President Zachary Taylor was dead within days of celebrating his second July 4 in office. Was it poison, as some claimed? Zachary Taylor, the nation's 12th president, was among the least politically experienced men to occupy the White House, and is still considered among our worst chief executives ever. But he excelled on the battlefield as a fearless soldier who fought in and led major battles spanning the War of , the Indian Wars and the Mexican War. Jealous fellow generals mocked the Kentuckian's lack of book learning and polish.
But that didn't matter after he triumphed over a Mexican force three times the size of the small command Taylor led in the Battle of Buena Vista near Monterrey in northern Mexico in February Standing on his horse, Taylor dodged a cannon ball shot between his legs, and went on to capture Monterrey City despite its apparent impregnability. Before long, Taylor was being pushed forward as a candidate for the presidential election, though he'd never before voted or disclosed his political views.
At the Whig Convention held at the old Chinese Museum building at Ninth and Sansom Streets in Philadelphia, Taylor won the nomination, and from there the general election.
It would be a short presidency. On July 4, , a typically hot and humid summer day in the capital, Taylor went to a celebration to dedicate land that would hold the new Washington Monument. He enjoyed a cooling snack of fresh cherries and iced milk, and took a stroll later along the Potomac River. That evening, he experienced abdominal cramps, diarrhea and then a fever. The next night, his worried physician administered opium, as well as mercury chloride, or "calomel," used as a laxative, a disinfectant, and to treat syphilis until the early 20th century.
About Us. B2B Publishing. Business Visionaries. Hot Property. Times Events. Zachary Taylor's sudden death shocked the nation. After attending Fourth of July orations for most of the day, Taylor walked along the Potomac River before returning to the White House.
Hot and tired, he drank iced water and consumed large quantities of cherries and other fruits. The President suffered severe stomach pains for the next five days. Diagnosed as suffering from "cholera morbus" by his physicians, Taylor ate slivers of ice for relief until his body began rejecting fluids. At about ten in the morning on July 9, , Taylor called his wife to him and asked her not to weep, saying: "I have always done my duty, I am ready to die.
My only regret is for the friends I leave behind me. His funeral took place on July An estimated , people thronged the funeral route in the nation's capital to witness the presidential hearse, drawn by eight white horses accompanied by grooms dressed in white and wearing white turbans.
The hearse was followed by Washington dignitaries, military units, the President's beloved horse "Old Whitey," and the President's family.
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