William Howard Taft

Our 27th U.S. President

Place and Date of Birth:

William H. Taft was born on September 15, 1857 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Family:

William H. Taft was the son of Alphonso Taft and Louisa Maria Torrey Taft. He had two- half brothers, two brothers and one sister. He married Helen “Nellie” Herron and they had three children, Robert Alphonso, Charles Phelps, and Helen Herron Taft Manning.

President’s Nickname:

President Taft was often referred to as Big Bill.

Education:

Taft graduated Woodard High School then graduated Yale University as the second top of his class in 1878. He studied at Cincinnati Law School in 1880.

Occupation:

He was an assistant prosecutor in Hamilton County in 1881. At the age of 30 he served as judge of the Superior court in Cincinnati for three years, before appointed Solicitor General of the United States in 1890.

Dates of Presidency:

William H. Taft severed as our president from March 4, 1909-March 3, 1913. Taft won the presidency with 321 electoral votes.

Party Affiliation:

William H. Taft was a member of the Republican Party.

Vice-President:

Taft’s vice-president was James S. Sherman

Major Accomplishments during Presidency:

Taft signed a law to make Arizona the 47th and New Mexico the 48th states to join the Union.

Major Factors in his Presidency:

Taft alienated many liberal Republicans who later formed the Progressive Party, by defending the Payne-Aldrich Act which unexpectedly continued high tariff rates.

How Taft Affected/Influenced My Life Today:

Taft was the first president to pitch a ball to open the baseball season. This influenced my life because I like to watch baseball sometimes with my father and he loves playing baseball.

Five Facts about Taft:

1.)  Taft got a high school named after him.(Taft High School)

2.)  Taft religion was Unitarian.

3.)  He was the largest man to ever be President-6’2” and 350 pounds.

4.)  Taft got stuck in the White House bathtub so he had one built to fit four men.

5.)  He never wanted to be President; he wanted to be Chief Justice of The Supreme Court.

Bibliography:

"William Taft." Think Quest. N.p., 25 Aug. 2010. Web. 1 Jan.

"William Howard Taft Biography." From Revolution to Reconstruction and what happen afterwards. N.p., 14 Sept. 2010. Web. 1 Jan.

Kane, Joseph N. Facts about the Presidents. 6th ed. New York, NY: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1993. Print.