When in office, U.S. presidents often try to make their mark, whether it’s in the first 100 days or across the four or eight years of service. However, there are a few presidents who have fallen through the cracks over the years, deemed “forgotten presidents.” This is due to several reasons, including a brief term, an uneventful time in office, a lack of significant achievements, or even their placement between more prominent presidents. No matter the case, these are six forgotten presidents and how they have fallen out of the public eye.
6. Millard Fillmore
Starting our list of forgotten presidents is Millard Fillmore. Coming from a log cabin in New York’s frontier, Fillmore managed to get to the highest office due to the unexpected death of Zachary Taylor. He then became consumed by the Compromise of 1850, trying to balance the concerns of slave and free states as tensions rose to a fever pitch. Unfortunately, all he did was unite everyone in their displeasure towards him, and civil war erupted. Today, we remember another log-cabin-born president for saving the Union.
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5. William Henry Harrison
Fifth on our list of forgotten presidents is William Henry Harrison. You may also know Harrison as having one of the shortest presidential terms, as he died from pneumonia after just 30 days in office. His illness may or may not have been exacerbated by his Inaugural Address, which was extremely long and delivered in freezing temperatures without a coat or hat. This became Harrison’s most noteworthy contribution to the Oval Office.
4. William McKinley
Next on our list of forgotten presidents is William McKinley. For a while, you may have remembered McKinley on the $500 bill, but these are no longer printed. A savvy politician, McKinley helped bring the country to war with Spain in 1898, leading to the acquisition of Puerto Rico and Guantánamo Bay. He was later shot by an anarchist at the Pan-American Exposition in 1901, and died of gangrene eight days after getting hit. He was replaced by his memorable Vice President, Theodore Roosevelt.
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3. Martin Van Buren
Rounding out the top three forgotten presidents is Martin Van Buren. One of the first presidents to be “forgotten,” Van Buren’s ultimate downfall was an economic crisis brought on by banks offering easy credit while benefiting from little or no central regulation. His extravagant lifestyle didn’t help matters, and Van Buren became an easy scapegoat for political opponents, overshadowing his stellar work of handling early sectional tensions.
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2. Rutherford B. Hayes
Second on our list of forgotten presidents is Rutherford B. Hayes. After a very close election, Hayes managed to get into office by a congressional commission’s narrow vote. His official Inauguration was even secretly held in the White House for fear of trouble. While he did score points for appointing Cabinet members regardless of political ties, his reputation suffered when he called in federal troops to squash railroad strikes in 1877, and dozens died. Hayes did create the White House Easter Egg Roll, though, which is still held to this day.
1. Warren Harding
Last but not least on our list of forgotten presidents is Warren Harding. Starting out as an Ohio newspaper publisher, Harding managed to get into the president’s chair through Republication bosses favoring him. Once in office, Harding promised to restore pre-World War I normalcy, but instead appointed a slew of corrupt officials, leading to the Teapot Dome bribery scandal, and was an accused adulterer. Dying in office, Harding has since become a cautionary tale that just because you may seem like a good president doesn’t mean you will be.
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