Subseries I: Presidents of the United States, 1777 - 1959

Sub-Series

Staff Only

Subseries I: Presidents of the United States, 1777 - 1959 finding aid

Dates

1777 - 1959

Creator

Washington, George, 1732-1799 (Person)

Access:

All series and subseries within this collection are open for research, with the exception of a few files within the Academia series that are restricted. The Academia series contains financial and sensitive institutional records from Wilkes College, and financial report records from Princeton University that will remain restricted for 80 years upon creation.

Extent

From the Collection: 17 Cubic Feet

Language of Materials

From the Collection: English

Additional Description

Condition Note:

The condition of the items contained within this subseries widely varies due to the amount of time covered, however a general note is that in most cases the more recent the document, the less fragile it is. In most of these documents, especially the ones from the 18th and 19th centuries, there are tears, stains, ink bleedthrough, ink fading, and a general browning of the paper. The more recent items show much less damage, usually exhibiting some paper browning or minor folds and tears. There are a few documents which should be handled with extreme care, including 9.1. Item 1: Letter from George Washington to Zebulon Butler, 1777 June 12, 9.2. Item 2: Letter from George Washington to Zebulon Butler, 1780 December 29, 9.11. Item 10: Signature of James Madison and James Breckenridge, no date, 9.21. Item 15: Letter from John Quincy Adams to Sarah H. Butler, 1844 May 18, and 9.29. Item 22b: Autograph of William H. Harrison, 9th U.S. President, 1834 July 27, 1812 July 20.

Subseries I: Presidents of the United States, 1777-1959

Subseries I: Presidents of the United States, 1777-1959 is arranged chronologically by president, and includes various types of materials including engravings of many of the figures, signatures, and many letters written by them or in some cases, their wives. As the name suggests, the subseries is centered around the Presidents of the United States, and includes items from every U.S president from George Washington up to Dwight D. Eisenhower. This subseries was personally collected by Gilbert Stuart McClintock throughout his life.

The presidents included in Subseries I of the the collection appear as such:

George Washington was the 1st president of the United States. Washington was an American general during the American Revolutionary war, who served as commander in chief over the colonial armies. He is often considered an icon of American identity and democracy. He was elected as the first president of the United States following independence and played a pivotal role in drafting the Constitution. His legacy is most notable for his establishing the precedent of peaceful transfer of power between serving presidents.

John Adams was the 2nd president of the United States. Adams was an American lawyer and politician. His legacy is most notably marked by his efforts in the American Revolutionary war, where he served as a key diplomat for France and Holland and advocated for American independence from Britain. Adams helped negotiate the treaty of peace following Britain’s surrender at Yorktown. Adams also drafted the Massachusetts constitution, which would become an influential model for other state constitutions later.

Thomas Jefferson was the 3rd president of the United States. Jefferson was an American statesman, politician, and would later serve as the Secretary of State under Washington. His administration is most well known for the Louisiana Purchase, a victory that effectively doubled the size of the United States through its deal with France and made plans for westward expansion more feasible. Jefferson’s time as president is also marked by his reduction of government spending, a cut to taxes, and support for the agrarian sector.

James Madison, was the 4th president of the United States. Madison was an American statesman, politician, and diplomat. His legacy is most well known for his drafting of the Constitution, namely his contributions to the subjects of free speech and separation of church and state powers. Madison also co-authored the Federalist papers alongside Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, a series of writings that promoted the ratification of the Constitution. During his presidency, Madison’s administration established the Second Bank of the United States, a national bank, and navigated the War of 1812.

James Monroe, was the 5th president of the United States. Monroe was an American politician, diplomat, and lawyer. He served under Washington during the Revolutionary war and would later hold a Senator seat, as well as become the Governor of Virginia, and Secretary of State. Monroe’s administration is most well recognized for what is labeled the “Monroe Doctrine,” a legislative piece that declared European powers should not interfere with the affairs of the Western hemisphere. He also successfully settled the boundary issues with Britain and acquired Florida from Spain through the Adams-Onís Treaty, a deal negotiated by Secretary of State John Quincy Adams.

John Quincy Adams, was the 6th president of the United States. Quincy Adams was an American statesman who served as a diplomat under the Washington, Adams, and Madison administrations. His administration is most well known for the robust national infrastructure he achieved despite serving only one term. Quincy Adams oversaw the construction of roads and canals, and achieved these improvements by a program recognized as the “American System,” which sought to modernize the economy through federal funding to achieve larger internal improvements, support the national bank structures and establish protective tariffs. He, like Monroe, is known for his role in shaping foreign policy, including his efforts in the Monroe Doctrine.

Andrew Jackson, was the 7th president of the United States. Jackson was an American politician and lawyer who served as general in the United States army during the War of 1812 and the Battle of New Orleans. His administration oversaw the veto of a recharter of the Second Bank of the United States, stating that the institution threatened the people with an excess of power that favored the wealthy. He also resolved the Nullification Crisis, using military force in opposition to South Carolina’s attempt to nullify a federal tariff. His legacy, however, is most recognized for his brutality against indigenous people during periods of mass removal, known most commonly by the name, the “Trail of Tears.”

Martin Van Buren, was the 8th president of the United States. Van Buren was an American politician and statesman who served as Attorney General, senator, and Governor of New York, before serving as secretary of state under Andrew Jackson. His administration is most well known his opposition to slavery, going so far as to block the annexation of Texas for fear that it would align with pro-slavery state interests. He oversaw the Panic of 1837, a financial crisis in the United States that led to high unemployment and economic downtown. His legacy continued the enforcement of Jackson’s Indian Removal Act of 1830, sustaining the cruel mistreatment and removal of indigenous peoples from southeastern territories to lands west of the Mississippi river.

William Henry Harrison, was the 9th president of the United States. Harrison was an American politician and military officer, serving in Tecumseh’s War, the War of 1812, and numerous other battles. He is most well recognized for his role during the Battle of Tippecanoe, whose victory strongly influenced his forthcoming election. Harrison is also remembered for having the shortest term in office, as he succumbed to an illness thirty-one days into his presidency.

John Tyler, was the 10th president of the United States. Tyler was an American politician and Governor of Virginia. He took office shortly after the death of Harrison, establishing an administration that underscored the sanctity of state’s rights over an overarching federal influence. Particularly, his support of states’ rights surrounding slavery increased evolving tensions bridging the Civil War. He is most recognized for his attempts to strengthen the presidential power in an effort to override Congress in setting policy. He is also the first president to have his veto power overridden by Congress. Tyler is also known for his aid in establishing the Southern Confederacy following the first of the Southern states’ succession.

James K. Polk was the 11th president of the United States. Polk was an American politician, serving seven terms in Congress, a Speaker of the House seat, and being elected Governor of Tennessee. He was a protege of Andrew Jackson, running as a Jacksonian Democrat, and followed a great deal of his teachings and ideals surrounding the relationship of state and federal power. His administration is most well known for his efforts toward westward expansion, overseeing the largest territorial growth including Arizona, Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Washington, and parts of Wyoming, Montana, and Colorado. This he achieved through a victory against Mexico during the Mexican American War and treaty with England.

Zachary Taylor, was the 12th president of the United States. He was an American military figure, prominently known for his victories during the Mexican-American War, where he had risen to the rank of a major general. Similar to Polk’s administration, Taylor is most well known for the land acquisitions his presidency oversaw. However, the civil tensions between North and South, abolitionist efforts to abolish slavery, and Southern threat of succession impacted Taylor’s presidency the greatest. Southern states were angered by Taylor’s advising California and New Mexico to state outright their purview on slavery within their Constitutions. Taylor sent military force to maintain the Union after talks of succession began.

Millard Fillmore, was the 13th president of the United States. Fillmore was an American politician and lawyer who would rise to become the leader of the Whig party. His administration is most recognized for the Compromise of 1850, in which Fillmore delayed the brewing Civil War for a decade as he promised no federal restrictions over institutionalized slavery would be placed on Utah or New Mexico while California agreed to enter the Union as a free state. His administration also signed the Fugitive Slave Act, a series of federal laws that protected unjust actions around capture and return of enslaved people fleeing to free states.

Franklin Pierce, was the 14th president of the United States. Pierce was an American politician and lawyer, serving in Congress for New Hampshire and becoming Speaker of the House at twenty-six. His presidency is largely marked by navigating the brewing tensions within the Union. His administration oversaw the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, repealing the Missouri Compromise of 1820 and allowing voters of Kansas and Nebraska to decide their purview on slavery. Though it was originally thought to be a motivator in expanding slavery throughout these states, it alienated anti-slavery groups and politicians so wholly that it instigated their response and saw the dissolution of the Whig party and creation of the Republican party.

James Buchanan, was the 15th president of the United States. Buchanan was an American politician and lawyer. Though tensions within the Union had been brewing for the preceding 5 presidencies, it is Buchanan’s administration that is marked with conflict and the dissolution of the Union. It is thought his inaction contributed to the Civil War as much as the action he did take, for he would not take a firm stand with either the North or South concerning the institution of slavery. Namely, his inability to find compromise following pivotal decisions during his presidency, such as the Dred Scott decision, a Supreme Court ruling that allowed slavery in all territories—further inciting abolitionist and Northern parties—as well as not being able to prevent succession of the South despite his personal sympathies.

Abraham Lincoln, was the 16th president of the United States. Lincoln was a self educated man who became a lawyer and leader of the Republican party. Lincoln’s administration is most recognized for navigating the Civil War, preserving the Union, and issuing the Emancipation Proclamation, a declaration that enslaved peoples in Confederate territories were to be freed. He also gave the well known speech, the Gettysburg Address, where Lincoln emphasized the fundamental tenets of democracy and equality that the Constitution was built upon, and that the war was fought over. Lincoln was later assassinated for these notions and his support of African-American citizenship and voting rights. His death, while produced with the notion of “reviving” the Confederacy, marked him a national martyr for the cause of civil liberty.

Andrew Johnson, was the 17th president of the United States. Johnson, born to poverty, worked as a tailor until entering politics where he gained notoriety for his staunch loyalty to the Union during the Civil War as a senator from Tennessee. His administration is most well known for his favoring a quick restoration of the succeeded states back to the Union. However, this led to conflict between him and his Republican-dominated Congress, as he did not consider the necessary protections for the recently freed people of the same states. Additionally, he pardoned a number of ex-Confederates, showing a leniency that many critiqued as a lack of education. He was impeached by Congress, though he would be later acquitted.

Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th president of the United States. Grant was an American politician and military figure, most regarded for his promotion to Lieutenant General by Lincoln following his victory at Chattanooga and service in the Mexican-American War. His administration is most remembered for his establishment of Yellowstone National Park in March of 1872. He also worked hard to secure the young rights of African Americans, signing the 15th Amendment to the Constitution which granted voting rights to all male citizens. He later signed the Enforcement Acts, which protected the rights of voting, and the Civil Rights Act of 1875. He also sent a number of forces to the South to safeguard the civil rights of African Americans and fight against the Ku Klux Klan.

Rutherford B. Hayes was the 19th president of the United States. Hayes was an Ohio politician and staunch abolitionist, whose administration is most widely recognized for overseeing the end of the Reconstruction era. He enacted the Compromise of 1877 which attempted to soothe continuing tensions between Northern and Southern parties with the removal of federal troops from Southern states as a means to forge regrowth and stabilization in the country. Despite his original intentions of unity and securing black suffrage, the removal of troops and the monopoly of power in the South left Southern African Americans vulnerable to state legislation which would ultimately become the Jim Crow era.

James A. Garfield was the 20th president of the United States. Garfield was an American attorney and politician. His administration is most well known for his observance of the importance of education after rising from his impoverished youth. He advocated for an equally educated electorate and supported civil rights for African Americans. His presidency prioritized agricultural technology, improving his own farms to increase the production of wheat, oats, and other products, as well as livestock. He was highly interested in irrigation systems and supported innovations for soil amendments and hydrology. Garfield was also highly motivated for civil service reform, signing the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act through Congress in 1883, which established a merit system for most federal jobs.

Chester A. Arthur was the 21st president of the United States. Arthur was an American politician and Baptist preacher who was also a strong abolitionist, recognized for his support of African American and Indigenous civil rights. Arthur’s administration was notable for the efforts to reform civil service, upholding Garfield’s efforts with the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act and further protections for federal employees from being fired for political reasons. He also oversaw the largest expansion of the Navy, approving the construction of steam powered cruisers, steel rams, and others. Additionally, Arthur’s presidency is memorable for his strict consideration of immigration. He enacted harsh federal immigration laws and measures that disbarred poorer persons, criminals, and the mentally ill from entering the states. While he vetoed the first version of the Chinese Exclusion Act, a document that barred Chinese laborers, he later signed an amended version that comprised 10 years instead of 20.

Grover Cleveland, was the 22nd and the 24th president of the United States. Cleveland was an American politician, holding seats in both the mayor’s and gubernatorial offices of New York. His administration is most well known for restoring the autonomy of the executive branch. He made an extreme display of executive privilege in refusing to surrender department files to Congress during a contention over presidential appointments. Cleveland also signed the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887, which imposed the first federal regulations on a domestic enterprise, the railroad. His presidency is one of mixed-feelings, where his efforts in restoring the South by linking it to efforts of civil reform, his friction with the agrarian population nearly split the Democratic party.

Benjamin Harrison, was the 23rd president of the United States. Harrison was an American politician and the descendant of Benjamin Harrison V, a founding father, and the grandson of William Henry Harrison, the 9th president of the United States. During his presidency, Harrison worked on establishing relations with Central America and aided in introducing civil rights legislation. His administration is most well known for bringing to pass unprecedented economic legislation, such as the McKinley Tariff, which established protective trade rates, and the Sherman Antitrust act, which prohibited companies from making contracts that would restrain interstate trade. His presidency also is known for facilitating the creation of National forest reserves by the amendment to the Land Revision Act of 1891, which set state lands aside for public use.

William McKinley, was the 25th president of the United States. McKinley was an American politician and graduate of Poland Seminary in 1859 before the onset of the Civil War. His work saw the re-establishment and financial gain of the American people following the depression Panic of 1893 by staging a gold standard and raising protective tariffs. However his economic gains, the sensationalism of the press during the rising tensions of burgeoning Spanish-American War pressured his administration to act as the conflict deepened. Though his victory brought territorial control and financial gain for the county after the United States’ victory, McKinley would be assassinated during his second term by Leon Czolgosz who saw the root of the country’s societal problems to be McKinley’s administration.

Theodore Roosevelt, was the 26th president of the United States. Roosevelt was an American politician and New York’s 33rd state governor. Roosevelt’s presidency is most well known for his prioritization of environmental preservation following an excess of overlogging. He created many monumental protections to national parks, creating one hundred and fifty forests, and U.S. natural resources. Roosevelt’s administration also oversaw the construction of the Panama Canal, as he focused his foreign policy efforts on the relations previously established by Harrison in Central America. His presidency also oversaw a great expansion of the United States Navy, an image that was sent on a world tour as he sent out the Great White Fleet to project that strengthened naval power.

William Howard Taft, was the 27th president of the United States. Taft was an American politician who is the only man to have held both the presidential seat and a Chief Justice of the United States, serving after his presidency from 1921-1930. Taft’s presidency is most well recognized for his improvements to the country’s infrastructure and economy. His administration focused heavily on tariffs, signing the Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act, which lowered tariffs on some goods while raising them on others—such as goods like iron, ore, and coal. His efforts focused heavily on East Asia, rather than Europe, where other administrations had focused their attention.

Woodrow Wilson, was the 28th president of the United States. Wilson was an American politician, known most for his position as leader of the Progressive Movement and for creating the League of Nations. His administration is most recognized for his role in leading the country into World War I. Initially, though he sought a stance of neutrality for the country, Wilson would enter the war in 1917, stating that their efforts needed to ensure the global security of democracy. His administration is also known for the ratification of the 19th Amendment which granted women’s suffrage, namely, the right to vote. Additionally, his presidency oversaw a great deal of domestic reform by signing progressive legislation, such as the Federal Reserve Act, Federal Trade Commission Act, and others like the Federal Farm Loan Act.

Warren G. Harding was the 29th president of the United States. Harding was an American politician who served as lieutenant governor and Senator from Ohio. His administration is most well recognized for navigating the transition between World War I and a time of peace. He focused on financial structures, signing the Budget and Accounting act, which saw the country’s first formal process for budgeting. It also created a system to manage that world, establishing the Bureau of the Budget. He also signed a number of acts concerning tariffs, including the Emergency Tariff act, raising tariffs on a number of items—particularly farm products—and the Fordney-McCumber Tariff, a piece of legislation that also greatly increased tariff rates on imported goods to protect American farmers and businesses.

Calvin Coolidge, was the 30th president of the United States. Coolidge was an American politician, who served as Governor of Massachusetts from 1919-1921, running on platforms of fiscal conservatism and a strong support for women's suffrage. His administration is most recognized for signing the Citizenship Act of 1924, which granted U.S. citizenship to all indigenous peoples. His presidency also oversaw a rapid economic rise, widely known as the “Roaring Twenties,” which granted his office a considerable popularity with the public for his hands-off approach of government interference or over-spending. Herbert Hoover, was the 31st president of the United States. Hoover was an American politician, who worked as an engineer before taking office. His presidency was shrouded by the Great Depression, with many finding his efforts to combat it less than effective. His administration is most recognized for its expansive cuts to taxes, impacting the benefit of all classes, as well as his handling in the affairs of food, both domestically and internationally. During the war, Hoover has overseen the U.S. Food Administration, which ensured the needed supplies during the wartime effort. After the war concluded, he expanded these efforts, leading the American Relief Administration, which would provide food to the citizens of Central and Eastern Europe. Hoover also asked many departments to increase their production in infrastructure projects, doubling the spending for public use while cutting taxes, such as dams, highways, and harbors.

Franklin D. Roosevelt was the 32nd president of the United States. Roosevelt was an American politician who is the only president to have served more than two terms, holding office from 1933-1945. His administration is known for a split between combating the Great Depression and overseeing the onset of World War II, and the country’s involvement. During his administration’s first two terms, Roosevelt oversaw the creation of multiple public relief programs that would support parties unemployed or in the agricultural sector. Additionally, he oversaw efforts of economic recovery, working with the National Recovery Administration and other effective programs. Concerning World War II, Roosevelt worked closely with the Allies against Axis powers, and oversaw an American economic plan to support the war effort through a European strategy.

Harry S. Truman was the 33rd president of the United States. Truman was an American politician and soldier in World War I, who had worked as a farmer before taking office. His presidency is most well recognized for seeing through the end of World War II by atomic warfare unleashed on Japan. His administration also is credited with shaping U.S. foreign policy by the Truman Doctrine during the Cold War and overseeing the creation of NATO. He also made significant strides for civil rights within the military by overseeing its desegregation, and implemented many social reform policies, such as expanding social security and the Fair Deal program, which oversaw public housing initiatives.

Dwight D. Eisenhower was the 34th president of the United States. Eisenhower was an American politician and a five star general in the United States army. His administration is known for governing as a moderate conservative, continuing the work of Truman in expanding social security and strengthening the New Deal program. Eisenhower’s administration made numerous efforts for civil rights, signing the Civil Rights Act of 1957, the first piece of legislation since the Reconstruction era. It created a Civil Rights Commission to investigate voting interference and discrimination, and further established a division within the judicial department called the Civil Rights division, and granted more power to the Attorney General to pursue legal action against presented voter suppression.

There are a few examples to this however, as there are also several items created by the first ladies, as well as some other named women, particularly Sarah Anne Hollenback Butler and Sarah Hollenback Cist Woodbury, who are in communication with the figures. An interesting example of this is 9.9. Item 8, which is a letter “written” by James Madison, however the handwriting is actually that of his wife Dolley Madison (Payne). The first ladies who appear in Subseries I are Dolley (Payne) Madison, the 2nd first lady of the United States, Frances Clara Folsom Cleveland, the 22nd and the 24th first lady of the United States, and Ellen Louise Axson Wilson, the 28th first lady of the United States.

Harmful Language Note:

There are some items that have language that might be harmful to African American communities, such as Item 27: Letter from John Tyler to Mary T[yler] Jones, 1845 January 18. These items are marked in the description. The language is a product of the time it was created in.

Processed By:

Processed and Transcribed by: First round transcriptions done by Christopher Smith, 2021 graduate, 2nd round transcription and description done by Conrad Middleton, Spring 2022, Archives intern. The collection was reprocessed by Jessica Van Orden, Graduate archives work-study in Spring 2025 and supervised and edited by Suzanna Calev, Archivist, Spring 2022 -Spring 2025.