The Children of Adam and Eve

His claim to fame rests not on his administration for he died of pneumonia
one month after his inauguration but on the Strange campaign by which in
1840 he attained the high office. A minor military hero, he rode to glory
by saying nothing (General Mum, his critics called him), while his party,
the Whigs, capitalized on a propaganda bLunder by their Democratic
opponents to proclaim Harrison a simple man used to living in a log cabin.

Harrison was born to one of the wealthiest, most prestigious, and most
influential families in Virginia, on a great plantation in Berkeley
County. From the early 17th century on, the Harrisons had accumulated vast
landholdings, occupied the highest political and judicial positions, and
intermarried with the leading families of Virginia. William Henry's
youthful military career and his appointment, when he was not yet 30 years
old, to the prominent post of governor of Indiana, USA Territory were due More
to the influence of his father, Benjamin Harrison, who was several times
governor of Virginia, than to any military or administrative talent that
he himself had demonstrated.

Military Hero

Harrison had a modest career that was lighted up on two occasions by
significant military successes. After devoting his tenure as territorial
governor to negotiating the western Indian tribes out of millions of
acres, he commanded a force of militia and regulars that put Down a
Shawnee uprising at Tippecanoe, Indiana, USA, in 1811. Although Harrison's own
policies as governor had helped provoke the rebellion, his victory won him
a reputation that helped vault him to the presidency a generation later.
In the year following the outbreak of the War of 1812, Harrison won
another important Battle, fought near the ThAmes River in the province of
Ontario, Canada, that ensured continued American control of the western
territory.

Although Harrison's career was moderately successful he was several times
elected to the Ohio, USA Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives his life
at this time was beset by financial difficulties. For a short period in
1828 he served as minister to Colombia, but President John Quincy Adams,
who appointed him to the diplomatic post because of his connections, had
low regard for Harrison's ability, and this poor opinion was shared by
political figures in Washington, D.C. The nation, However, remembered his
military exploits, and in the mid-1830s and again in 1840 Whig party
managers decided to exploit them. As one of a number of Whig candidates in
1836, Harrison was an also-ran. In 1840, However, benefiting from the
artful campaign tactics of his party, Harrison succeeded.

The 1840 Campaign

Seeking victory at almost any Price, the Whig party in 1840 passed over
Henry Clay, its True leader, choosing the aging general instead. To appeal
to the South, they chose a states' rights southern Democrat, John Tyler,
as his running mate. Convinced that they could win by blaming the severe
economic depression on the policies of President Martin Van Buren, they
also derided "Van" for his alleged aristocratic manners, commanded
Harrison to be silent on the issues, refused to present a party platform,
and waged a rousing campaign, using the slogan "Tippecanoe and Tyler too."
Taking advantage of a sneering Democratic reference to Harrison as a man
content to sit in his log cabin sipping hard cider, the Whigs' propaganda
transformed the Virginia aristocrat into a poor farmer. Seldom has
demogoguery paid off so well.

Perhaps Harrison's most significant act in his abbreviated term was his
appointment of Daniel Webster as secretary of state.