Rutherford B. Hayes Announces He Will Attend Ulysses S. Grant's Funeral

July 24, 1885

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Rutherford B. Hayes Announces He Will Attend Ulysses S. Grant's Funeral
Autograph Letter Signed
1 page | SMC 1149

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  • Rutherford B. Hayes

    Background

    Hayes, in arranging for a visit at his home, announces he will be attending the funeral of the man he succeeded in the White House, Ulysses S. Grant, in New York City.

    Hayes did attend Grant’s funeral on August 8, 1885, along with former President Chester A. Arthur, and sitting President Grover Cleveland. He enjoyed Arthur’s company, and found the entire scene to be, in his words, unspeakably impressive and affecting.
    Autograph Letter Signed (“R.B. Hayes”), 1 page, octavo, Spiegel Grove, Fremont, Ohio. July 24, 1885. To Reverend Daniel Stevenson of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
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    SPIEGEL GROVE.
    FREMONT, OHIO,
    24th July 1885.

    My Dear Sir :

    I have your note of the 23d and will be happy to see you and your son Rev R.T.S on Monday or Tuesday.

    I expect to attend the funeral of Gen Grant, but shall not know until within a day or two of the burial. That seems now not likely to occur for a week or more.

    Sincerely

    R.B. HAYES


    Rev D. Stevenson DD
    &c &c

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    Historic Context
    Rutherford B. Hayes

    Rutherford B. Hayes

    Rutherford B. Hayes was the nineteenth president of the United States. Born in Ohio, Hayes was an abolitionist and, as a lawyer, defended runaway slaves. With the outbreak of the Civil War, Hayes joined the Ohio 23rd regiment as a major. Future President William McKinley also enlisted in Hayes’s regiment as a private. Hayes quickly established himself as a war hero. He was wounded in action five times, and had four horses shot from under him. Following the Civil War, breveted Major General Hayes served in Congress representing Ohio, and later became its governor, serving three  terms. From there, Hayes went on to win one of the most disputed elections of American history: despite losing the popular vote, he was awarded the electoral votes, and won the election of 1876. Though this compromise kept a Republican in the presidency, it meant the end of Reconstruction, which  Hayes had supported. As President, Hayes was conservative in the sense that he banned alcohol in the White House, but he was ahead of his time in advocating for women to be able to present cases in front of the Supreme Court, and supporting equal rights for blacks. He was unusual in that he scrupulously supported meritocracy, and did not appoint cabinet ministers based on nepotism or favoritism. Hayes had committed to serving only one term and kept his word, leaving office in 1881. He died in 1893 at seventy-one.


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