Born on this date in 1773 was William H Harrison, ninth US president. 10 facts about him:
He was 67 when elected president which made him the oldest president up to that point.
He was the last president to be born under British rule, and the first to travel by train to Washington DC., for his inauguration. In another first involving trains, his inauguration speech was circulated to the rest of the country by train so that, for the first time, people outside Washington could read the president’s words the same day that he said them.
Harrison was born at Berkeley Plantation in Virginia, descended from two wealthy and well-connected Virginia families. His father, Benjamin Harrison, became a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses in 1764.
Harrison studied classics at Hampden-Sydney College, and then went on to study medicine, but had to drop out when his father died.
He then joined the army and took part in campaigns against the Indians, including the Battle of Fallen Timbers and the Battle of Tippecanoe. The latter earned him his nickname, "Old Tippecanoe" and his election campaign slogan, "Tippecanoe and Tyler Too".
Heard of the Indian curse which stated that any president elected in a year ending in 0 would die in office, of which seven did, until Ronald Reagan (1980) survived an assassination attempt and apparently broke the curse? William H Harrison was the one who was originally cursed. He headed a force against the Indian Confederacy which was led by Tecumseh and his brother, the Prophet. They attacked Harrison and his forces while they slept, but the future president was able to stop the attack. Harrison burned the Indian village of Prophetstown in retaliation, and so, it’s said, Tecumseh cursed him and every president thereafter elected in a zero year.
He was the first president to die in office, after 32 days, making him the president with the shortest ever term as well. He died of pneumonia, possibly as a result of he riding up Pennsylvania Avenue on a white Horse to take the oath of office on March 4, 1841, without an overcoat or gloves despite the freezing, drizzly weather.
In 1795 he married Anna Tuthill Symmes, in secret, because her father disapproved of the match. He met her while he was a soldier. The fact he came from a good family wasn’t enough to overcome Anna’s father’s prejudice over his daughter marrying a man with a “lack of any profession but that of arms.”
Anna, however, never got to take on the duties of First Lady. When her husband was elected president, Anna was ill and couldn’t travel to Washington. The couple asked their daughter-in-law, Jane Irwin Harrison, widow of their son William Henry, to perform the duties of first lady until Anna was well enough to travel. In April of 1841, she was deemed recovered and started packing to move to Washington; but by that time, William had died. Although he had served only one month in office, Congress voted to give Anna a pension equivalent to his salary, thus setting a precedent for the pensions of subsequent first ladies.
His grandson Benjamin Harrison was the 23rd president of the United States.
Beta
(Combat Team Series #2)
Steff was abducted by an evil alien race, the Orbs, at fourteen. Used as a weapon for years, he eventually escapes, but his problems are just beginning. How does a man support himself when his only work experience is a paper round and using an Orb bio-integrated gun?
Warlord is an alien soldier who knows little but war. When the centuries-old conflict which ravaged his planet ends, he seeks out another world where his skills are still relevant. There are always wars on Earth, it seems. However, none of Earth's powerful armies want him.
Natalie has always wanted to visit England and sees a chance to do so while using her martial arts skills, but there are sacrifices she must make in order to fulfil her dream.
Maggie resorted to crime to fund her sister's medical care. She uses her genetic variant abilities to gain access to the rooms of wealthy hotel guests. The Ballards look like rich pickings, but they are not what they seem. When Maggie targets them, little does she know that she is walking into a trap.
Hotel owner Hamilton Lonsdale puts together a combat team to pit against those of other multi-millionaires. He recruits Warlord, Natalie, Maggie and Steff along with a trained gorilla, a probability-altering alien, a stockbroker whose work of art proved to be much more than he'd bargained for, a marketing officer who can create psionic forcefields, a teleporting member of the landed gentry, and a socially awkward fixer. This is Combat Team Beta.
Steff never talks about his time with the Orbs, until he finds a woman who lived through it, too. Steff believes he has finally found happiness, but it is destined to be short-lived. He is left with an unusual legacy which he and Team Beta struggle to comprehend; including why something out there seems determined to destroy it.
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