If there was such a thing as paparazzi in 1869, then Grant would have been their star celebrity. Seriously, this man was the most popular person in America (well, at least in the North). Elected at the age of 46, Ulysses S. Grant was then the youngest President to achieve office at the time (he served between 1869 and 1877). Although he did not receive the White majority vote, it was the voting freed Blacks who helped put him into office (12% of the popular vote). As General of the Army, Grant played one of the most dominant roles in the Civil War (after Lincoln, of course) and was the ultimate war hero. Fiercely loyal, this military man was also known to be shy, humble and modest. His presidency was marked by ongoing problems with Reconstruction. The North wanted to punish the South and the South wanted to punish the Blacks. He had naive faith in his subordinates, but this was politics after all and not war. Scandals and corruption ruled over his commands. Known as the “well-intentioned” president, most of his efforts failed. But he was for equality and he did a lot to protect Black people in the south. Ulysses is actually the Latin equivalent of the Greek Odysseus (the mythological hero of Homer’s Odyssey) meaning “the one who is wrathful or hated”. But here’s a little known fact for you: Grant’s birth name was actually Hiram Ulysses Grant (Hiram is from the Hebrew meaning “exalted brother”). So where does the middle initial S come from? Grant’s mother’s maiden name was Simpson, so by adopting Ulysses as his first name and Simpson as his middle name, he effectively gave himself the initials U.S.
