Our Presidents and how we make them

by Alexander K. McClure

SUMMARY OF POPULAR VOTES FOR PRESIDENTS

I was surprised, after careful examination of the various political handbooks, to find no table of the popular vote for President prior to 1824, and I made exhaustive effort to obtain official records in the archives of the nation and of the different States, to supply something approaching an intelligent table of the popular vote cast for the early Presidents; but I learned that the failure of others to supply such tables was not because of negligence, but because there are no records to furnish them. In Pennsylvania the vote returned to the Capitol was less than 5000 for Washington, and the vote of record for his second election but little exceeds 5000. The returns, however, are fragmentary and valueless. I was compelled to abandon the purpose of giving tables of the popular vote for Presidents prior to 1824, because all that could be obtained would be confusing rather than instructive.

I have also found much difficulty in trying to reconcile the conflicting returns of every Presidential election since 1824. After a very full and careful examination of these conflicting figures, I have adopted the tables prepared by Mr. Stanwood in his admirable work entitled “A History of the Presidency,” and I regard them as more nearly accurate than any other tables presented. The entire accuracy of these election tables is not a matter of vital importance, as in none of the many conflicting returns of different States would the result have been changed by the variations in the returns as stated in the many publications which for some years past have annually given them. The following summary of the popular vote for Presidents since 1824, with the electoral vote cast at each election, is taken from the New York World Almanac for 1900, the figures of which, as will be seen, usually vary from those presented in the tables I give with each chapter of this volume:

ELECTORAL AND POPULAR VOTES.

Year of Election.	Candidates for President, State, and Political Party.		Popular Vote.		Plurality.		Electoral Vote.		Candidates for Vice-President, State, and Political Party.	Electoral Vote.
1824	Andrew Jackson, Tenn., Rep.		155,872		50,551		(b)99		John C. Calhoun,[32] S. C., Rep.	182
	John Q. Adams,[32] Mass., Rep.		105,321		....		84		Nathan Sanford, N. Y., Rep.	30
	Henry Clay, Ky., Rep.		46,587		....		37		Nathaniel Macon, N. C., Rep.	24
	Wm. H. Crawford, Ga., Rep.		44,282		....		41		Andrew Jackson, Tenn., Rep.	13
									M. Van Buren, N. Y., Rep.	9
									Henry Clay, Ky., Rep.	2
1828	Andrew Jackson,[32] Tenn., Dem.		[32]647,231		138,134		178		John C. Calhoun,[32] S. C., Dem.	171
	John Q. Adams, Mass., Nat. R.		[32]509,097		....		83		Richard Rush, Pa., Nat. R.	83
									William Smith, S. C., Dem.	7
1832	Andrew Jackson,[32] Tenn., Dem.		687,502		157,313		219		M. Van Buren,[32] N. Y., Dem.	189
	Henry Clay, Ky., Nat. R.		530,189		....		49		John Sergeant, Pa., Nat. R.	49
	John Floyd, Ga., Ind.		⎫ ⎬ ⎭	33,108	....		⎧ ⎨ ⎩	11	Henry Lee, Mass., Ind.	11
	William Wirt (c), Md., Anti-M.							7	Amos Ellmaker (c), Pa., Anti-M.	7
									William Wilkins, Pa., Dem.	30
1836	Martin Van Buren,[32] N. Y., Dem.		761,549		24,893		170		R. M. Johnson (d),[32] Ky., Dem.	147
	W. H. Harrison, O., Whig		⎫ ⎪ ⎬ ⎪ ⎭	736,656	....	⎧ ⎪ ⎨ ⎪ ⎩	73		Francis Granger, N. Y., Whig	77
	Hugh L. White, Tenn., Whig						26		John Tyler, Va., Whig	47
	Daniel Webster, Mass., Whig						14		William Smith, Ala., Dem.	23
	Willie P. Mangum, N. C., Whig						11
1840	W. H. Harrison,[32] O., Whig		1,275,017		146,315		234		John Tyler,[32] Va., Whig	234
	Martin Van Buren, N. Y., Dem.		1,128,702		....		60		R. M. Johnson, Ky., Dem.	48
	James G. Birney, N. Y., Lib.		7,059		....		..		L. W. Tazewell, Va., Dem.	11
									James K. Polk, Tenn., Dem.	1
1844	James K. Polk,[32] Tenn., Dem.		1,337,243		38,175		170		George M. Dallas,[32] Pa., Dem.	170
	Henry Clay, Ky., Whig		1,299,068		....		105		T. Frelinghuysen, N. J., Whig	105
	James G. Birney, N. Y., Lib.		62,300		....		..		Thomas Morris, O., Lib.	..
1848	Zachary Taylor,[32] La., Whig		1,360,101		139,557		163		Millard Fillmore,[32] N. Y., Whig	163
	Lewis Cass, Mich., Dem.		1,220,544		....		127		William O. Butler, Ky., Dem.	127
	Martin Van Buren, N. Y., F. Soil		291,263		....		..		Chas. F. Adams, Mass., F. Soil	..
1852	Franklin Pierce,[32] N. H., Dem.		1,601,474		220,896		254		William R. King,[32] Ala., Dem.	254
	Winfield Scott, N. J., Whig		1,380,576		....		42		William A. Graham, N. C., Whig	42
	John P. Hale, N. H., F. D. (i)		156,149		....		..		George W. Julian, Ind., F. D.	..
	Daniel Webster (k), Mass., Whig		1,670		....		..
1856	James Buchanan,[32] Pa., Dem.		1,838,169		496,905		174		J. C. Breckenridge,[32] Ky., Dem.	174
	John C. Fremont, Cal., Rep.		1,341,264		....		114		William L. Dayton, N. J., Rep.	114
	Millard Fillmore, N. Y., Amer.		874,538		....		8		A. J. Donelson, Tenn., Amer.	8
1860	Abraham Lincoln,[32] Ill., Rep.		1,866,352		491,195		180		Hannibal Hamlin,[32] Me., Rep.	180
	Stephen A. Douglas, Ill., Dem.		1,375,157		....		12		H. V. Johnson, Ga., Dem.	12
	J. C. Breckenridge, Ky., Dem.		845,763		....		72		Joseph Lane, Ore., Dem.	72
	John Bell, Tenn., Union		589,581		....		39		Edward Everett, Mass., Union	39
1864	Abraham Lincoln,[32] Ill., Rep.		2,216,067		407,342		(e)212		Andrew Johnson,[32] Tenn., Rep.	212
	George B. McClellan, N. J., Dem.		1,808,725		....		21		George H. Pendleton, O., Dem.	21
1868	Ulysses S. Grant,[32] Ill., Rep.		3,015,071		305,456		(f)214		Schuyler Colfax,[32] Ind., Rep.	214
	Horatio Seymour, N. Y., Dem.		2,709,615		....		80		F. P. Blair, Jr., Mo., Dem.	80
1872	Ulysses S. Grant,[32] Ill., Rep.		3,597,070		752,991		286		Henry Wilson,[32] Mass., Rep.	286
	Horace Greeley, N. Y., D. & L.		2,834,079		....		(g)..		B. Gratz Brown, Mo., D. L.	47
	Charles O’Conor, N. Y., Dem.		29,408		....		..		John Q. Adams, Mass., Dem.	..
	James Black, Pa., Temp.		5,608		....		..		John Russell, Mich., Temp.	..
	Thomas A. Hendricks, Ind., Dem.		....		....		42		George W. Julian, Ind., Lib.	5
	B. Gratz Brown, Mo., Dem.		....		....		18		A. H. Colquitt, Ga., Dem.	5
	Charles J. Jenkins, Ga., Dem.		....		....		2		John M. Palmer, Ill., Dem.	3
	David Davis, Ill., Ind.		....		....		1		T. E. Bramlette, Ky., Dem.	3
									W. S. Groesbeck, O., Dem.	1
									Willis B. Machen, Ky., Dem.	1
									N. P. Banks, Mass., Lib.	1
1876	Samuel J. Tilden, N. Y., Dem.		4,284,385		250,935		84		T. A. Hendricks, Ind., Dem.	184
	Rutherford B. Hayes,[32] O., Rep.		4,033,950		....		(h)185		William A. Wheeler,[32] N. Y., Rep.	185
	Peter Cooper, N. Y., Gre’nb.		81,740		....		..		Samuel F. Cary, O., Gre’nb.	..
	Green Clay Smith, Ky., Pro.		9,522		....		..		Gideon T. Stewart, O., Pro.	..
	James B. Walker, Ill., Amer.		2,636		....		..		D. Kirkpatrick, N. Y., Amer.	..
1880	James A. Garfield,[32] O., Rep.		4,449,053		7,018		214		Chester A. Arthur,[32] N. Y., Rep.	214
	W. S. Hancock, Pa., Dem.		4,442,035		....		155		William H. English, Ind., Dem.	155
	James B. Weaver, Iowa, Gre’nb.		307,306		....		..		B. J. Chambers, Texas, Gre’nb.	..
	Neal Dow, Me., Pro.		10,305		....		..		H. A. Thompson, O., Pro.	..
	John W. Phelps, Vt., Amer.		707		....		..		S. C. Pomeroy, Kan., Amer.	..
1884	Grover Cleveland,[32] N. Y., Dem.		4,911,017		62,683		219		T. A. Hendricks,[32] Ind., Dem.	219
	James G. Blaine, Me., Rep.		4,848,334		....		182		John A. Logan, Ill., Rep.	182
	John P. St. John, Kan., Pro.		151,809		....		..		William Daniel, Md., Pro.	..
	Benjamin F. Butler, Mass., Peop.		133,825		....		..		A. M. West, Miss., Peop.	..
	P. D. Wigginton, Cal., Amer.		....		....		..
1888	Grover Cleveland, N. Y., Dem.		5,538,233		98,017		168		Allen G. Thurman, O., Dem.	168
	Benjamin Harrison,[32] Ind., Rep.		5,440,216		...		233		Levi P. Morton,[32] N. Y., Rep.	233
	Clinton B. Fisk, N. J., Pro.		249,907		...		..		John A. Brooks, Mo., Pro.	..
	Alson J. Streeter, Ill., U. L.		148,105		...		..		C. E. Cunningham, Ark., U’d L.	..
	R. H. Cowdry, Ill., U’d L.		2,808		...		..		W. H. T. Wakefield, Kan., U’d L.	..
	James L. Curtis, N. Y., Amer.		1,591		...		..		James B. Greer, Tenn., Amer.	..
1892	Grover Cleveland,[32] N. Y., Dem.		5,556,918		380,810		277		Adlai E. Stevenson,[32] Ill., Dem.	277
	Benjamin Harrison, Ind., Rep.		5,176,108		...		145		Whitelaw Reid, N. Y., Rep.	145
	James B. Weaver, Iowa, Peop.		1,041,028		...		22		James G. Field, Va., Peop.	22
	John Bidwell, Cal., Pro.		264,133		...		..		James B. Cranfill, Tex., Pro.	..
	Simon Wing, Mass., Soc. L.		21,164		...		..		Charles H. Matchett, N. Y., Soc. L.	..
1896	William McKinley,[32] O., Rep.		7,104,779		601,854		271		Garret A. Hobart,[32] N. J., Rep.	271
	William J. Bryan, Neb., Dem.	⎫ ⎬ ⎭	6,502,925		...		176		Arthur Sewall, Me., Dem.	176
	William J. Bryan, Neb., Pop.				...		..		Thomas E. Watson, Ga., Pop.	..
	Joshua Levering, Md., Pro.		132,007		...		..		Hale Johnson, Ill., Pro.	..
	John M. Palmer, Ill., N. Dem.		133,148		...		..		Simon B. Buckner, Ky., N. Dem.	..
	Charles H. Matchett, N. Y., Soc. L.		36,274		...		..		Matthew Maguire, N. J., Soc. L.	..
	Charles E. Bentley, Neb., Nat. (j)		13,969		...		..		James H. Southgate, N. C., Nat. (j)	..

I also present the lists of the Presidents and Vice-Presidents of the United States, as given in the New York World Almanac for 1900, as follows:

PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.

Name.		Birthplace.	Year.	Paternal Ancestry.	Residence.	Inaugurated.		Politics.	Place of Death.	Year.	Age.
						Year.	Age.
1	George Washington	Westmoreland Co., Va.	1732	English	Va.	1789	57	Fed.	Mt. Vernon, Va.	1799	67
2	John Adams	Quincy, Mass.	1735	English	Mass.	1797	62	Fed.	Quincy, Mass.	1826	90
3	Thomas Jefferson	Shadwell, Va.	1743	Welsh	Va.	1801	58	Rep.	Monticello, Va.	1826	83
4	James Madison	Port Conway, Va.	1751	English	Va.	1809	58	Rep.	Montpelier, Va.	1836	85
5	James Monroe	Westmoreland Co., Va.	1758	Scotch	Va.	1817	59	Rep.	New York City	1831	73
6	John Quincy Adams	Quincy, Mass.	1767	English	Mass.	1825	58	Rep.	Washington, D. C.	1848	80
7	Andrew Jackson	Union Co., N. C.	1767	Scotch-Irish	Tenn.	1829	62	Dem.	Hermitage, Tenn.	1845	78
8	Martin Van Buren	Kinderhook, N. Y.	1782	Dutch	N. Y.	1837	55	Dem.	Lindenwold, N. Y.	1862	79
9	William H. Harrison	Berkeley, Va.	1773	English	O.	1841	68	Whig	Washington, D. C.	1841	68
10	John Tyler	Greenway, Va.	1790	English	Va.	1841	51	Dem.	Richmond, Va.	1862	72
11	James K. Polk	Mecklenburg Co., N. C.	1795	Scotch-Irish	Tenn.	1845	50	Dem.	Nashville, Tenn.	1849	53
12	Zachary Taylor	Orange Co., Va.	1784	English	La.	1849	65	Whig	Washington, D. C.	1850	65
13	Millard Fillmore	Summerhill, N. Y.	1800	English	N. Y.	1850	50	Whig	Buffalo, N. Y.	1874	74
14	Franklin Pierce	Hillsboro, N. H.	1804	English	N. H.	1853	49	Dem.	Concord, N. H.	1869	64
15	James Buchanan	Cove Gap, Pa.	1791	Scotch-Irish	Pa.	1857	66	Dem.	Wheatland, Pa.	1868	77
16	Abraham Lincoln	Larne Co., Ky.	1809	English	Ill.	1861	52	Rep.	Washington, D. C.	1865	56
17	Andrew Johnson	Raleigh, N. C.	1808	English	Tenn.	1865	57	Rep.	Carter’s Depot, Tenn.	1875	66
18	Ulysses S. Grant	Point Pleasant, O.	1822	Scotch	D. C.	1869	47	Rep.	Mt. McGregor, N. Y.	1885	63
19	Rutherford B. Hayes	Delaware, O.	1822	Scotch	O.	1877	54	Rep.	Fremont, O.	1893	70
20	James A. Garfield	Cuyahoga Co., O.	1831	English	O.	1881	49	Rep.	Long Branch, N. J.	1881	49
21	Chester A. Arthur	Fairfield, Vt.	1830	Scotch-Irish	N. Y.	1881	51	Rep.	New York City	1886	56
22	Grover Cleveland	Caldwell, N. J.	1837	English	N. Y.	1885	48	Dem.
23	Benjamin Harrison	North Bend, O.	1833	English	Ind.	1889	55	Rep.
24	Grover Cleveland	Caldwell, N. J.	1837	English	N. Y.	1893	56	Dem.
25	William McKinley	Niles, O.	1843	Scotch-Irish	O.	1897	54	Rep.

VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.

Name.		Birthplace.	Year.	Paternal Ancestry.	Residence.	Qualified.	Politics.	Place of Death.	Year.	Age at Death.
1	John Adams	Quincy, Mass.	1735	English	Mass.	1789	Fed.	Quincy, Mass.	1826	90
2	Thomas Jefferson	Shadwell, Va.	1743	Welsh	Va.	1797	Rep.	Monticello, Va.	1826	83
3	Aaron Burr	Newark, N. J.	1756	English	N. Y.	1801	Rep.	Staten Island, N. Y.	1836	80
4	George Clinton	Ulster Co., N. Y.	1739	English	N. Y.	1805	Rep.	Washington, D. C.	1812	73
5	Elbridge Gerry	Marblehead, Mass.	1744	English	Mass.	1813	Rep.	Washington, D. C.	1814	70
6	Daniel D. Tompkins	Scarsdale, N. Y.	1774	English	N. Y.	1817	Rep.	Staten Island, N. Y.	1825	51
7	John C. Calhoun	Abbeville, S. C.	1782	Scotch-Irish	S. C.	1825	Rep.	Washington, D. C.	1850	68
8	Martin Van Buren	Kinderhook, N. Y.	1782	Dutch	N. Y.	1833	Dem.	Kinderhook, N. Y.	1862	79
9	Richard M. Johnson	Louisville, Ky.	1780	English	Ky.	1837	Dem.	Frankfort, Ky.	1850	70
10	John Tyler	Greenway, Va.	1790	English	Va.	1841	Dem.	Richmond, Va.	1862	72
11	George M. Dallas	Philadelphia, Pa.	1792	English	Pa.	1845	Dem.	Philadelphia, Pa.	1864	72
12	Millard Fillmore	Summer Hill, N. Y.	1800	English	N. Y.	1849	Whig	Buffalo, N. Y.	1874	74
13	William R. King	Sampson Co., N. C.	1786	English	Ala.	1853	Dem.	Dallas Co., Ala.	1853	67
14	John C. Breckenridge	Lexington, Ky.	1821	Scotch	Ky.	1857	Dem.	Lexington, Ky.	1875	54
15	Hannibal Hamlin	Paris, Me.	1809	English	Me.	1861	Rep.	Bangor, Me.	1891	81
16	Andrew Johnson	Raleigh, N. C.	1808	English	Tenn.	1865	Rep.	Carter Co., Tenn.	1875	66
17	Schuyler Colfax	New York City, N. Y.	1823	English	Ind.	1869	Rep.	Mankato, Minn.	1885	62
18	Henry Wilson	Farmington, N. H.	1812	English	Mass.	1873	Rep.	Washington D. C.	1875	63
19	William A. Wheeler	Malone, N. Y.	1819	English	N. Y.	1877	Rep.	Malone, N. Y.	1887	68
20	Chester A. Arthur	Fairfield, Vt.	1830	Scotch-Irish	N. Y.	1881	Rep.	New York City, N. Y.	1886	56
21	Thos. A. Hendricks	Muskingum Co., O.	1819	Scotch-Irish	Ind.	1885	Dem.	Indianapolis, Ind.	1885	66
22	Levi P. Morton	Shoreham, Vt.	1824	Scotch	N. Y.	1889	Rep.
23	Adlai E. Stevenson	Christian Co., Ky.	1835	Scotch-Irish	Ill.	1893	Dem.
24	Garret A. Hobart	Long Branch, N. J.	1844	English	N. J.	1897	Rep.	Paterson, N. J.	1899	55

President Buchanan was the only Chief Magistrate of the Republic who, having served one term in the Presidency, was not a candidate for re-election. He announced his purpose not to be a candidate in his inaugural address, and I doubt not that he never swerved from that determination. At the close of his administration the political conditions gave no promise of his re-election, however much he might have desired it, but he was then past the patriarchal years, and he is the one President who entered the office to serve only a term and adhered to it. The elder Adams was defeated for re-election by Jefferson; the younger Adams was defeated for re-election by Jackson; Van Buren was defeated for re-election by the elder Harrison, and the younger Harrison was defeated for re-election by Cleveland, while Hayes, Polk and Pierce were candidates for re-election, but were rejected by the party.

Four Vice-Presidents succeeded to the Presidency by the death of the President, and all of them were earnest candidates for election to another term. Tyler and Johnson sought the Democratic nomination and failed. Fillmore failed in the struggle for the Whig nomination, and Arthur was defeated by Blaine.

Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Jackson, Lincoln, Grant, and Cleveland were twice elected President. Jefferson, Jackson, and Cleveland were each defeated for the Presidency, although twice elected. Jefferson and Jackson were defeated in their first contests, and then elected to two successive terms, and Cleveland was elected in 1884, defeated in 1888, and re-elected in 1892. Jackson and Cleveland are the only two Presidents who were candidates in three national elections and received an increased plurality in each successive contest. Both were defeated in one battle when they had received the largest popular vote. Grant was the only President who made a struggle for a third term.

Four Presidents died in office—namely, Harrison in 1841, after having served but little over a month; Taylor in 1850, after having served less than a year and a half; Lincoln in 1865, only a little more than a month after his second inauguration, and Garfield in 1881, before the close of the first year of his administration.

Six Vice-Presidents have died in office: Clinton in 1812, after having presided over the Senate for seven years; Gerry in 1814, after little more than a year of service; William R. King, in 1853, who took the oath as Vice-President on the 4th of March of that year in Cuba, and died soon thereafter; Henry Wilson in 1875, having served but little more than half his term; Thomas A. Hendricks in 1885, having served less than a year, and Hobart in 1899, leaving nearly a year and a half of his term unexpired.

No President pro tem. of the Senate has ever reached the Presidency. There was only one occasion in the history of the Government when it seemed probable that the President pro tem. might be called to the chief executive office of the nation. Johnson, as Vice-President, had succeeded Lincoln as President, and Senator Wade, of Ohio, was president pro tem. of the Senate. In 1868, some ten months before the expiration of Johnson’s term, he was impeached by the House, and acquitted in the Senate by a single vote. The question was then raised as to whether the President pro tem. of the Senate was such an officer as was contemplated by the Constitution to fill the office of President, and there was considerable agitation from time to time on the subject in Congress, which finally culminated in the passage of the Presidential Succession bill of January 18, 1886, by which the succession to the Presidency is fully defined and eligibles are provided quite sufficient in number to meet any possible emergency. The following is the full text of the present law regulating the Presidential succession:

Be it enacted, etc., that in case of the removal, death, resignation, or inability of both the President and Vice-President of the United States, the Secretary of State, or if there be none, or in case of his removal, death, resignation, or inability, then the Secretary of the Treasury, or if there be none, or in case of his removal, death, resignation, or inability, then the Secretary of War, or if there be none, or in case of his removal, death, resignation, or inability, then the Attorney-General, or if there be none, or in case of his removal, death, resignation, or inability, then the Postmaster-General, or if there be none, or in case of his removal, death, resignation, or inability, then the Secretary of the Navy, or if there be none, or in case of his removal, death, resignation, or inability, then the Secretary of the Interior shall act as President until the disability of the President or Vice-President is removed, or a President shall be elected: provided, that whenever the powers and duties of the office of President of the United States shall devolve upon any of the persons named herein, if Congress be not then in session, or if it would not meet in accordance with law within twenty days thereafter, it shall be the duty of the person upon whom said powers and duties shall devolve to issue a proclamation convening Congress in extraordinary session, giving twenty days’ notice of the time of meeting.

Section 2. That the preceding section shall only be held to describe and apply to such officers as shall have been appointed by the advice and consent of the Senate to the offices therein named, and such as are eligible to the office of President under the Constitution, and not under impeachment by the House of Representatives of the United States at the time the powers and duties of the office shall devolve upon them respectively.

Sec. 3. That sections 146, 147, 148, 149, and 150 of the Revised Statutes are hereby repealed.