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Abraham Lincoln
The importance of Abraham Lincoln being president is that he took a large part in the freeing of slaves in the United States, creating the Emancipation Proclamation. Also, Lincoln also had a vital role as the leader in preserving the Union during the Civil War. He also gave the famous Gettysburgh Address, stating that our nation was fighting the Civil War to see if we would survive as a country. -
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson had several attempted accomplishments, including when the Radical Republicans passed the Civil Rights Act in 1866, trying to veto the bill. This and 15 other vetoson other bills were overridden. In 1868, the House of Representatives voted to impeach President Johnson for dismissing his Secretary of War Stanton against the order of the Tenure of Office Act which had passed in 1867. He became the first president to ever be impeached while in office. -
James A. Garfield
President James Garfield was only in office for a little over 6 months. Much of that time was spent dealing with patronage issues.The one major issue that he dealt with was an investigation of whether mail route contracts were being awarded falsely, with tax money within the pockets of those involved. On July 2, 1881, Charles J. Guiteau shot President Garfield in the back. He did not die until September 19th because of blood poisoning. -
Grover Cleveland
President Grover Cleveland was the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms. In 1893, Cleveland forced the withdrawal of a treaty which would have annexed Hawaii, because he felt that America was wrong in helping with the overthrowing of Queen Liliuokalani. He called Congress into session to repeal the Sherman Silver Purchase Act. According to this act, silver was purchased by the government and was redeemable in notes for either silver or gold. -
Benjamin Harrison
President Benjamin Harrison passed an important bill during 1890 , which was the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. This was the first antitrust law to try and stop the abuse of monopolies and trusts. Harrison also passd the Sherman Silver Purchase Act in 1890. This required the federal government to purchase silver for silver certificates. -
William McKinley
During President McKinley's time in office, Hawaii was annexed. Also, an important act during McKinley's time in office was the Gold Standard Act, where by the U.S. was officially placed on the gold standard. McKinley was later shot two times by anarchist Leon Czolgosz while the president was visiting the Pan-American Exhibit in Buffalo, New York on September 6, 1901. He died on September 14, 1901. -
Theodore Roosevelt
President Theodore Roosevelt was determined to build a canal across Panama. America aided Panama in gaining independence from Colombia. The U.S. then created a treaty with the newly independent Panama to gain the canal zone in exchange for $10 million plus annual payments. Roosevelt also added the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine.He was known as the Great Conservationist. During his time in office, he established the first national wildlife refuge. -
William Howard Taft
During President Taft's time in office, one of his key policies was known as Dollar Diplomacy. This was the idea that America would use the military and diplomacy to help promote U.S. business interests overseas.Taft continued to enforce antitrust laws. He was key in bringing down the Standard Oil Company in 1911. Also during Taft's term, the sixteenth amendment was passed that allowed the U.S. to collect income taxes. -
Woodrow WIlson
One of the first events of Wilson's presidency was the passage of the Underwood Tariff. This reduced tariff rates from 41 to 27%. It also created the first federal income tax after the passage of the 16th Amendment. In 1913, the Federal Reserve Act provided banks with loans and helped smooth out business cycles. Also, in 1914, the Clayton Anti-Trust Act was passed to help labor have more rights. It allowed important labor tools like strikes, pickets, and boycotts. -
Warren G. Harding
President Warren G. Harding was President during the Teapot Dome Scandal, of which Secretary of the Interior Albert Fall secretly sold the right to oil reserves in Teapot Dome, Wyoming to a private company in exchange for $308,000 and some cattle. He was caught and ended up being sentenced to one year in jail. Also, he spoke out on civil rights and pardoned Socialist Eugene V. Debs who had been convicted of anti-war demonstrations.President Harding died of a heart attack on August 2, 1923.
