Virtual Museum of Art | Virtual Museum of History | Virtual Public Library | Virtual Science Center | Virtual Museum of Natural History | Virtual War Museum
   You are in: Museum of History >> Hall of USA >> US Presidents >> William H. Taft

Who was the First U.S. President?
There were actually four first Presidents
of the United Colonies and States of America
Click Here


New Page 1

William H. Taft
37th President of the United States
27th under the US Constitution


WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT was born September 15, 1857 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Both of his parents were descendants of old New England families of British origin. His father, Alphonso Taft, a native of Vermont and the son of a judge, had moved to Cincinnati in 1837 to practice law and later served as judge in Ohio, secretary of war and as attorney general under President Ulysses S. Grant. His mother, Louise Torrey Taft, came to Ohio from Massachusetts years later as Alphonso's second wife. Traditions revering education and public service ran strong in the family, and young Taft strove to emulate and exceed his father’s example.

Taft received his early education at the local Cincinnati schools, where he was an intelligent student. In 1874 he entered Yale, where he was both successful and popular. When he graduated in 1878, he ranked second in his class. After graduation, he went home to Cincinnati, which was the political base for the Taft family through several generations, to attend the Cincinnati Law School. He graduated in 1880 and passed the Ohio bar the same year. Only a few months passed between his graduation from law school and his first public appointment as assistant prosecutor of Hamilton County, Ohio, in 1881. The next year he was appointed Cincinnati's collector of internal revenue, but later resigned to pursue a private law practice. He practiced law in Cincinnati from 1883 to 1887. In 1885 Taft returned to public service as assistant county solicitor in Hamilton County.

On June 19, 1886, he married Helen Herron, whom he called Nellie, the daughter of a well-known Cincinnati lawyer. The couple had three children, Robert Alphonso Taft (1889 – 1953), Helen Herron Taft (1891 – 1987) and Charles Phelps Taft (1897 – 1983). An intelligent and ambitious woman, Nellie Taft played an important role in Taft's career and in his advancement and a principal influence in persuading him to leave the law and the bench.

In 1889, although only 32 years old, President Benjamin Harrison appointed Taft as United States solicitor general. Much later, Taft attributed his success in these early years to the fact that "like every well-trained Ohio man I had my plate the right side up when offices were falling." After a year he was back in Cincinnati as a circuit court judge where he remained for eight years.

Taft began to gain national stature in 1900, when President McKinley sent him to the Philippines as chief civil administrator. Sympathetic toward the Filipinos, he improved the economy, built roads and schools, and gave the people at least some participation in government. In 1901, McKinley named Taft the first civil governor of the Philippines. His governorship of the islands was a high mark as he recognized that the first steps toward the goal of independence were public education and the end of ownership of land by the Roman Catholic friars. He reached an agreement with the Vatican whereby, with American financial assistance, the lands were sold back to the Filipinos. When Theodore Roosevelt succeeded the assassinated McKinley as president, he twice offered Governor Taft a place on the U.S. Supreme Court, but Taft declined, insisting that his work in the Philippines was not finished.

Roosevelt had come to look upon Taft as his eventual successor and he was certain that he needed him in his cabinet. With the understanding that he could continue to oversee Philippine affairs from Washington, Taft accepted the post of Secretary of War.

Taft as Secretary of War became the administration's "trouble shooter" at home and abroad. During the years between 1904 and 1908 Taft had direct charge of the construction of the Panama Canal. Roosevelt considered Taft one of his most valuable assets, so able was Taft that Roosevelt felt free to leave the capital whenever he wished, because he had "left Taft sitting on the lid." As Roosevelt's personal emissary Taft was sent on many diplomatic assignments.

In 1906 Taft was again offered a seat on the Supreme Court. When asked if his father would accept, one of Taft's sons replied, "Nope. Ma wants him to wait and be president." Roosevelt had vowed not to run again after the 1904 election. Taft was closely branded with Roosevelt and his policies, and many Roosevelt supporters believed him an ideal successor. Roosevelt himself was satisfied that Taft's election would make certain that his reform programs were continued and he used his influence to get Taft the nomination. Taft became the Republican candidate on the first ballot. He was elected president in 1908 with a popular vote of 7,675,320 to candidate William Jennings Bryan’s 6,412,294 and an electoral vote of 321 to Bryan's 162.

During his presidency, Taft introduced budgetary controls, an eight-hour workday for government employees, and a campaign-spending disclosure bill. His Administration prosecuted numerous companies under the anti-trust laws.

In succeeding a president as multi-faceted and popular as Roosevelt however, Taft was at a serious disadvantage. Taft had a judicial, not a political, personality. He was a procrastinator and a poor public speaker, and he altogether lacked Roosevelt's flair for dramatizing the issues and his intentions. Although Roosevelt could influence Taft, he soon discovered he could not mold him in his own image. Taft admitted the job of president intimidated him. Taft drew mounting criticism from Roosevelt, who eventually branded Taft an ineffectual conservative puppet of big business.

Roosevelt made it clear early in 1912 that he wanted the Republican nomination for president. By this time the former friends were bitter enemies, and Taft was resolved that Roosevelt should not succeed. Taft prevented the seating of many Roosevelt delegates at the 1912 national convention with his control over the party machinery, and he kept the official Republican nomination for himself. However, his hopes for reelection were inadequate as his administration was uninteresting and failed to attract anybody's attention or enthusiasm. Roosevelt agreed and led his supporters out of the Republican Party to the Progressive, or Bull Moose Party, splitting the Republican vote. Democrat Woodrow Wilson won easily and Taft was released from the office he loathed.

Taft, free of the Presidency, served as Professor of Law at Yale until President Harding made him Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court -- a position he held until just before his death in 1930. To Taft, this appointment was his greatest honor; he wrote: "I don't remember that I ever was President."

Heart disease forced Taft to retire from the court on February 3, 1930, and almost as if the surrender of the work he loved had sapped his remaining strength, he died on March 8, 1930 in Washington, D.C.

 

Presidents of the Continental Congress
United Colonies of The United States

Peyton Randolph
September 5, 1774 to October 22, 1774 
and May 20 to May 24, 1775

Henry Middleton
October 22, 1774 to October 26, 1774

John Hancock
October 27, 1775 to July 1, 1776

 

Presidents of the Continental Congress
United States of America

John Hancock
July 2, 1776 to  October 29, 1777

Henry Laurens
November 1, 1777 to December 9, 1778

John Jay
December 10, 1778 to September 28, 1779

Samuel Huntington
September 28, 1779 to February 28, 1781


Presidents of the United States
in Congress Assembled

Samuel Huntington
1st President of the United States 
in Congress Assembled
March 1, 1781 to July 6, 1781

Thomas McKean
2nd President of the United States 
in Congress Assembled
July 10, 1781 to November 5, 1781

John Hanson
3rd President of the United States 
in Congress Assembled
November 5, 1781 to November 4, 1782

Elias Boudinot
4th President of the United States 
in Congress Assembled
November 4, 1782 to November 3, 1783

Thomas Mifflin
5th President of the United States 
in Congress Assembled
November 3, 1783 to June 3, 1784

Richard Henry Lee
6th President of the United States 
in Congress Assembled
November 30, 1784 to November 23, 1785

John Hancock
7th President of the United States 
in Congress Assembled
November 23, 1785 to June 6, 1786

Nathaniel Gorham
8th President of the United States 
in Congress Assembled
June 1786 - November 13, 1786

Arthur St. Clair
9th President of the United States 
in Congress Assembled
February 2, 1787 to October 29, 1787

Cyrus Griffin
10th President of the United States 
in Congress Assembled
January 22, 1788 to March 4, 1789


Presidents of the United States
under the
United States Constitution

 

George Washington (F)

John Adams (F)

Thomas Jefferson (D-R)

James Madison (D-R)

James Monroe (D-R)

John Quincy Adams (D-R)

Andrew Jackson (D)

Martin Van Buren (D)

William H. Harrison (W)

John Tyler (W)

James K. Polk (D)

David Atchison (D)*

Zachary Taylor (W)

Millard Fillmore (W)

Franklin Pierce (D)

James Buchanan (D)

Abraham Lincoln (R)

Jefferson Davis (D)**

Andrew Johnson (R)

Ulysses S. Grant (R)

Rutherford B. Hayes (R)

James A. Garfield (R)

Chester Arthur (R)

Grover Cleveland (D)

Benjamin Harrison (R)

Grover Cleveland (D)

William McKinley (R)

Theodore Roosevelt (R)

William H. Taft (R)

Wilson  Woodrow (D)

Warren G. Harding (R)

Calvin Coolidge (R)

Herbert C. Hoover (R)

Franklin D. Roosevelt (D)

Harry S. Truman (D)

Dwight D. Eisenhower (R)

John F. Kennedy (D)

Lyndon B. Johnson (D)

Richard M. Nixon (R)

 Gerald R. Ford (R)

James Earl Carter, Jr. (D)

Ronald Wilson Reagan (R)

George H. W. Bush (R)

William Jefferson Clinton (D)

George W. Bush (R)


 

*President for One Day

**President Confederate States of America

   

Current Order of Presidential Succession

The Vice President
Speaker of the House
President pro tempore of the Senate
Secretary of State
Secretary of the Treasury
Secretary of Defense
Attorney General
Secretary of the Interior
Secretary of Agriculture
Secretary of Commerce
Secretary of Labor
Secretary of Health and Human Services
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
Secretary of Transportation
Secretary of Energy
Secretary of Education
Secretary of Veterans Affairs

   

Research Links

Virtualology is not affiliated with the authors of these links nor responsible for its content.

 

Presidential Libraries

 

Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center

McKinley Memorial Library

Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum - has research collections containing papers of Herbert Hoover and other 20th century leaders.

Franklin D. Roosevelt Library and Museum - Repository of the records of President Franklin Roosevelt and his wife Eleanor Roosevelt, managed by the National Archives and Records Administration.

Harry S. Truman Library & Museum

Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library - preserves and makes available for research the papers, audiovisual materials, and memorabilia of Dwight and Mamie D. Eisenhower

John Fitzgerald Kennedy Library

Lyndon B. Johnson Library and Museum

Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace Foundation

Gerald R. Ford Library and Museum

Jimmy Carter Library

Ronald Reagan Presidential Library - 40th President: 1981-1989.

George Bush Presidential Library

 


Start your search on William H. Taft.


The Congressional Evolution of the United States Henry Middleton


Unauthorized Site: This site and its contents are not affiliated, connected, associated with or authorized by the individual, family, friends, or trademarked entities utilizing any part or the subject's entire name. Any official or affiliated sites that are related to this subject will be hyper linked below upon submission and Evisum, Inc. review.

Copyright© 2000 by Evisum Inc.TM. All rights reserved.
Evisum Inc.TM Privacy Policy

Search:

About Us

 

 

Image Use

Please join us in our mission to incorporate The Congressional Evolution of the United States of America discovery-based curriculum into the classroom of every primary and secondary school in the United States of America by July 2, 2026, the nation’s 250th birthday. , the United States of America: We The People Click Here

 

Historic Documents

Articles of Association

Articles of Confederation 1775

Articles of Confederation

Article the First

Coin Act

Declaration of Independence

Declaration of Independence

Emancipation Proclamation

Gettysburg Address

Monroe Doctrine

Northwest Ordinance

No Taxation Without Representation

Thanksgiving Proclamations

Mayflower Compact

Treaty of Paris 1763

Treaty of Paris 1783

Treaty of Versailles

United Nations Charter

United States In Congress Assembled

US Bill of Rights

United States Constitution

US Continental Congress

US Constitution of 1777

US Constitution of 1787

Virginia Declaration of Rights

 

Historic Events

Battle of New Orleans

Battle of Yorktown

Cabinet Room

Civil Rights Movement

Federalist Papers

Fort Duquesne

Fort Necessity

Fort Pitt

French and Indian War

Jumonville Glen

Manhattan Project

Stamp Act Congress

Underground Railroad

US Hospitality

US Presidency

Vietnam War

War of 1812

West Virginia Statehood

Woman Suffrage

World War I

World War II

 

Is it Real?



Declaration of
Independence

Digital Authentication
Click Here

 

America’s Four Republics
The More or Less United States

 
Continental Congress
U.C. Presidents

Peyton Randolph

Henry Middleton

Peyton Randolph

John Hancock

  

Continental Congress
U.S. Presidents

John Hancock

Henry Laurens

John Jay

Samuel Huntington

  

Constitution of 1777
U.S. Presidents

Samuel Huntington

Samuel Johnston
Elected but declined the office

Thomas McKean

John Hanson

Elias Boudinot

Thomas Mifflin

Richard Henry Lee

John Hancock
[
Chairman David Ramsay]

Nathaniel Gorham

Arthur St. Clair

Cyrus Griffin

  

Constitution of 1787
U.S. Presidents

George Washington 

John Adams
Federalist Party


Thomas Jefferson
Republican* Party

James Madison 
Republican* Party

James Monroe
Republican* Party

John Quincy Adams
Republican* Party
Whig Party

Andrew Jackson
Republican* Party
Democratic Party


Martin Van Buren
Democratic Party

William H. Harrison
Whig Party

John Tyler
Whig Party

James K. Polk
Democratic Party

David Atchison**
Democratic Party

Zachary Taylor
Whig Party

Millard Fillmore
Whig Party

Franklin Pierce
Democratic Party

James Buchanan
Democratic Party


Abraham Lincoln 
Republican Party

Jefferson Davis***
Democratic Party

Andrew Johnson
Republican Party

Ulysses S. Grant 
Republican Party

Rutherford B. Hayes
Republican Party

James A. Garfield
Republican Party

Chester Arthur 
Republican Party

Grover Cleveland
Democratic Party

Benjamin Harrison
Republican Party

Grover Cleveland 
Democratic Party

William McKinley
Republican Party

Theodore Roosevelt
Republican Party

William H. Taft 
Republican Party

Woodrow Wilson
Democratic Party

Warren G. Harding 
Republican Party

Calvin Coolidge
Republican Party

Herbert C. Hoover
Republican Party

Franklin D. Roosevelt
Democratic Party

Harry S. Truman
Democratic Party

Dwight D. Eisenhower
Republican Party

John F. Kennedy
Democratic Party

Lyndon B. Johnson 
Democratic Party 

Richard M. Nixon 
Republican Party

Gerald R. Ford 
Republican Party

James Earl Carter, Jr. 
Democratic Party

Ronald Wilson Reagan 
Republican Party

George H. W. Bush
Republican Party 

William Jefferson Clinton
Democratic Party

George W. Bush 
Republican Party

Barack H. Obama
Democratic Party

Please Visit

Forgotten Founders
Norwich, CT

Annapolis Continental
Congress Society


U.S. Presidency
& Hospitality

© Stan Klos

 

 

 

 


Virtual Museum of Art | Virtual Museum of History | Virtual Public Library | Virtual Science Center | Virtual Museum of Natural History | Virtual War Museum