Ulysses S. Grant, who had served as the commanding general of the U.S. Army during the Civil War and later as the nation's president, died on this day in 1885. He'd become president in 1868 in a landslide vote and was reelected easily again in 1872. Grant dedicated much of his effort in his first term to ensuring freed slaves had full rights and crushed the Ku Klux Klan while also managing an economic crisis. Despite those achievements, his time in office did leave something of a stain on his reputation.
Grant had developed a reputation for honesty and transparency in his dealings before entering office, but it didn't last long once he was in power. Against the tradition of the time, he accepted lavish gifts from admirers and associated with speculators who aimed to monopolize the gold market. His private secretary was also indicted for participating in a secretive ring of liquor distillers and their associates that bribed and extorted officials to evade taxes. It was not a good look.
After retiring, he saw more highs and lows. He became the first former president to tour the globe, but also joined a financial firm that collapsed. In late 1884 he learned he had terminal throat cancer and rushed to complete a memoir. He would finish it just before he died, saving his family from financial ruin. Today, the book is known as some of the best writing any president has ever done and a key record of Civil War history.
