Tippecanoe and Tyler, Too!

U.S. Landmark Books #76

by Stanley Young, Warren Chappell (Illustrator)

History of early American period.

177 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1957

Reviews

[Rich Farrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book after returning from a mini-road trip to visit my cousin at Butler. I passed Tippecanoe park and decided to make a stop on my way home to stretch because I recognized the title phrase but didn’t really know what the story was behind it. The museum had some interesting artifacts, although it could use a little TLC. Like all Landmark series books, this is a bit of propaganda. Even though the book is dedicated by the author to specific Native Americans, the adjectives used in the text are a bit condescending if nothing worse. Regardless, it tells a version of the story of how Harrison rose to provenance and how the Indiana territory was eventually settled by Americans of European descent though the Battle of Tippecanoe.

As a bonus, at the end of the story it gives the background of the phrase “get the ball rolling” and the word “okay” which was interesting.

[Caleb Meyers · Rating 4 out of 5]

William Henry Harrison would have been a great president if he hadn't died in thirty days. He believed dogmatically in state's rights, and was very libertarian about settling the west. He was also a hero. While his term as governor of the Northwest Territories was about to expire, the people signed a petition begging the US government to keep him on as governor. He was pessimistic, generally quiet until he began speaking, and then he could become very long-winded. The state of Ohio elected his first to the House of Representatives. After two years, he forsook the post. Two years later they appointed him to state legislature, and two years the Cincinnatus-like general refused reelection. Two years later he was voted into the Senate. After four years, he was out of money, so he took a position as ambassador to Columbia. Then he resigned resolving not to reenter politics. But the Whig party thought differently, and nominated him twice, in 1836, and 1840. He likely would have lost in 1840 as bad as in 1836 had Van Buren not made as off-hand comment mocking Harrison's backwoods lifestyle for the last 40 years. This alienated all the newly-added states, and Harrison won by a large margin. Moral: Snobbery doesn't pay for a politicians.