Social Studies Daily Warm-Ups

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William Henry Harrison

The Election of 1840

The Democrats
In 1840, President Martin Van Buren ran for re-election. He had no running mate; the Democrats could not decide on one. The election was held during America’s first full-scale economic depression.

The Whigs
In 1832, Henry Clay and Daniel Webster formed a new political party - the Whigs. Their sole job was to oppose the Democrats.

In 1840, the Whigs ran William Henry Harrison for President. He was a phony Andrew Jackson - that is, a military “hero” of secondary stature.

During the War of 1812, he had defeated Tecumseh at the Battle of Tippecanoe in Indiana. So his slogan was: “Tippecanoe and Tyler, too.” (John Tyler ran as Vice President.)

William Henry Harrison won the election.
(Thanks to the economic depression, the Whigs could have run anybody and won.)

Whatever happened to William Henry Harrison?

On a sheet of notebook paper - or in your Warmup Journal, write the answer to the question above.

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He died.

On Inauguration Day, William Henry Harrison stood out in the cold - without a coat - and delivered a two-hour inaugural address.

He caught a cold and died of pneumonia 30 days later.
1. He was the first President to die in office.
2. He served the shortest presidency of any President.
3. He is the only President whose grandson became President. (Benjamin Harrison, 1889-1893).

His Vice President - John Tyler - then became President.

It was a strange period between
Andrew Jackson and Abraham Lincoln

The Democrats and Whigs elected one-term, forgettable presidents:

1836 Martin Van Buren, (Democrat)
1840 William Henry Harrison (Whig)
1840 John Tyler (Whig)
1844 James K. Polk (Democrat)
1848 Zachary Taylor* (Whig)
1848 Millard Fillmore (Whig)
1852 Franklin Pierce (Democrat)
1856 James Buchanan (Democrat)

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