GRANT,
ULYSSES SIMPSON
(April 27, 1822–July 23, 1885), was the 18th President of United States, 1869–77; Secretary of War under Andrew Johnson, 1867; Union General-in-Chief during the Civil War, receiving General Robert E. Lee’s surrender at the Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia, April 9, 1865; defeated the Confederate forces in the Wilderness Campaign, Spottsylvania, Cold Harbor, and the siege of Petersburg, 1864–65; Major General, winning victories at Shiloh, Vicksburg, and Chattanooga, 1863; Brigadier General, capturing Fort Henry and Fort Donelson, 1862; Colonel of the 21st Illinois Volunteers, 1861; farmer, real estate dealer, clerk in Missouri and Illinois, 1854–61; married Julia Boggs Dent, 1848; Captain, decorated for gallantry in the Mexican War, 1846–48, fighting under both General Zachary Taylor and General Winfield Scott; graduated from West Point, 1843, and assigned as 2nd Lieutenant in the 4th U.S. Infantry at Jefferson Barracks near St. Louis; born Hiram Ulysses Grant, but changed to Ulysses Hiram to avoid the initials “H.U.G.,” his name was later incorrectly registered in his West Point appointment by his Representative as Ulysses Simpson Grant, 1839.
On Thursday, March 4, 1869, in his First Inaugural Address, President Ulysses S. Grant expressed:
A great debt has been contracted in securing to us and our posterity the Union. … To protect the national honor, every dollar of Government indebtedness should be paid in gold. … It looks as though Providence had bestowed upon us a strong box in the precious metals locked up in the sterile mountains of the far West, and which we are now forging the key to unlock, to meet the very contingency that is now upon us. …
In conclusion I ask patient forbearance one toward another throughout the land, and a determined effort on the part of every citizen to do his share toward cementing a happy union; and I ask the prayers of the nation to Almighty God in behalf of this consummation.2565
On Tuesday, October 5, 1869, President Ulysses S. Grant issued a Proclamation of a National Day of Thanksgiving, Praise and Prayer:
The year which is drawing to a close has been free from pestilence; health has prevailed throughout the land; abundant crops reward the labors of the husbandman; commerce and manufactures have successfully prosecuted their peaceful paths; the mines and forests have yielded liberally; the nation has increased in wealth and in strength; peace has prevailed, and its blessings have advanced every interest of the people in every part of the Union; harmony and fraternal intercourse restored are obliterating the marks of past conflict and estrangement; burdens have been lightened; means have been increased; civil and religious liberty are secured to every inhabitant of the land, whose soil is trod by none but freemen.
It becomes a people thus favored to make acknowledgement to the Supreme Author from whom such blessings flow of their gratitude and their dependence, to render praise and thanksgiving for the same, and devoutly to implore a continuance of God’s mercies.
Therefore, I, Ulysses S. Grant, President of the United States, do recommend that Thursday, the 18th day of November next, be observed as a day of thanksgiving and of praise and of prayer to Almighty God, the Creator and the Ruler of the Universe; and I do further recommend to all the people of the United States to assemble on that day in their accustomed places of public worship and to unite in the homage and praise due to the bountiful Father of All Mercies and in fervent prayer for the continuance of the manifold blessings He has vouchsafed to us as a people.
In testimony whereof I have set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed, this 5th day of October, A.D. 1869, and of the Independence of the United States of America the ninety-fourth. U.S. Grant.
By the President Hamilton Fish, Secretary of State.2566
On December 6, 1869, in his First Annual Message to Congress, President Ulysses S. Grant stated:
In coming before you for the first time as Chief Magistrate of this great nation, it is with gratitude to the Giver of All Good for the many benefits we enjoy. …
From the foundation of the Government to the present the management of the original inhabitants of this continent—the Indians—has been a subject of embarrassment and expense, and has been attended with continuous robberies, murders, and wars. From my own experience upon the frontiers and in Indian countries, I do not hold either legislation or the conduct of the whites who come most in contact with the Indians blameless for these hostilities. The past, however, cannot be undone, and the question must be met as we now find it. I have attempted a new policy toward these wards of the nation (they can not be regarded in any other light than as wards), with fair results so far as tried, and which I hope will be attended ultimately with great success. The Society of Friends is well known as having succeeded in living in peace with the Indians in the early settlement of Pennsylvania. … They are known for their opposition to all strife, violence, and war, and are generally noted for their strict integrity and fair dealings. These considerations induced me to give the management of a few reservations of Indians to them and to throw the burden of the selection of agents upon the Society itself. The result has proven most satisfactory. …
The building of railroads, and the access thereby given to all the agricultural and mineral regions of the country, is rapidly bringing civilized settlements into contact with all tribes of Indians. No matter what ought to be the relations between such settlements and the aborigines, the fact is they do not harmonize well, and one or the other has to give way in the end. A system which looks to the extinction of a race is too horrible for a nation to adopt without entailing upon itself the wrath of all Christendom and engendering in the citizen a disregard for human life and the rights of others, dangerous to society. I see no substitute for such a system, except in placing all the Indians on large reservations … and giving them absolute protection there.2567
On October 21, 1870, President Ulysses S. Grant issued a Proclamation of a National Day of Thanksgiving:
Whereas it behooves a people sensible of their dependence on the Almighty publicly and collectively to acknowledge their gratitude for His favors and mercies and humbly to beseech for their continuance, and
Whereas the people of the United States during the year now about to end have special cause to be thankful for general prosperity, abundant harvests, exemption from pestilence, foreign war, and civil strife:
Now, therefore, be it known that I, Ulysses S. Grant, President of the United States, concurring in any similar recommendations from chief magistrates of States, do hereby recommend to all citizens to meet in their respective places of worship on Thursday, the 24th day on November next, there to give thanks for the bounty of God during the year about to close and to supplicate for its continuance hereafter.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done as the city of Washington, this 21st day of October, A.D. 1870, and of the Independence of the United States the ninety-fifth. U.S. Grant.
By the President: Hamilton Fish, Secretary of State.2568
On Monday, December 5, 1870, in his Second Annual Message to Congress, President Ulysses S. Grant stated:
We have, through a kind Providence, been blessed with abundant crops, and have been spared from complications and war with foreign nations. …
The massacres of French and Russian residents at Tien-Tsin, under circumstances of great barbarity, was supposed by some to have been premeditated, and to indicate a purpose among the populace to exterminate foreigners in the Chinese Empire. … Unfortunately, the news of the war between the German States and France reached China soon after the massacre. It would appear that the popular mind became possessed with the idea that this contest, extending to the Chinese waters, would neutralize the Christian influence and power, and that the time was coming when the superstitious masses might expel all foreigners and restore mandarin influence. Anticipating trouble from this cause, I invited France and North Germany to make an authorized suspension of hostilities in the East (where they were temporarily suspended by act of the commanders), and to act together for the future protection in China of the lives and properties of Americans and Europeans. …
Reform in the management of Indian affairs has received the special attention of the Administration from its inauguration to the present day. The experiment of making it a missionary work was tried with a few agencies given to the denomination of Friends, and has been found to work most advantageously. … Indian agencies being civil offices, I determined to give all the agencies to such religious denominations as had heretofore established missionaries among the Indians, and perhaps to some other denominations who would undertake the work on the same terms—i.e., as a missionary work. The societies selected are allowed to name their own agents, subject to the approval of the Executive, and are expected to watch over them and aid them as missionaries, to Christianize and civilize the Indians, and to train him in the arts of peace. … I entertain the confident hope that the policy now pursued will in a few years bring all the Indians upon reservations, where they will live in houses, and have schoolhouses and churches, and will be pursuing peaceful and self-sustaining avocations. …
I would sum up the policy of the Administration … finally, in securing a pure, untrammeled ballot, where every man entitled to cast a vote may do so, just once at each election, without fear of molestation or proscription on account of his political faith, nativity, or color.2569
On January 1, 1871, in writing from the Executive Mansion to the Senate and House of Representatives, President Ulysses S. Grant stated:
It would seem highly desirable that the civilized Indians of the country should be encouraged in establishing for themselves forms of Territorial government compatible with the Constitution of the United States. …
This is the first indication of the aborigines desiring to adopt our form of government, and it is highly desirable that they become self-sustaining, self-relying, Christianized, and civilized.2570
On October 28, 1871, President Ulysses S. Grant issued a Proclamation of a National Day of Thanksgiving:
The process of the seasons has again enabled the husbandman to garner the fruits of successful toil. Industry has been generally well rewarded. We are at peace with all nations, and tranquillity, with few exceptions, prevails at home. Within the past year we have in the main been free from ills which elsewhere have afflicted our kind. If some of us have had calamities, these should be an occasion for sympathy with the sufferers, of resignation on their part to the will of the Most High, and of rejoicing to the many who have been more favored.
I therefore recommend that of Thursday, the 30th day of November next, the people meet in their respective places of worship and there make the usual annual acknowledgements to Almighty God for the blessings He has conferred upon them, for their merciful exemptions from evils, and invoke His protection and kindness for their less fortunate brethren, whom in His wisdom He has deemed it best to chastise.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the city of Washington, this 28th day of October, A.D. 1871, and of the Independence of the United States the ninety-sixth. U.S. Grant.
By the President: Hamilton Fish, Secretary of State.2571
On December 4, 1871, in his Third Annual Message to Congress, President Ulysses S. Grant stated:
The past year has, under a wise Providence, been one of general prosperity to the nation. …
In Utah there still remains a remnant of barbarism, repugnant to civilization, to decency, and to the laws of the United States. Territorial officers, however, have been found who are willing to perform their duty in a spirit of equity and with a due sense of the necessity of sustaining the majesty of the law. Neither polygamy nor any other violation of existing statutes will be permitted within the territory of the United States. It is not with the religion of the self-styled Saints that we are now dealing, but with their practices. They will be protected in the worship of God according to the dictates of their consciences, but they will not be permitted to violate the laws under the cloak of religion. It may be advisable for Congress to consider what, in the execution of the laws against polygamy, is to be the status of plural wives and their offspring. The propriety of Congress passing an enabling act authorizing the Territorial legislature of Utah to legitimize all children born prior to a time fixed in the act might be justified by its humanity to these innocent children. …
The policy pursued toward the Indians has resulted favorably, so far as can be judged from the limited time during which it has been in operation. Through the exertions of the various societies of Christians to whom has been intrusted the execution of the policy, and the board of commissioners authorized by the law of April 10, 1869, many tribes of Indians have been induced to settle upon reservations, to cultivate the soil, to perform productive labor of various kinds, and to partially accept civilization. They are being cared for in such a way, it is hoped, as to induce those still pursuing their old habits of life to embrace the only opportunity which is left them to avoid extermination. I recommend liberal appropriations to carry out the Indian peace policy, not only because it is humane, Christianlike, and economical, but because it is right.2572
On May 14, 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant wrote to the Senate:
In answer to a resolution of the Senate of the 28th of March last, I transmit herewith copies of the correspondence between the Department of State and the consul of the United States at Bucharest relative to the persecution and oppression of the Israelites in the Principality of Romania.2573
On May 22, 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant wrote to the House of Representatives:
In answer to a resolution of the House of Representatives of the 20th instant, requesting me to join the Italian Government in a protest against the intolerant and cruel treatment of the Jews in Romania, I transmit a report from the Secretary of State relative to the subject.2574
On October 11, 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant issued a Proclamation of a National Day of Thanksgiving:
Whereas the revolution of another year has again brought the time when it is usual to look back upon the past and publicly to thank the Almighty for His mercies and His blessings; and
Whereas if any one people has more occasion than another for such thankfulness it is the citizens of the United States, whose Government is their creature, subject to their behests; who have reserved to themselves ample civil and religious freedom and equality before the law; who during the last twelve months have enjoyed exemption from any grievous or general calamity, and to whom prosperity in agriculture, manufactures, and commerce has been vouchsafed:
Now, therefore, by these considerations, I recommend that on Thursday, the 28th day of November next, the people meet in their respective places of worship and there make their acknowledgements to God for His kindness and bounty.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the city of Washington, this 11th day of October, A.D. 1872, and of the Independence of the United States the ninety-seventh. U.S. Grant.
By the President: Hamilton Fish, Secretary of State.2575
On December 2, 1872, in his Fourth Annual Message to Congress, President Ulysses S. Grant stated:
In transmitting to you this my fourth annual message it is with thankfulness to the Giver of All Good that as a nation we have been blessed for the past year with peace at home, peace abroad, and a general prosperity vouchsafed to but few peoples. …
I can not doubt that the continued maintenance of slavery in Cuba is among the strongest inducements to the continuance of this strife. A terrible wrong is the natural cause of a terrible evil. The abolition of slavery and the introduction of other reforms in the administration of the government in Cuba could not fail to advance the restoration of peace and order. It is greatly to be hoped that the present liberal Government of Spain will voluntarily adopt this view. The law of emancipation, which was passed more than two years since, has remained unexecuted in the absence of regulations for its enforcement. It was but a feeble step toward emancipation, but it was the recognition of right, and was hailed as such, and exhibited Spain in harmony with sentiments of humanity and of justice and in sympathy with the other powers of the Christian and civilized world.2576
On Tuesday, March 4, 1873, in his Second Inaugural Address, President Ulysses S. Grant stated:
Under Providence, I have been called a second time to act as Executive over this great nation. … I do believe that our Great Maker is preparing the world, in His own good time, to become one nation, speaking one language, and then armies and navies will no longer be required.2577
On October 14, 1873, President Ulysses S. Grant issued a Proclamation of a National Day of Thanksgiving:
The approaching close of another year brings with it the occasion for renewed thanksgiving and acknowledgement to the Almighty Ruler of the Universe for the unnumbered mercies which He has bestowed upon us. Abundant harvests have been among the rewards of industry. With local exceptions, health has been among the many blessings enjoyed. Tranquillity at home and peace with other nations have prevailed. Frugal industry is regaining its merited recognition and its merited rewards.
Gradually but, under the providence of God, surely, as we trust, the nation is recovering from the lingering results of a dreadful civil strife. For these and all the other mercies vouchsafed it becomes us as a people to return heartfelt and grateful acknowledgements, and with our thanksgiving for blessings we may unite in prayers for the cessation of local and temporary sufferings.
I therefore recommend that on Thursday, the 27th day of November next, the people meet in their respective places of worship to make their acknowledgements to Almighty God for His bounties and His protection, and to offer to Him prayers for their continuance.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the city of Washington, this 14th day of October, A.D. 1873, and of the Independence of the United States the ninety-eighth. U.S. Grant.
By the President: Hamilton Fish, Secretary of State.2578
On December 1, 1873, in his Fifth Annual Message to Congress, President Ulysses S. Grant stated:
The existence of this new Republic was inaugurated by striking the fetters from the slaves in Porto Rico. This beneficent measure was followed by the release of several thousand persons illegally held as slaves in Cuba. Next, the Captain-General of that colony was deprived of the power to set aside the orders of his superiors at Madrid, which had pertained to the office since 1825. The sequestered estates of American citizens, which had been the cause of long and fruitless correspondence, were ordered to be restored to their owners. All these liberal steps were taken in the face of a violent opposition directed by the revolutionary slaveholders of Havana, who are vainly striving to stay the march of ideas which has terminated slavery in Christendom, Cuba only excepted.2579
In 1875, President Ulysses S. Grant gave an address to the Army of Tennessee:
Now in the centennial year of our national existence, I believe, is a good time to begin the work of strengthening the foundation of the structure commenced by our patriotic forefathers one hundred years ago at Lexington.
Let us all labor to add all needful guarantees for the security of free thought, free speech, a free press, pure morals, unfettered religious sentiment, and of equal rights and privileges to all men, irrespective of nationality, color, or religion.2580
On Wednesday, October 27, 1875, President Ulysses S. Grant issued a Proclamation of a National Day of Thanksgiving:
In accordance with a practice at once wise and beautiful, we have been accustomed, as the year is drawing to a close, to devote an occasion to the humble expression of our thanks to Almighty God for the ceaseless and distinguished benefits bestowed upon us as a nation and for His mercies and protection during the closing year.
Amid the rich and free enjoyment of all our advantages, we should not forget the source from whence they are derived and the extent of our obligation to the Father of All Mercies.
We have full reason to renew our thanks to Almighty God for favors bestowed upon us during the past year.
By His continuing mercy civil and religious liberty have been maintained, peace has reigned within our borders, labor and enterprise have produced their merited rewards; and to His watchful providence we are indebted for security from pestilence and other national calamity.
Apart from national blessings, each individual among us has occasion to thoughtfully recall and devoutly recognize the favors and protection which he has enjoyed.
Now, therefore, I, Ulysses S. Grant, President of the United States, do recommend that on Thursday, the 25th day of November, the people of the United States, abstaining from all secular pursuits and from their accustomed avocations, do assemble in their respective places of worship, and, in such form as may seem most appropriate in their own hearts, offer to Almighty God their acknowledgments and thanks for all His mercies and their humble prayers for a continuance of His divine favor.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the city of Washington, this 27th day of October, A.D. 1875, and of the Independence of the United States the one hundredth. U.S. Grant.
By the President: Hamilton Fish, Secretary of State.2581
On December 7, 1875, in his Seventh Annual Message to Congress, President Ulysses S. Grant stated:
The past year has furnished no evidence of an approaching termination of the ruinous conflict which has been raging for seven years in the neighboring island of Cuba. The same disregard of the laws of civilized warfare and of the just demands of humanity which has heretofore called forth expressions of condemnation from the nations of Christendom has continued to blacken the sad scene. Desolation, ruin, and pillage are pervading the rich fields of one of the most fertile and productive regions of the earth. …
In nearly every annual message that I have had the honor of transmitting to Congress I have called attention to the anomalous, not to say scandalous, condition of affairs existing in the Territory of Utah, and have asked for definite legislation to correct it. That polygamy should exist in a free, enlightened, and Christian country, without the power to punish so flagrant a crime against decency and morality, seems preposterous. True, there is no law to sustain this unnatural vice; but what is needed is a law to punish it as a crime, and at the same time to fix that status of the innocent children, the offspring of this system, and of the possibility innocent plural wives. But as an institution polygamy should be banished from the land. …
I deem of vital importance [to]. … drive out licensed immorality, such as polygamy and the importation of women for illegitimate purposes.2582
On June 6, 1876, President Ulysses S. Grant wrote from Washington to the Editor of the Sunday School Times in Philadelphia:
Your favor of yesterday asking a message from me to the children and the youth of the United States, to accompany your Centennial number, is this morning received.
My advice to Sunday schools, no matter what their denomination, is: Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet anchor of your liberties; write its precepts in your hearts, and practice them in your lives.
To the influence of this Book are we indebted for all the progress made in true civilization, and to this must we look as our guide in the future. “Righteousness exalteth a nation; but sin is a reproach to any people.” Yours respectfully,
U.S. Grant2583
On June 26, 1876, President Ulysses S. Grant issued a Proclamation of a National Day of Public Thanksgiving:
The centennial anniversary of the day on which the people of the United States declared their right to a separate and equal station among the powers of the earth seems to demand and exceptional observance.
The founders of the Government, at its birth and in its feebleness, invoked the blessings and the protection of a Divine Providence, and the thirteen colonies and three millions of people have expanded into a nation of strength and numbers commanding the position which then was asserted and for which fervent prayers were then offered.
It seems fitting that on the occurrence of the hundredth anniversary of our existence as a nation a grateful acknowledgment should be made to Almighty God for the protection and the bounties which He has vouchsafed to our beloved country.
I therefore invite the good people of the United States, on the approaching 4th day of July, in addition to the usual observances with which they are accustomed to greet the return of the day, further, in such manner and at such time as in their respective localities and religious associations may be most convenient, to mark its recurrence by some public religious and devout thanksgiving to Almighty God for the blessings which have been bestowed upon us as a nation during the century of our existence, and humbly to invoke a continuance of His favor and of His protection.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the city of Washington, this 26th day of June, A.D. 1876, and of the Independence of the United States of America the one hundredth. U.S. Grant.
By the President: Hamilton Fish, Secretary of State.2584
On October 26, 1876, President Ulysses S. Grant issued a Proclamation of a National Day of Thanksgiving:
From year to year we have been accustomed to pause in our daily pursuits and set apart a time to offer our thanks to Almighty God for the special blessings He has vouchsafed to us, with our prayers for a continuance thereof.
We have at this time equal reason to be thankful for His continued protection and for the many material blessings which His bounty has bestowed.
In addition to these favors accorded to us as individuals, we have especial occasion to express our hearty thanks to Almighty God that by His providence and guidance our Government, established a century ago, has been enabled to fulfill the purpose of its founders in offering an asylum to the people of every race, securing civil and religious liberty to all within its borders, and meting out to every individual alike justice and equality before the law.
It is, moreover, especially our duty to offer our humble prayers to the Father of All Mercies for a continuance of His divine favor to us as a nation and as individuals.
By reason of all these considerations, I, Ulysses S. Grant, President of the United States, do recommend to the people of the United States to devote the 30th day of November next to the expression of their thanks and prayers to Almighty God, and, laying aside their daily avocations and all secular occupations, to assemble in their respective places of worship and observe such day as a day of thanksgiving and rest.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the city of Washington, this 26th day of October, A.D. 1876, and of the Independence of the United States of America the one hundred and first. U.S. Grant.
By the President: Hamilton Fish, Secretary of State.2585
In 1884, while fighting the battle against throat cancer, Ulysses S. Grant began writing his Memoirs at the behest of Mark Twain, who agreed to publish them. Encouraged by the affection and honor of the people of the country during his illness, Ulysses S. Grant, who was a Methodist, wrote:
I believe in the Holy Scriptures, and whoso lives by them will be benefitted thereby. Men may differ as to the interpretation, which is human, but the Scriptures are man’s best guide. …
I did not go riding yesterday, although invited and permitted by my physicians, because it was the Lord’s day, and because I felt that if a relapse should set in, the people who are praying for me would feel that I was not helping their faith by riding out on Sunday. …
Yes, I know, and I feel very grateful to the Christian people of the land for their prayers in my behalf. There is no sect or religion, as shown in the Old or New Testament, to which this does not apply.2586