American President
Chester A. Arthur (1829–1886)
Facts at a Glance
- Term
- 21st President of the United States (1881–1885)
- Born
- October 5, 1829, Fairfield, Vermont
- Full Name
- Chester Alan Arthur
- Nickname
- "The Gentleman Boss"
- Religion
- Episcopalian
- Marriage
- October 25, 1859, to Ellen Lewis Herndon (1837–1880)
- Children
- William Lewis Herndon (1860–1863), Chester Alan (1864–1937), Ellen Herndon (1871–1915)
- Education
- Union College (graduated 1848)
- Career
- Lawyer
- Political Party
- Republican
- Died
- November 18, 1886, New York, New York
- Buried
- Albany, New York
- A Life in Brief
- Chester Arthur was the fifth child of a fervent abolitionist preacher who moved his family from one Baptist parish to the next throughout New York and Vermont. Attending Union College, Arthur showed far more interest in extracurricular activities and political demonstrations than in his studies. More »
- It is a matter for congratulation that the business of the country has been so prosperous during the past year...
- December 6, 1881
Essays on Chester A. Arthur and His Administration
- Chester Alan Arthur
- A Life in Brief
- Life Before the Presidency
- Campaigns and Elections
- Domestic Affairs
- Foreign Affairs
- Life After the Presidency
- Family Life
- The American Franchise
- Impact and Legacy
- Key Events
- First Lady
- Mary McElroy
- Secretary of State
- Frederick T. Frelinghuysen (1881–1885)
- James G. Blaine (1881–1881)
- Secretary of War
- Robert Todd Lincoln (1881–1885)
- Postmaster General
- Thomas L. James (1881–1881)
- Timothy O. Howe (1881–1883)
- Walter Q. Gresham (1883–1884)
- Frank Hatton (1884–1885)
- Secretary of the Interior
- Samuel J. Kirkwood (1881–1882)
- Henry M. Teller (1882–1885)
- Secretary of the Treasury
- William Windom (1881–1881)
- Charles J. Folger (1881–1884)
- Hugh McCulloch (1884–1885)
- Walter Q. Gresham (1884–1884)
- Attorney General
- Isaac Wayne MacVeagh (1881–1881)
- Benjamin H. Brewster (1882–1885)
- Secretary of the Navy
- William H. Hunt (1881–1882)
- William E. Chandler (1882–1885)
Consulting Editor: Justus Doenecke
Professor Doenecke is a professor emeritus of history at the New College of Florida. His writings include:
The Presidencies of James A. Garfield and Chester A. Arthur (University Press of Kansas, 1981)
Debating Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Foreign Policies, 1933–1945 (With Mark S. Stoler, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2005)
Presidential Speeches
Below are selections from the Miller Center’s Chester A. Arthur speech collection.
Scholarship and Speakers
The Miller Center of Public Affairs is a national nonpartisan center to research, reflect, and report on American government, with special attention to the central role and history of the presidency. Below is a selection of Miller Center resources on Chester A. Arthur.
Listen Tony Coelho’s 1989 presentation at the Miller Center on the Electoral Process and the Selection of President and Vice Presidents
Learn more about the Center’s National Commission on the Vice Presidency and its relationship to Arthur.
Scripps Library Reference Resources
Below are links to reference resources prepared by the Miller Center’s Scripps Library, designed to help students and scholars conduct their research quickly.
Information on Chester A. Arthur’s Private and Public Papers
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