President arthur biography

In the general election, Garfield and Arthur defeated Democratic nominee Winfield Hancock and his running mate William English , and were sworn into office on March 4, Less than four months later, on July 2, Garfield was shot by Charles Guiteau , a mentally unstable, disgruntled political job seeker, at a train station in Washington , D. Although Garfield initially survived the shooting, he battled infections and died two months later, at age 49, on September In the early hours of September 20, Arthur was sworn in as president at his Manhattan brownstone at Lexington Avenue by a New York state judge.

Two days later, in Washington, D. Supreme Court. Arthur was the second vice president to become chief executive due to an assassination. Although Chester Arthur had risen to power through machine politics, once in the White House he surprised Americans and alienated Conkling and other supporters by moving past partisanship. In January , he signed the Pendleton Civil Service Act, landmark legislation mandating that certain federal government jobs be distributed based on merit rather than political connections.

The act also forbade workers from being fired for political reasons and prohibited compulsory political donations from employees.

President arthur biography

Additionally, the Pendleton Act allowed for the establishment of a bipartisan Civil Service Commission to enforce the law. In addition to civil service reform, Arthur tried—with limited success—to lower tariffs. Logan of Illinois. Edmunds of Vermont, who had long favored their cause. Arthur played no role in the campaign, which Blaine would later blame for his loss that November to the Democratic nominee, Grover Cleveland.

Cleveland swept the Solid South and won enough Northern states to take a majority of the electoral vote. A change of just 1, votes in New York would have given Blaine the presidency. Arthur's tepid popularity in life carried over into his assessment by historians, and his reputation after leaving office disappeared. Howe said that Arthur had achieved "an obscurity in strange contrast to his significant part in American history.

Reeves would write that Arthur's "appointments, if unspectacular, were unusually sound; the corruption and scandal that dominated business and politics of the period did not tarnish his administration. These restraints Polls of historians and political scientists have generally ranked Arthur as a below-average president. The survey asked 91 presidential historians to rank the 43 former presidents including then-outgoing president Barack Obama in various categories to come up with a composite score, resulting in an overall ranking.

Arthur was ranked 35th among all former presidents down from 32nd in and Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikidata item. Presidential coat of arms — This article is part of a series about. Background [ edit ]. Main article: Chester A.

Election of [ edit ]. Main article: United States presidential election. Garfield-Arthur Republican Presidential Ticket. Accession to office [ edit ]. See also: Inauguration of Chester A. Arthur and Presidency of James A. Administration [ edit ]. Judicial appointments [ edit ]. Civil service reform [ edit ]. Pendleton Act [ edit ]. Star Route scandal [ edit ].

Surplus and the tariff [ edit ]. Foreign affairs and immigration [ edit ]. Further information: History of U. Naval reform [ edit ]. Greely polar expedition rescue [ edit ]. Further information: Lady Franklin Bay Expedition. Mentioned Greely expedition rescue [ edit ]. Civil rights and the South [ edit ]. Native American policy [ edit ]. Health, travel, and election [ edit ].

Declining health [ edit ]. Historical reputation [ edit ]. Notes [ edit ]. The presidential oath would later be administered by John Calvin Coolidge Sr. Coolidge later re-took the oath before a federal judge. Morgan, who had been his patron in New York; Morgan was confirmed by the Senate, but declined on the grounds of age. Wong Kim Ark in Chinese immigration would be banned until the passage of the Magnuson Act in Johnson , have unsuccessfully sought their party's nomination after serving for more than one full term.

References [ edit ]. Our Martyred President James A. National Publishing Company. Retrieved February 11, Eisenhower John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Bush Bill Clinton George W. Upcoming Events Past Events Donate. Help inform the discussion Support the Miller Center. University of Virginia Miller Center. Arthur: Life in Brief. Breadcrumb U.

Presidents Chester A. Arthur Chester A. Reform and Refurbish President As President, Arthur surprised everyone by acting independently, defying his state-based reputation as a slick machine politician who would advance the agenda of his own party faction and ignore the needs of the nation at-large. More Resources Chester A. Arthur Presidency Page.

Life Before the Presidency. As payback, Conklin arranged for Arthur to be on the Republican ticket with presidential nominee James A. Garfield in Six months after his inauguration, Garfield was assassinated, and Arthur subsequently became the 21st president of the United States. On several occasions as president, Chester A. Arthur shed his image as a slick political operator.

While the Republican Party usually protected big business, Arthur advocated lowering tariff rates to help relieve indebted farmers and middle-class consumers. In , he vetoed a pork-barrel project known as the Rivers and Harbor Act, believing that federal surpluses should go to tax relief rather than government expenditures. In , he became a champion of social service reform, signing into law the Pendleton Act, which established a bipartisan Civil Service Commission.

Though a loyal political party operative and promoter of the patronage system during his earlier political career, as president, Chester A. Arthur demonstrated that he was above party politics by instituting political reform. Arthur spent more time on his social life and political career than with his family. His wife, Ellen, died in , and Arthur entered the White House a widower.

He became a bit of a dandy in his dress and his social circle in Washington, D.