Ohio's President's: Why are They the Worse?

What makes Ohio's presidents considered among the worst ever. I believe through my research that Ohio's president's are considered the worst because even the highest ranked men didn't accomplish much during their presidency, while the others had scandals that plagued their term. From the Teapot Dome Scandal to the Panic of 1873 Grant, Harrison and Harding earn their place in the cellar of Ohio presidents where as even those who ranked higher can only go so high due to lack of accomplishment. Mckinley had a clean presidency, but didn't get much accomplished so he would never climb into the top 15. In todays times no president will probably crack the top 10 because presidents aren't viewed as highly as they one were and the times just lent themselves to letting a good president become a great president. I don't believe that Ohio's presidents overall were that terrible they just weren't the right men for the job.

William McKinley

William McKinley is ranked as the best of eight presidents from Ohio, but it still barely in the top half overall. William McKinley was to serve two terms in office, but was quickly assassinated in his second term.
McKinley's presidency was key to the United States because it oficially placed America's money on gold and saw the establishment of the United States as a true Colonial power. McKinley also annexed Hawaii into the union. McKinley's presidency also saw some key events such as the Spanish-American war in which an American ship Maine was blown up off the coast of Cuba and this was the start of the war. The result of the war saw America gaining control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Phillipine Islands. The Open Door Policy being rejected by China in the Boxer Rebellion led to America fighting in China to convince China to agree to trade with the western countrie(Martin Kelly).
William McKinley Memorial

William Taft

William Taft has some very interesting distinctions. Taft led many changes as he was the first president to own a car, changing the stables to a garage, and the last president to have a cow on hand for fresh milk. Taft was a deaf man and a huge man. He once got stuck in a bathtub so he had it changed to be made big enough for four men. Taft holds many distinctions such as that as being head of both the executive and judicial branches of government saying he enjoyed being Chief Justice more than the president as the White House was "the loneliest place." Taft also argued for U.S. supreme court to be made separate from Congress, and was one of only two presidents to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery(10 Interesting Facts About William Taft).
William Taft's presidency saw growth as the last two continental states were added, New Mexico and Arizona. Taft started what came to be known as Dollar Diplomacy, which ment the United States would get involved militarily to help United States interest overseas such as when he sent troops to stop a rebellion in Nicaragua because it was friendly with America. Taft was also key in bringing down a Standard Oil Company and passing the sixteenth amendment that called for an income tax(Martin Kelly).

Rutherford B. Hayes

Rutherford B Hayes' election was as shady as Bush's re-election. Hayes ran against Tilden who won the popular vote, and only needed one electoral vote to win the presidency, but when three states ballot's got confused many democratic votes were thrown out allowing Hayes to win. During Hayes' presidency, bot many things of note happened in a good or a bad way. Hayes began his presidency with the Compromise of 1877 which ended military occupation in the south in an attempt to appease the southerners who were not happy with the election results. The main act that came through during Hayes' presidency was the Bland-Allison Act which required the government to buy more silver to make coins to help farmers and debtors(Martin Kelly). While Hayes' didn't accomplish much his presidency didn't face the scandals of many other presidents which is why he is kind of a middle of the rankings president.
Rutherford B. Hayes' summer home.
I have actually been to this before and it is a very nice place.

James Garfield

James Garfield was another Ohio man who got the presidency without winning the popular vote. Garfield was also the first left-handed man to become president. Garfield was also a high ranking general for the union army. Garfield enjoyed a very short presidency of around 6 months, when he was shot and later died due to poor medical care. The one main accomplishment of Garfield's was the investigation of whether mail route contracts were being fraudulently awarded to those involved. Even when the investigation led to the door step of fellow republican members he continued the investigation setting forth civil service reforms(Martin Kelly). Even though his presidency was short he carried through the investigation even though it would hurt his party thus showing his high morality. Though his time in office was short he is still highly ranked among American presidents.
James Garfield Memorial

Benjamin Harrison

Benjamin Harrison is actually recorded in some sources as being from Indiana and others as being from Ohio. Benjamin is known for being a heavy talker, and also got the nickname of "human iceberg" due to his formal nature. Harrison lost the popular vote, but won through the electoral college. During his presidency, Harrison admitted North and south Dakota, but in an attempt to keep both states appeased. Harrison blindly picked states so as neither state could argue it got in first(10 Interesting Facts about Benjamin Harrison).
During Harrison's presidency, a few acts were signed that met well with people and a few bills that people greatly opposed. Harrison sign the Dependent and Disability Pensions Act that gave money to veterans injured in nonmilitary causes. He also signed the Sherman Anti-Trust Act that tried to stop the abuse of monopolies, but the vagueness left it as only a starting point. Benjamin also passed the Sherman Silver Purchase Act in which silver certificates could be traded in for gold or silver and it was quickly repealed by Grover Cleveland as the act was depleting U.S. gold. Many people suspect that this poor judgment is the reason that Benjamin didn't win re-election. He also passed a very unpopular tariff that raised imports by a 48% tax(Martin Kelly).
Benjamin Harrison Memorial Bridge
In 1977 a tanker ship crashed into the bridge providing for costly repairs.

Ulysses S. Grant

It is at this point that I have decided to modify my project. I originally intended to spotlight the 5 best presidents and the 5 worst Ohio presidents. I have decided since the class is Ohio History I should highlight all 8 of Ohio's presidents. So instead of comparing the way I had planned to I have laid groundwork for 3 of the top 5 and will use that as my comparison route. This way all of Ohio's president's get recognition and can be compared side by side as well as by some of the best for a different perspective.
Ulysses S. Grant was one of the best war generals this country has ever seen. Grant was best known for his control on horseback and as early as age nine people asked him for help training their animals. Grant also had a superstition that he needed to retrace his steps which proved pivotal in the Civil War. Grant was also one of the most composed men on the battlefield. Shells would explode all around him and he would not bat an eyelash(Diane Meives).
During the war, Grant's bold nature led to some unrest with his troops, but also led him to many key wins throughout the course of the war. Grant came known to accept nothing from his opponents but "an unconditional and immediate surrender. Grant won a key battle in Vicksburg and divided the confederate army into two. After many key wins, Grant became the number one general and maneuvered the generals so brilliantly that the end of the war seemed near at hand. The war concluded when Grant beat Lee at Petersburg.(Ulysses S. Grant The Hero of the Civil War).
While Grant enjoyed great military success, his presidential success was near nonexistent. Many major events took place while he was in office, but many of them were controversial or wrapped in scandal. One such scandal was the Black Friday Scandal. Grant was a big supporter of gold backed money. What took place was Jay Gould and Jim Fisk were lookign to make a large profit off of gold by aquiring large amounts and then selling it when it was most profitable for them. They talked Grant's brother-in-law to help them and they convinced Grant to name Gneral Butterfield as treasurer. Butterfield kept track of gold and told them when to buy or sell. When the price of gold then fell, panic insued, prices destabilized, and foreign markets almost halted, while the stock market almost crashed(Black Friday).
Grant's presidency also faced the vredit mobilier scandal in which Oakes Ames, who had bought inti the credit mobilier to make the Union Pacific Railroad, took advantage of the construction. The credit mobilier created the railroad at a highly inflated rate and even at times "built" a section of the railroad twice, and ended up making $23 million for a crummy railroad(This Week in Legal History). Another scandal that Grant's presidency faced was the whiskey ring scandal in which liquor sellers taxed as high as eight times the value of the liquor, and was maintained through the bribing of government officials. When Grant's secretary, Orville Babcock, was accused of being a part of it many people saw this as an attempt to fraudulently fund the Republican party(Whiskey Ring Scandal). Grant's presidency also faced the Belknap scandal and the panic of 1873. With the fall of Jay Cooke and his work on the Northern Pacific Railroad a series of events soon encompassed the nation. Banks failed, factories closed, credits dried, and the stock exchange closed. With these events Grant's presidency took a hit as the government faced unregulated growth and a lack of stopping company abuses(Panic of 1873).

Ulysses S. Grant Memorial
Honoring the man as the great war general he was, but not as the failure president.