“Wobbly Warren”

Presidential Basics

Full name: Warren Gamaliel Harding
Years in office: 1921–1923
Political party: Republican
Vice president: Calvin Coolidge
Age at inauguration: 55
Nicknames: “Wobbly Warren”

Random Trivia

Betting the china: Harding once lost a set of White House china in a poker hand.

Birth & Death

Birthday: November 2, 1865
Birthplace: Blooming Grove, Ohio
Death: August 2, 1923
Place of death: San Francisco, California
Place of burial: Hillside Cemetery, Marion, Ohio
Last words: “That’s good, go on.” He was asking his wife to continue reading to him.

Family

Father: George Tryon Harding (1843–1928); Farmer, physician
Mother: Phoebe Dickerson Harding (1843–1910)
Wife: Florence Kling De Wolfe (1860 – 1924)
Marriage: July 8, 1891 in Ohio
Children: None
Home: Marion, Ohio

Other Facts

Height: 6’
Eye color: Gray
Ancestry: English, Scotch-Irish
Religion: Baptist
Born in a log cabin: No
Owned enslaved people: No
Freemason: Yes

Education

Early education: Unknown
College degree: Yes
College: Ohio Central College (graduated with B.S. 1882)

Career

Military Service: No
Lawyer: No
Writer
Editor of the Marion Star (1884–)
Teacher
Insurance Salesman
Member of the Ohio Legislature (1900–1904)
Lieutenant Governor of Ohio (1904–1906)
U.S. Senator (1915–1921)
President (1921–1923)

Writings

Rededicating America
Our Common Country

Election

In the election of 1920 Warren G. Harding promised the American people a “return to normalcy.” World War I was over and the economy was struggling. Harding campaigned on higher tariffs, immigration controls, and isolationism.

The Democrats behind James Cox (and Franklin D. Roosevelt in the second spot) continued to push for progressive reforms and international involvement.

The handsome senator from Ohio would be elected in this first election in which women across the country could vote.