Alphonso Taft (November 5, 1810 – May 21, 1891) was an American jurist, diplomat, and politician who served as United States Attorney General and Secretary of War under President Ulysses S. Grant.

Taft reformed the War Department by allowing commanders at Indian forts to choose who could start and run post traderships, and by making reductions in wasteful military spending.

While serving as Attorney General, he strongly held that African Americans must not be denied the right to vote through intimidation and violence.

Taft was a rare and modern 19th century politician who supported black voting rights and who reduced government corruption while holding office.

During his time at Amherst, he and Samuel Colt stole a cannon belonging to General Ebenezer Mattoon and shot it at their school.

They also had five children, one of whom died in infancy:[4] The estate of Alphonso Taft and his family, in Mount Auburn, one mile north of downtown Cincinnati, has been restored to its original appearance.

[6] He was a delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1856, and also that year made an unsuccessful run for the United States House of Representatives against George H. Pendleton.

In his discourse, Taft specifically referenced Jewish groups opposed to the reading of the Bible in public schools.

"[9] Many believe that Taft's opinion was the cause of much opposition to him, and contributed to his 1875 loss of the Republican nomination for Governor of Ohio to Rutherford B. Hayes.

[7] The independence of Taft's opinion commanded widespread respect, a sentiment freely expressed when President Ulysses S. Grant in March 1876 made him Secretary of War and three months later Attorney General of the United States.

With Belknap resigning in the shadow of scandal, Grant was under great pressure to find a reformer to replace him as Secretary of War.

[16] After consultation, Taft accepted the position and was quickly confirmed by the Senate without objection, taking office on March 8, 1876.

[17] He made a series of reforms to the War Department to restore its reputation and entanglements caused by Belknap's humiliating resignation.

[18] Additionally, he worked with his friend, former general and sitting Ohio congressman Henry B. Banning, to make the army more efficient.

[20] Like his predecessor Belknap, Taft was a large man, with a compact frame, who commanded military respect and admiration while he was Secretary of War.

In order to prevent the U.S. from fighting a second civil war, Taft supported a bill, signed into law by Grant, that peacefully settled the 1876 election with an Electoral Commission.