By Marc Roland. Mention the name “Ulysses S. Grant” to most Americans at least slightly aware of their country’s history, and they will tell you he was a whiskey-sodden “Civil War” general whose post bellum presidency was notable for its corruption. But there is a lot more to this man, once America’s most popular president, when he took office, than the establishment would have you think.
A review of certain incidents in Grant’s career may explain why his memory is regularly sullied by the modern mass media whenever it gets that chance. One North Carolina legislator, Patrick T. McHenry, has even suggested as recently as 2010 that Grant be replaced on the $50 bill with “a better man.” [Read the entire article as PDF…]
The Barnes Review, May/June 2011: Ulysses S. Grant: Soldier, General, President, Populist