Origins
Rutherford Birchard Hayes was born on October 4, 1822, in Delaware, Ohio, nearly three months after his father’s death from fever. Raised by his mother, Sophia Birchard Hayes, and supported financially by his uncle Sardis Birchard, Hayes received an education that prepared him for professional distinction. He attended Kenyon College, graduating as valedictorian in 1842, and subsequently earned his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1845. Establishing his legal practice in Cincinnati, Hayes built a reputation defending fugitive slaves and became associated with antislavery legal circles. In 1852, he married Lucy Ware Webb, a graduate of Wesleyan Female College who shared his emerging antislavery convictions. Their partnership produced eight children and established Lucy as a notable figure in her own right, later becoming the first presidential spouse to hold a college degree.
Hayes’s path to political prominence ran through military service and state politics. When the Civil War erupted, he enlisted as a major in the 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry, eventually rising to brevet major general after being wounded five times in combat. His military record facilitated his election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1864 while still serving in the field. After two terms in Congress, Hayes won three non-consecutive terms as Governor of Ohio (1868-1872, 1876-1877), where he advocated for civil service reform and sound currency policies. The Republican Party nominated him for president in 1876 as a compromise candidate. The subsequent election against Democrat Samuel J. Tilden produced the most disputed outcome in American history, resolved only by an electoral commission that awarded Hayes all contested electoral votes by an 8-7 partisan margin.
Presidency
Hayes entered office under the shadow of the Compromise of 1877, which many Democrats and some Republicans viewed as having delegitimized his election. His domestic agenda centered on reconciliation with the South and reform of the federal civil service. He withdrew federal troops from Louisiana and South Carolina, effectively ending Reconstruction and allowing Democratic “Redeemer” governments to consolidate power throughout the former Confederacy. This decision remains among the most consequential and contested of his presidency. Hayes pursued civil service reform vigorously, issuing an executive order prohibiting federal employees from participating in political management and removing Chester A. Arthur from the New York Custom House for violating these principles. He vetoed the Bland-Allison Act mandating silver coinage, though Congress overrode his veto. During the Great Railroad Strike of 1877, Hayes deployed federal troops to restore order, marking significant federal intervention in labor disputes.
Foreign affairs during the Hayes administration remained relatively quiet, though several developments merit attention. His administration negotiated with China to modify the Burlingame Treaty, laying groundwork for subsequent immigration restrictions. Hayes personally opposed the Chinese Exclusion Act concept, vetoing a predecessor bill on treaty violation grounds. Secretary of State William M. Evarts worked to strengthen commercial relations with Latin America, while Hayes asserted American interests regarding any future isthmian canal, declaring that such a project must be under American control. The administration also navigated a boundary dispute with Mexico, eventually achieving improved diplomatic relations despite tensions over cross-border raids.
Historical Significance
Hayes left office in 1881 having honored his pledge to serve only one term. The nation he bequeathed to successor James A. Garfield had achieved sectional reconciliation at considerable cost to African American citizens in the South. His civil service reform efforts, while incomplete, established precedents that culminated in the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883. The federal treasury had stabilized following the Panic of 1873, and Hayes’s “sound money” policies had maintained the gold standard despite inflationist pressures. However, the abandonment of federal protection for Black voting rights in the South initiated decades of Jim Crow governance.
Historians have evaluated Hayes with measured assessments. Earlier scholars praised his personal integrity and reform impulses, viewing him as an honorable figure navigating impossible circumstances. More recent historiography has criticized the Compromise of 1877 as a betrayal of Reconstruction’s promises, questioning whether political stability justified abandoning civil rights enforcement. Hayes retired to Spiegel Grove in Fremont, Ohio, where he advocated for education and prison reform until his death on January 17, 1893. His presidency illustrates the constraints facing reform-minded executives during the Gilded Age and the lasting consequences of prioritizing sectional reconciliation over racial justice.
Key Developments
- October 4, 1822: Born in Delaware, Ohio
- December 30, 1852: Married Lucy Ware Webb in Cincinnati
- 1861-1865: Served in Civil War, rising from major to brevet major general
- 1865-1867: Served in U.S. House of Representatives
- 1868-1872; 1876-1877: Served three terms as Governor of Ohio
- November 7, 1876: Disputed presidential election against Samuel J. Tilden
- March 5, 1877: Inaugurated as nineteenth president following Electoral Commission decision
- April 1877: Ordered withdrawal of federal troops from South, ending Reconstruction
- July 1877: Deployed federal troops during Great Railroad Strike
- 1879: Vetoed bill restricting Chinese immigration on treaty grounds
- March 4, 1881: Left office after single term as pledged
- January 17, 1893: Died at Spiegel Grove, Fremont, Ohio