Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University History Dissertations Department of History Fall 12-7-2012 The Life of A Reputation: The Public Memory of Ulysses S. Grant Richard G. Mannion Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/history_diss Recommended Citation Mannion, Richard G., "The Life of A Reputation: The Public Memory of Ulysses S. Grant." Dissertation, Georgia State University, 2012. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/history_diss/32 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of History at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in History Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. THE LIFE OF A REPUTATION: THE PUBLIC MEMORY OF ULYSSES S. GRANT by RICHARD G. MANNION Under the Direction of Wendy Hamand Venet ABSTRACT At the time of his death in 1885, Ulysses S. Grant was widely regarded by his contemporaries as one of the great Americans of his age. Along with George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, his name was frequently included among the most accomplished heroes of the then still-young republic. Both nationally and internationally Grant was widely regarded as one of the world‘s great military leaders. He was elected to the presidency of the United States during one of the most divisive epochs in American history and won a decisive electoral victory to earn a second term. In his final years he embarked on a comprehensive world tour to great personal acclaim as well as the acknowledgement of this nation‘s ascendancy as a world power.