthusiasm for the temperance movement, which called for the prohibition of alcoholic beverages. Two years later, with the earnings of his practice and aid from his uncle, Hayes purchased a house. “These ties, these affections—nothing in life to equal them!” he wrote in his diary at the time. In a long and happy marriage, Rutherford and Lucy Hayes had seven sons and one daughter. Three of the sons died in their youth.