Year(s) Discussed: 1875-1877
Though the US takes pride in the regular practice of peaceful transitions of power from one presidency to the next, sometimes the transition is not quite so peaceful, especially when the results are in dispute. Such was the case in the aftermath of the presidential election of 1876 where, for months, allegations flew back and forth, political leaders across the nation exerted their influence in favor of their chosen candidate, members of both parties prepared for armed confrontation, and no one could predict whether Samuel J Tilden or Rutherford B Hayes would end up being the nineteenth president of the United States.
Special thanks to Andrew Pfannkuche for this audio editing assistance and to Dave Broker of the Industrial Revolutions Podcast, Kenny Ryan of the [Abridged] Presidential Histories podcast, and my husband Alex for providing the intro quotes for this episode!
Featured Image: “The Florida Case before the Electoral Commission” by Cornelia Adèle Strong Fassett, courtesy of Wikipedia
Featured Images: “Rutherford B Hayes” [c. 1865-1880], courtesy of Wikipedia and “Samuel Jones Tilden” [c. 1860-1886], courtesy of Wikipedia