Grover Cleveland

Grover Cleveland
Cleveland in 1892
22nd & 24th President of the United States
In office March 4, 1893 – March 4, 1897
Vice President	Adlai Stevenson I
Preceded by	Benjamin Harrison
Succeeded by	William McKinley
In office March 4, 1885 – March 4, 1889
Vice President	Thomas A. Hendricks (Mar–Nov. 1885) None (1885–1889)[a]
Preceded by	Chester A. Arthur
Succeeded by	Benjamin Harrison
28th Governor of New York
In office January 1, 1883 – January 6, 1885
Lieutenant	David B. Hill
Preceded by	Alonzo B. Cornell
Succeeded by	David B. Hill
35th Mayor of Buffalo
In office January 2, 1882 – November 20, 1882
Preceded by	Alexander Brush
Succeeded by	Marcus M. Drake
17th Sheriff of Erie County
In office January 1, 1871 – December 31, 1873
Preceded by	Charles Darcy
Succeeded by	John B. Weber
Personal details
Born	Stephen Grover Cleveland (1837-03-18)March 18, 1837 Caldwell, New Jersey, U.S.
Died	June 24, 1908(1908-06-24) (aged 71) Princeton, New Jersey, U.S.
Resting place	Princeton Cemetery
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Frances Folsom ​ (m. 1886)​
Children	6, including Ruth, Esther, Richard, and Francis
Parent	Richard Falley Cleveland (father)
Relatives	Richard Falley Jr. (great-grandfather) Lewis Falley Allen (first cousin, once removed) Rose Cleveland (sister) Philippa Foot (granddaughter)
Occupation	Politician lawyer
Signature
Alleged recording of Grover Cleveland During his 1892 election campaign. The authenticity is in doubt and the recording has also been attributed to William Jennings Bryan's Cross of Gold speech. Recorded 1892 (if authentic)

This article is part of a series about Grover Cleveland
Personal Early life Birthplace Legacy SS Cleveland 1920 SS Cleveland 1947 28th Governor of New York Election Governorship 22nd & 24th President of the United States Presidencies Executive actions Foreign policy First term First inauguration Tenure of Office Act Wedding Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 Interstate Commerce Commission Dawes Act Enabling Act of 1889 Judicial appointments Cabinet Second term Second inauguration Panic of 1893 Blount Report Morgan Report Coxey's Army Pullman Strike Wilson–Gorman Tariff Act Venezuelan crisis Judicial appointments Cabinet Presidential campaigns 1884 convention election 1888 convention election 1892 convention election Post-presidency Retirement Death
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Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837 – June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first Democrat to win the presidency after the Civil War. He was also the first president to serve non-consecutive terms, losing reelection in 1888 to Republican Benjamin Harrison, but defeating Harrison four years later to regain office.^[b]

Cleveland was elected mayor of Buffalo in 1881 and governor of New York in 1882. While governor, he closely cooperated with state assembly minority leader Theodore Roosevelt to pass reform measures, winning national attention.^[1] He led the Bourbon Democrats, a pro-business movement opposed to high tariffs, free silver, inflation, imperialism, and subsidies to businesses, farmers, or veterans. His crusade for political reform and fiscal conservatism made him an icon for American conservatives of the time.^[2] Cleveland also won praise for honesty, self-reliance, integrity, and commitment to the principles of classical liberalism.^[3] His fight against political corruption, patronage, and bossism convinced many like-minded Republicans, called "Mugwumps", to cross party lines and support him in the 1884 presidential election, which he narrowly won against Republican James G. Blaine. In the 1888 election, he ran against Benjamin Harrison, winning the popular vote but losing the electoral college and therefore the election. After his loss, he returned to New York City and joined a law firm. In the 1892 election, Cleveland defeated Harrison in both the popular vote and electoral college, restoring him to the White House. As his second administration began, the Panic of 1893 sparked a severe national depression. Many voters blamed the Democrats, opening the way for a Republican landslide in 1894 and for the agrarian and Silverite seizure of the Democratic Party in 1896. An anti-imperialist,^[4] Cleveland opposed the push to annex Hawaii, launched an investigation into the 1893 coup against Queen Liliʻuokalani, and called for her to be restored.^[5][6]

Cleveland was a formidable policymaker but also garnered criticism. He intervened in the 1894 Pullman Strike to keep the railroads moving, angering Illinois Democrats and labor unions nationwide; his support of the gold standard and opposition to free silver alienated the agrarian wing of the Democrats.^[7] Critics complained that Cleveland had little imagination and seemed overwhelmed by the nation's economic disasters—depressions and strikes—in his second term.^[7] Even so, his reputation for probity and good character survived the troubles of his second term. Biographer Allan Nevins wrote, "[I]n Grover Cleveland, the greatness lies in typical rather than unusual qualities. He had no endowments that thousands of men do not have. He possessed honesty, courage, firmness, independence, and common sense. But he possessed them to a degree other men do not."^[8] By the end of his second term, he was severely unpopular, even among Democrats.^[9]

After leaving the White House, Cleveland served as a trustee of Princeton University. He continued to voice his political views, but fell seriously ill in 1907, dying in 1908. Today, Cleveland is praised for honesty, integrity, adherence to his morals, defying party boundaries, and effective leadership and is typically ranked in the middle to upper tier of U.S. presidents.

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