1901 : McKinley dies of infection from gunshot wounds
On this day in 1901, U.S. President William McKinley dies after being
shot by a deranged anarchist during the Pan-American Exposition in
Buffalo, New York.
McKinley won his first Congressional seat at the age of 34 and spent
14 years in the House, becoming known as the leading Republican expert
on tariffs. After losing his seat in 1890, McKinley served two terms
as governor of Ohio. By 1896, he had emerged as the leading Republican
candidate for president, aided by the support of the wealthy Ohio
industrialist Mark Hanna. That fall, McKinley defeated his Democratic
rival, William Jennings Bryan, by the largest popular margin since the
Civil War.
As president, McKinley became known--controversially--as a protector
of big businesses, which enjoyed unprecedented growth during his
administration. He advocated the protective tariff as a way of
shielding U.S. business and labor from foreign competition, and he
successfully argued for using the gold standard of currency.
Above all, however, McKinley's presidency was dominated by his foreign
policy. In April 1898, he was pushed by Congress and American public
opinion to intervene in Cuba's struggle for independence from Spanish
colonial rule. In the first American war against a foreign power since
1812, the United States handily defeated Spain in just three months,
freeing Cuba--although the island became a U.S. protectorate--and
annexing Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines. For the first time,
the United States had become a colonialist power.
America's growing interests in the Pacific led McKinley's
administration to greatly increase its involvement in Asian politics.
In 1900, McKinley sent thousands of U.S. troops to China to help put
down the Boxer Rebellion, aimed at driving out foreigners. His
aggressive "Open Door" policy declared U.S. support for an independent
China and argued that all nations with commercial interests in China
should be able to compete on equal footing.
The popular McKinley won a second term by even greater margins over
Bryan, who attacked him on his "imperialism" in the Pacific and,
domestically, on the growth of illegal monopolies, or trusts. There
was little time to see what his second term would bring, however. On
September 6, 1901, while standing in a receiving line at the
Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, McKinley was approached by Leon
Czolgosz, a Polish-American anarchist carrying a concealed .32
revolver in a handkerchief. Drawing his weapon, Czolgosz shot McKinley
twice at close range. One bullet deflected off a suit button, but the
other entered his stomach, passed through the kidneys, and lodged in
his back. When he was operated on, doctors failed to find the bullet,
and gangrene soon spread throughout his body. McKinley died eight days
later. Czolgosz was convicted of murder and executed soon after the
shooting.
history.com/tdih.do
1812 : Napoleon enters Moscow
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=7020
1814 : Key composes "The Star-Spangled Banner"
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5344
1847 : Scott captures Mexico City
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5345
1975 : American canonized as saint
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5346
#########################################
On this day in 1901, U.S. President William McKinley dies after being
shot by a deranged anarchist during the Pan-American Exposition in
Buffalo, New York.
McKinley won his first Congressional seat at the age of 34 and spent
14 years in the House, becoming known as the leading Republican expert
on tariffs. After losing his seat in 1890, McKinley served two terms
as governor of Ohio. By 1896, he had emerged as the leading Republican
candidate for president, aided by the support of the wealthy Ohio
industrialist Mark Hanna. That fall, McKinley defeated his Democratic
rival, William Jennings Bryan, by the largest popular margin since the
Civil War.
As president, McKinley became known--controversially--as a protector
of big businesses, which enjoyed unprecedented growth during his
administration. He advocated the protective tariff as a way of
shielding U.S. business and labor from foreign competition, and he
successfully argued for using the gold standard of currency.
Above all, however, McKinley's presidency was dominated by his foreign
policy. In April 1898, he was pushed by Congress and American public
opinion to intervene in Cuba's struggle for independence from Spanish
colonial rule. In the first American war against a foreign power since
1812, the United States handily defeated Spain in just three months,
freeing Cuba--although the island became a U.S. protectorate--and
annexing Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines. For the first time,
the United States had become a colonialist power.
America's growing interests in the Pacific led McKinley's
administration to greatly increase its involvement in Asian politics.
In 1900, McKinley sent thousands of U.S. troops to China to help put
down the Boxer Rebellion, aimed at driving out foreigners. His
aggressive "Open Door" policy declared U.S. support for an independent
China and argued that all nations with commercial interests in China
should be able to compete on equal footing.
The popular McKinley won a second term by even greater margins over
Bryan, who attacked him on his "imperialism" in the Pacific and,
domestically, on the growth of illegal monopolies, or trusts. There
was little time to see what his second term would bring, however. On
September 6, 1901, while standing in a receiving line at the
Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, McKinley was approached by Leon
Czolgosz, a Polish-American anarchist carrying a concealed .32
revolver in a handkerchief. Drawing his weapon, Czolgosz shot McKinley
twice at close range. One bullet deflected off a suit button, but the
other entered his stomach, passed through the kidneys, and lodged in
his back. When he was operated on, doctors failed to find the bullet,
and gangrene soon spread throughout his body. McKinley died eight days
later. Czolgosz was convicted of murder and executed soon after the
shooting.
history.com/tdih.do
1812 : Napoleon enters Moscow
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=7020
1814 : Key composes "The Star-Spangled Banner"
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5344
1847 : Scott captures Mexico City
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5345
1975 : American canonized as saint
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5346
#########################################
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