William Henry Harrison (1773-1841)

William Henry Harrison (1773-1841), caught cold the day he was inaugurated President, and died 30 days later. At 68, Harrison was the oldest man to become President, and the first to die in office. He served the shortest term of any President in American history.

Harrison is best remembered as the first half of the catchy political campaign slogan "Tippercanoe and Tyler too." He had received the nickname "Tippercanoe" after defeating the Shawnee Indians in 1811 at the Battle of Tippercanoe. The Whig party first ran Harrison for President against Democrat Martin Van Buren in 1836. He lost. Then they ran him again in 1840. Using his colorful military career as their theme, the Whigs turned the campaign of 1840 into a circus. This time, Harrison defeated President Van Buren. Harrison was the first Whig President, and the only Chief Executive whose grandson (Benjamin Harrison) also became President.

During his brief term, Harrison showed an interest in running the government efficiently. He made surprise visits to government offices to check on the workers. Upon Harrison'a death, his office fell to Vice-President John Tyler, a former Virginia Democrat. The Whigs had nominated Tyler to attract Southern votes. But when Tyler became President, the Whigs unhappily learned that he still believed in many of the ideas of the Democratic party. He vetoed bill after bill, and destroyed the Whig program in Congress.