1001 People Who Made America - Alan Axelrod [54]
Harris, Joel Chandler (1848–1908) A Georgia journalist, Harris earned national fame as a humorist, beginning with his 1879 story, “Tar Baby,” told in African-American dialect by a slave named Uncle Remus and introducing the characters of B’rer Fox and B’rer Rabbit. This was the first of many stories Harris later published in a long series of “Uncle Remus” books, beginning with the 1880 Uncle Remus: His Songs and His Sayings. Not only did these stories become popular American classics, Harris developed a passionate interest in African-American folklore, which he did much to collect, preserve, and present to both black and white America.
Harrison, Benjamin (1833–1901) The grandson of the ninth president, the short-lived William Henry Harrison, Benjamin Harrison defeated incumbent Democrat Grover Cleveland in 1888, winning an electoral majority but losing the popular vote by a margin of more than 95,000. Harrison was man of impeccable conscience, whose moderate Republicanism moved him to sign into law the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890, which curbed monopolies. In foreign affairs, Harrison presided over a general expansion of U.S. influence abroad. His rival Cleveland defeated him in 1892—thereby becoming the only U.S. president to serve two nonconsecutive terms.
Harrison, William Henry (1773–1841) An army officer who served as governor of Indiana Territory, Harrison negotiated treaties that acquired from the Indians millions of acres during 1802–1809. When tribes under the Shawnee Tecumseh resisted, Harrison led forces that defeated them at the Battle of Tippecanoe (November 7, 1811), near Lafayette, Indiana. This victory provided the first memorable slogan in a U.S. presidential campaign in 1840: “Tippecanoe and Tyler, too!” (John Tyler was Harrison’s running mate.) Harrison was 67 when he was elected. On a frigid March 4, 1841, he took the oath of office and delivered the longest inaugural address in history (nearly two hours). He took a chill, fell ill, and died exactly one month later, on April 4. He was the first chief executive to die in office.
Hart, Lorenz “Larry” (1895–1943) Descended from the 19th-century German Romantic poet Heinrich Heine, Hart teamed with composer Richard Rodgers to write the lyrics of some 1,000 of the most popular and most beautifully crafted of American popular songs, including “Here in My Arms” (1926), “My Heart Stood Still” (1927), “With a Song in My Heart” (1929), “Lover” (1933), “Blue Moon” (1934), “The Lady Is a Tramp” (1937), “My Funny Valentine” (1937), “I Didn’t Know What Time It Was” (1939), and “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered” (1940).
Harte, Bret (1836–1902) Harte grew up in New York City. He left in 1854 to visit the California mining country and settled in San Francisco, where he became a clerk in the U.S. Mint and a magazine editor. He began writing short stories that evoked the “local color” of the California mining camps, with a sentimental turn and emphasis on remarkable incidents and characters. His 1870 collection, The Luck of Roaring Camp and other Stories, made him world famous—and “local color fiction” henceforth became a major American literary genre.
Harvey, Fred (1835–1901) Harvey immigrated to the United States from England in 1850 and entered the restaurant business. After the failure of his restaurant in St. Louis, he found work as a railroad freight agent. Observing the abysmal quality of railroad dining