Treasury of White House Tales : Fascinating, Colorful Stories of American Presidents and Their Families

by GARRISON, WEBB & BETH WIEDER

• ISBN13: 9781558539730
• ISBN10: 1558539735
• Edition: Revised
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2002-02-01
• Publisher: Harpercollins Christian Pub

Summary

From George Washington to George W. Bush, Americans have been fascinated with#xD;the men who held the most powerful office in the world. In A Treasury of#xD;White House Tales, fifty-one stories about our presidents and their families#xD;are told, illustrated with more than 100 photographs. Originally released in#xD;1989, this book by popular writer Webb Garrison has been updated by his#xD;granddaughter to include stories about Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. In this#xD;book the reader will discover... #xD; #xD; What the world's most powerful men have thought of their job #xD; How presidents and their wives first met #xD; What president was head of his prep school cheerleading squad and later#xD; managed a professional baseball team #xD; How a beloved president successfully resisted efforts to make him king#xD; during the early years of the American Republic #xD; What presidential wife who opposed women's suffrage took over the office#xD; of president for several weeks when her husband was incapacitated due to a#xD; stroke #xD; What president spent his entire fortune on service to the nation and died#xD; penniless when Congress refused to repay his expenses #xD; #xD;A

Table of Contents

The Most Powerful Men in the World	9	(11)
Preface to the Updated Edition	11	(4)
Part One-Close Calls
Miraculous Escapes Led George Washington to see Himself as ``Special''	15	(4)
Andrew Jackson's Skinny Body and Loose Coat Saved His Life	19	(3)
A Simple Military Song Saved John Tyler's Life	22	(3)
A Senator and a Sculptress Saved Andrew Johnson's Presidency	25	(5)
Abraham Lincoln's Body Narrowly Escaped Grave Robbers	30	(4)
Teddy Roosevelt's Life Was Saved by a Speech	34	(4)
The Saga of White House Security	38	(9)
Part Two-Undercover Stuff
A Life and Death Drama Took Place at Sea	47	(5)
Three Strikes ... And In!	52	(4)
Though Woodrow Wilson Appeared Strong, He Was Fragile as a Reed	56	(5)
Strange Dreams and Ominous Nightmares	61	(5)
Secrets of the Stars	66	(5)
What the World's Most Powerful Men Have Thought of Their Job	71	(5)
Mental and Physical Health Have Been ``Issues'' in Many Presidential Campaigns	76	(5)
Off-trail Glimpses and Intimate Insights	81	(10)
Part Three-Wives and Mothers
The Father of His Country Could Not Satisfy His Own Mother	91	(5)
The Unsolved Riddle of Nancy Hanks and Her Son	96	(5)
Courting Women and Wealth	101	(6)
Wife Opposed to Women's Suffrage Wielded the Power of the Presidency for Weeks	107	(4)
Wives Have Freely Broken with Precedent	111	(4)
Wives Have Said No and Made It Stick	115	(3)
Love Makes the World Go `Round!	118	(5)
Off-trail Glimpses at Wives	123	(4)
Mothers and Sons	127	(6)
Part Four-The Imperial Presidency
Having Defeated the British, George Washington Refused to Become King	133	(3)
The First President Also Was the First to Flex His Muscles	136	(4)
Thomas Jefferson Went Outside the Law in America's Largest Land Deal	140	(4)
Two Presidents Brought Texas into the Union ``Under the Rug''	144	(4)
Under Pressures of Civil War, the Constitution Was Pushed Aside	148	(6)
Herbert Hoover Sent Future Military Leaders against Veterans	154	(4)
The East Wing Staff Has Mushroomed in Near Secrecy	158	(5)
Part Five-Trail Blazers
John Quincy Adams Reluctantly Talked to a Woman Reporter	163	(3)
A Landmark Campaign Made the Log Cabin a Powerful Symbol	166	(4)
John Tyler Ignored Opposition and Moved into the White House	170	(4)
Crete Garfield Took the First Fumbling Steps toward Air Conditioning	174	(4)
A Master of Words, John F. Kennedy Was Also a War Hero Who Narrowly Escaped Death	178	(6)
George Bush Was the Navy's Youngest Pilot	184	(4)
To Shake Hands or Not to Shake Hands	188	(5)
Many a Pet Has Lived in the White House	193	(5)
A Wild Pitch Launched a Lasting Sports Ritual	198	(5)
William Howard Taft's Stanley Steamer Was Squeezed into the White House Stable	203	(5)
First Events and Achievements	208	(7)
Part Six-Money Matters
Deeply in Debt, Thomas Jefferson Tried to Sell Monticello at Lottery	215	(3)
For James Monroe, ``Compensation'' Was Too Little, Too Late	218	(4)
A Phony White House Controversy Became a Major Campaign Issue	222	(4)
Abraham Lincoln Was a High-powered and Sometimes High-priced Attorney	226	(4)
Ulysses S. Grant Won His Battle with Bankruptcy	230	(4)
Now-Priceless Memorabilia Were Sold as Scrap and Hauled Off as Junk	234	(4)
Presidents Have Had Some Unusual First Paying Jobs	238	(4)
Gifts and Loans Have Provoked the Public Interest	242	(9)
Part Seven-The Making of a Modern President
Bush and Clinton: The Two Very Different Men Who Ushered in the New Millennium	251	(14)
Index	265