Mark Hanna

Foreseeing a demand for petroleum products, he built a refinery, and also invested his own money in the Lac La Belle, a swift Great Lakes steamer.

The flood of inflationary greenback currency issued during the war made Rhodes and Company's dealings in the new confederation of Canada difficult; merchants would accept a dollar in paper money as the equivalent of 35 cents in gold.

The industrialist's work for the railroad was highly praised by its president, Charles Francis Adams; Hanna's knowledge of the coal business led to him being appointed head of one of the board's committees with responsibility in that area.

The militia, called in by Governor Rutherford Hayes to restore order, had fired on the strikers, and 23 miners were arrested and put on trial in Canton, Ohio, the hometown of Major McKinley (as he was often known, for his Civil War service).

Hanna became convinced that McKinley was the only Ohioan who could gain the nomination, and by telegram hinted that Sherman should withdraw in the congressman's favor as the only Ohio Republican with a chance at the presidency.

Cynical in his acceptance of contemporary political practices, Hanna was drawn to McKinley's scruples and idealistic standards, like a hardened man of the world who becomes infatuated with virgin innocence.

[62] Through the months leading up to the Republican convention in June in St. Louis, Hanna built his organization, paying for expenses, and applying the techniques of business to politics.

As McKinley awaited his opponent, he privately commented on the nationwide debate over silver, stating to his Canton crony, Judge Day, that "This money matter is unduly prominent.

[73][77][78] According to Horner, "In 1896, as the country was mired in an economic slowdown that affected millions, a real, substantive policy debate was conducted by candidates who believed firmly in their respective positions.

"[79] Bryan, whose campaign was ill-financed, felt that his best means of persuading the voter of his position was personal communication, and embarked on an unprecedented itinerary of whistle stop appearances by train.

The agent would suggest any fine-tuning necessary to make it fit within campaign themes, and send the information ahead by runner to McKinley, giving him time to prepare his response.

"[93] On November 12, 1896, the President-elect wrote to his longtime friend, offering him a position in his Cabinet, and stating: We are through with the election, and before turning to the future I want to express to you my great debt of gratitude for your generous life-long and devoted service to me.

The poor record Sherman posted prior to his departure from office in 1898 led to attacks on Hanna, suggesting that a senile man had been placed in a key Cabinet position to accommodate him.

[102] The stories were not believed by McKinley either; the President-elect in February 1897 called accounts of Sherman's mental decay "the cheap inventions of sensational writers or other evil-disposed or mistaken people".

Rhodes suggests that the difficulty over obtaining a Senate seat for Hanna led McKinley to persist in his offer to make his friend Postmaster General into mid-February 1897.

James Rudolph Garfield, the late president's son, stated that he had been told by one Republican from Cleveland that he had to vote for McKisson because if he did not, his contracts to sell the city brick pavers would be cut off.

[119] Joseph Bristow, whose duties as Fourth Assistant Postmaster General under McKinley involved patronage appointments, later wrote that the President "gave Hanna's requests great consideration and had confidence in the clearness of his opinion, but in the end he always followed his own judgment".

Assistant Secretary of the Navy Theodore Roosevelt shook his fist under Hanna's nose at the Gridiron Dinner and stated, "We will have this war for the freedom of Cuba in spite of the timidity of the commercial classes!

New York Senator Platt disliked his state's governor, former Assistant Secretary of the Navy Theodore Roosevelt, who had pursued a reformist agenda in his year and a half in office.

Although the majority was not large by later standards, according to historian Lewis L. Gould in his study of the McKinley presidency, "in light of the election results since the Civil War, however, it was an impressive mandate.

Hanna, weeping, went to the library in the Milburn House where the President lay, and as he awaited the end, made the necessary plans and arrangements to return his friend's remains to Canton.

[156] Hanna was a supporter of building a canal across Central America to allow ships to pass between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans without making the lengthy journey around Cape Horn.

In November 1903, Panama, with the support of the United States, broke away from Colombia, and Bunau-Varilla, the representative of the new government in Washington, signed a treaty granting the US a zone in which to build a canal.

[168] As the days passed, politicians began to wait in the Arlington lobby, close to Hanna's house, for news; a letter from the President, "May you soon be with us, old fellow, as strong in body and as vigorous in your leadership as ever" was never read by the recipient.

At 6:30 pm, Senator Hanna died, and the crowd of congressional colleagues, government officials, and diplomats who had gathered in the lobby of the Arlington left the hotel, many sobbing.

Roosevelt biographer Edmund Morris noted Hanna's achievement in industry and in politics, "He had not done badly in either field; he had made seven million dollars, and a President of the United States.

This phrase supposedly appeared in a letter by Hanna to Ohio Attorney General David K. Watson in 1890, urging him to drop a lawsuit against the Standard Oil Company.

However, Professor Thomas E. Felt, who wrote an article about the controversy, believed Hanna unlikely to use such an inflammatory phrase to a man with whom he was not close, and which, in any event, did not accurately represent his political views.

As the campaign progressed, the media compared Hanna and Bush adviser Karl Rove, who was believed by some to hold a Svengali-like influence over the Texas governor.

[178] According to Horner, Davenport's depiction of Hanna still lingers as the modern image of the former senator: The portrait of Hanna that has stood the test of time is of a man who was grossly obese; a cutthroat attack dog for the "Trusts"; a cigar-smoking man clad in a suit covered with dollar signs who stood side by side with a gigantic figure representing the trusts, and a tiny, childlike William McKinley.

Hanna's birthplace
A young North American boy of the 19th century. In this black-and-white photograph, the boy looks into the camera nervously, a straw boater perched upon his head. He wears a white shirt, dark jacket and a large, dark-coloured bow tie.
Hanna as a boy
A middle-aged American gentleman of the immediate post-civil-war era. In this black-and-white portrait shot the subject looks to the viewer's right. His hair is short and sharply combed, and a beard is prominent on his chin. He wears a dark suit and white shirt.
Mark Hanna, around 1877
A 19th-century American gentleman is photographed in black and white, sitting in an ornate chair and looking into the camera. His sandy-coloured hair is somewhat longer on the top than might be expected, and he wears a full beard. He is attired in a dark suit and white shirt.
Before McKinley, Hanna tried to make John Sherman president.
Joseph B. Foraker
A terse, professional-looking man reclines in a chair in this black-and-white photograph. He has a prominent nose and dimple in his chin. His dark jacket has only the top button fastened, and appears to be under some strain.
William McKinley in the 1870s
A cigarette card bearing a colour image of a politician, denoted to be "William McKinley Jr of Ohio". The grey-haired man's head points to the left with a neutral expression.
Although McKinley did not run in 1892, the Duke Tobacco Company considered him a presidential possibility that year and issued a card for him.
A photograph taken of Mark Hanna after his election as Chairman of the Republican National Committee.
A man in his thirties wearing a dark suit holds his hands together in front of him as he looks to his right. In the background can be seen the stars and stripes.
William Jennings Bryan , seen during the 1896 campaign.
A dramatic political scene. Beside a river stands a podium, on which a flagpole flies a huge American flag. Beneath the flag stands a candidate in a dark suit addressing an impressive crowd which takes up most of the photograph. Not only the quayside but a ferry beside it on the water are packed full of people listening intently.
Bryan's whistle-stop tour during the 1896 campaign was unprecedented. Here he addresses a crowd in Wellsville, Ohio .
A formative shot taken in front of an ornate colonial-style home. A middle-aged gentleman with thinning hair stands at center of a group of about fifteen men.
McKinley (center) with a delegation in front of the famous front porch
An 1896 cartoon by Homer Davenport depicting McKinley as being firmly in Hanna's pocket.
Four 19th-century gentlemen dressed in dark suits of the American style congregate in a drawing room, deep in discussion. The man nearest to the camera on the right of the image appears to be leading the conversation.
In addition to giving speeches from his front porch in 1896, McKinley (lower right) gave orders for the conduct of his campaign from the library of his Canton home.
A political cartoon in color. Two caricatured gentlemen in suits sit at a table with large, exaggerated cutlery, a colossal turkey before them, marked "Presidency". The plate bears the words, "Sound money vote". "For what we are about to receive," says the man on the left, holding the carving knife with a look of deceitful intrigue, "May the Lord make us truly thankful."
1896 Puck cover showing Hanna (left) and McKinley's Thanksgiving dinner—carving up the presidency.
A promotional button from Mark Hanna's U.S. Senate campaign.
An illustrated magazine cover. Two dollar "Bills" are shown; the top one bears the face of Bill McKinley, and is marked "1 gold dollar. Worth 100 cents or one dollar in gold, prosperity, gold standard". The other shows Bill Bryan, and is denoted "16 to 1 1 dollar. Worth 53 cents only, hard times, free silver".
Although the currency question was not as prominent in 1900 as in 1896 this Judge magazine cover shows it still played its part in the campaign.
Theodore Roosevelt, President of the United States (1901–1909)
January 1904 political cartoon depicting Hanna hiding from presidential candidacy
A photo of Senator Hanna taken roughly a year before his death.
A statue of a middle-aged gentleman sitting in an impressive chair atop a column about five feet tall. "To Marcus Alonzo Hanna" it is marked, with a short message detailing his "efforts for peace between capital and labor" given beneath. A year is finally given in Roman numerals near the base: "MCMVII", or 1907.
Statue of Mark Hanna by Augustus Saint-Gaudens , University Circle, Cleveland
A political cartoon. A gigantic Samson-like figure is led towards a ballot box by a cigar-smoking man in a checked suit and a tiny man reminiscent of a dwarf. Lady justice can be seen on a tall pillar in the background, hiding her eyes.
"As they go to the polls" 1900 Homer Davenport cartoon suggesting a cozy relationship among Hanna, McKinley, and the trusts.