William Henry Harrison was born into a prominent Virginia family on February 9, 1773, in Charles City, Virginia. His father, Benjamin Harrison, was a …show more content…
He was 18 and put in charge of about 80 men whom he had recruited to fight Indians on the Western frontier. William Henry was posted to Fort Washington, near Cincinnati, Ohio, and served as aide-de-camp to General "Mad Anthony" Wayne. General Wayne cited Harrison for bravery at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794, an attack on Fort Washington that the U.S. Army won. (“William Henry Harrison”, 2000). This opened much of the Ohio region to white settlement. When General Wayne died in 1795, Harrison was named commander of the forces at Fort Washington. Harrison was promoted to the rank of Captain in 1797. In 1798, Harrison saw the army as a career dead end and resigned his …show more content…
After his almost two hour inaugural address in the cold wet elements, and after several receptions, President Harrison looked exhausted and weak (Collins, 2012). In the days following the inaugural address, President Harrison was frequently seen out in the elements walking around the city, even doing his own food shopping (Collins, 2012). On the day he became ill, he had walked through the rain and slush to tell a friend, Colonel John Tayloe, that he was to receive a diplomatic post (Collins, 2012). Harrison was also exhausted and beaten down by the demands of job seekers and by internal fighting within the Whig Party (Collins, 2012). On March 26, 1841, a doctor found Harrison to be slightly sick, though still at work. The next day, Harrison was reported suddenly ill with pneumonia. He was given the most thorough medical care available at the time, but despite the efforts to save him, he died on April 4, 1841, after a 30 days in