U. S. Grant: American Hero, American Myth (review)

In U. S. Grant: American Hero, American Myth, Joan Waugh, professor of history at the University of California at Los Angeles, provides a well-written and thoroughly researched examination of Ulysses S. Grant's place in public memory. The author argues that the victorious general enjoyed a reputation as the most revered man of his age, but emphatically insists that subsequent generations have not been as generous. She posits that, over the intervening decades, many have distorted Grant's contribution to the Union victory, dismissed his presidency, and sullied his memory.

In the first three chapters, Waugh delivers a concise narrative of Grant's life, from small town boy to the leader of a nation struggling to heal the wounds of war. The author skillfully addresses charges leveled against Grant by contemporaries and modern scholars. She effectively defends the general's performance in the field during the war, dismissing critics that labeled him a butcher and insisting that Grant's determination and skill as a strategist won Lee's surrender at Appomattox. Finally, while the author admits Grant's presidency suffered from inept and unscrupulous men, Waugh seems convinced that Grant's culpability resulted primarily from political inexperience. Waugh's brief review of Grant's life and career reveal a man of gritty determination whose appeal to contemporaries resulted largely from his image as an ordinary man who was no stranger to failure or hardship. Grant's insistence that the North fought for a righteous cause only enhanced his stature among many Americans.

The chapter "The Most Famous Living American" examines Grant's life after he left the presidency and is pivotal to the author's arguments. Grant's international tour, during which he was hailed as the embodiment of a re-unified American nation by crowds of admirers, galvanized support for the ex-president. Criticisms of his service in the war and accusations about his performance as president paled in comparison with the accolades bestowed upon him. When Grant returned to the United States, supporters encouraged his nomination as the next Republican candidate for president. Neither encouraging nor discouraging the move, Grant would not refuse the nomination. Nevertheless, when James Garfield won the 1880 nomination, the former president enthusiastically campaigned on his behalf.

In the final section of the book, Waugh documents the final years of Grant's life, his struggle to finish his memoirs, public reaction to his lingering illness, and efforts to find a fitting memorial to the late president. Waugh examines his financial dealings and his efforts to provide for his family through the publication of his memoirs. The author explores efforts by Grant's friends, including Mark Twain, to aid in the completion of his memoirs. She also chronicles the public's concern for the ailing statesman. After his death, veterans of the Civil War from both sides of the Mason-Dixon Line published glowing tributes to Grant. Despite the praise of contemporaries, Waugh argues that Grant's reputation was transformed in the years following his death as Americans tried to come to terms with a war that claimed the lives of thousands and left the South economically devastated. As "Lost Cause" rhetoric rose to prominence, Grant's reputation suffered.

Waugh's enthusiasm for her subject is evident, resulting in an informative and richly detailed study. Her historiographical knowledge, coupled with judicious use of primary and secondary sources are impressive. Ultimately, Waugh's book should prove an invaluable addition to studies of our eighteenth president.