James A. Garfield's Life

James Abram Garfield was born on November 19, 1831 in Orange, Ohio. He was the last President to be born in a log cabin. His father died when he was two; he had three brothers and three sisters. Since they had to work to support their family, they could only attend school 3 months out of the whole year. He loved to read. At age sixteen Garfield left home and joined the Navy in Cleveland, Ohio. He had to go back home when he contracted malaria. He attended Williams College in Massachusetts. He graduated and became a teacher at Hiram College where he was once a student. On eyear later he became President of Hiram College. James A. Garfield married Lucretia Rudolph in 1858 and they had five children. He was elected to the Ohio Senate in 1859 where he served for two years. Garfield volunteered for the Union Army in 1861. He fought bravely in the Civil War battles and Shiloh and Chickamauga. He resigned in 1863 with the rank of major general, when President Abraham Lincoln asked him to serve in Congress. In December 1863, at age thirty-two, he entered the United State House of Representatives. He served as a legislator for seventeen years until he was elected 20th President of the United States in 1881. Garfield was the first President to use a telephone. During his administration that happened to be only six and a half months, the great railroad expansion reached Texas. On July 2, 1881 James Garfield was assassinated by Charles Julius Guiteau while waiting for a train. Although he survived the inital wound of the bullet, it could not be removed and he died of complications two months and seventeen days later on September 19, 1881. Note: Garfield was President from March 4, 1881 through September 19, 1881 and the Vice President was Chester Alan Arthur.

Rutherford B. Hayes' Life

Rutherford Birchard Hayes was born on October 4, 1822 in Delaware, Ohio. His father died when he was born. He was educated at home and attended private schools. In 1838 he enrolled Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio. He graduated in 1842 and went on to Harvard Law School. He graduated in 1845 and was admitted to the Ohio bar. Rutherford B. Hayes married Lucy Webb in 1852 and they had eight children. In 1857 he was elected City Solicitor of Cincinnati. When the Civil War he joined the Union Army. He was elected to Congress in 1864 but refused to leave the battlefield. Haves advanced to the rank of brevetted major general. He was reelected to Congress in 1866 and served only one year because he was elected Governor of Ohio in 1867. He remained in office until 1871 when his term ended. He returned to Spiegel Grove, Ohio where he practiced law and worked to develop public libraries. He ran again for Governor of Ohio in 1876 and won. He was nominated Republican candidate for President against Samuel B. Tilden that same year. Hayes won in a close election that was disputed for four months and ultimately decided by an electoral commission. During his administration Hayes removed all federal troops from the South ending Reconstruction- the period after the Civil War during which the southern states were reorganized and made part of the Union once again. He tried to prevent civil service reform. He did not want to serve a second term and returned to his farm in Spiegel Grove, Ohio where he devoted his time to philanthropic activities. He died in Fremont, Ohio on January 17, 1893. Note: Hayes was President form 1877 through 1881 and the Vice president was William Almon Wheeler.