Person

William Henry Harrison

Related Excerpts

Engraving of President William Henry Harrison

This President was Widely Attacked for Being Too Old to Run — at 67

In 1840, William Henry Harrison was mocked for his presidential run at age 67 — 15 years younger than President Biden would be at the start of a second term.
The Battle of Tippecanoe
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Lost Prophets and Forgotten Heroes

Tracing the currents of American history that run through the Great Lakes region.

What Tecumseh Fought For

Pursuing a Native alliance powerful enough to resist the American invaders, the Shawnee leader and his prophet brother envisioned a new and better Indian world.
A painting of an election taking place.

Children Will Listen

A political education begins with knockoff opinions amid the 1840 U.S. presidential election.
An illustration of a solar eclipse next to a portrait of James Fenimore Cooper.

Solar Eclipses in American History

How the spectacle of the 1806 solar eclipse impacted the national consciousness.
Illustration after American Gothic but in the context of the Black experience: African American farmers looking away, house foreclosed, lightning in the sky.

How Thousands of Black Farmers Were Forced Off Their Land

Black people own just 2 percent of farmland in the United States. A decades-long history of loan denials at the USDA is a major reason why.
Collage combining photograph of pets with the White House in the background.

The Best (and Worst) Presidential Pets in American History, Ranked

A cat named Miss Pussy! A racist parrot! Benjamin Harrison’s possums, which he later ate!
John Tyler.

Two on John Tyler: Tippecanoe and Tyler Too!

After the Whig president’s shocking death, his vice president and successor proved to be a Whig by expedience only
partner

Thomas Jefferson, Yellow Fever, and Land Planning for Public Health

Jefferson envisioned land-use policies that he hoped would mitigate epidemics – and other urban evils.

'I'm Feeling Bad About America'

The sick history of the U.S. campaign song.

How the Log Cabin Became an American Symbol

We have the Swedes and William Henry Harrison to thank for the popularization of the log cabin.
Illustration of the harmful effects of alcohol on a Seneca village

America's First Addiction Epidemic

The alcohol epidemic devastated Native American communities, leading to crippling poverty, high mortality rates — and a successful sobriety movement.

The American Presidents—Washington to Lincoln

Who were Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Lincoln, and the rest of the first 16 US presidents, what did they do, and what do they hope history has forgotten?