William McKinley: The Man Who Could’ve Been on Rushmore

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Script:

There are four presidents on Mount Rushmore: Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Teddy Roosevelt. Were it not for a crazed assassin, the face of William McKinley—and not TR— very well could have been carved on that mountain.

As it stands, the 25th president of the United States is almost an historical afterthought.

That’s a shame because, as much as anyone, McKinley laid the foundation for American dominance of the 20th century.

William McKinley was born on January 29, 1843, in Niles, Ohio. As far back as anyone could remember, he was sober, cautious, and responsible. He adored his deeply religious, abolitionist mother. She wanted him to become a minister, but when the Civil War broke out, 18-year-old William joined the Union Army as a private. He wrote his sister that he had decided “to serve my country in this, her perilous hour, from a sense of duty.”

He quickly came to the attention of his commanding officer, fellow Ohioan and future president, Rutherford B. Hayes, who made McKinley his chief quartermaster. As even-tempered as McKinley was, he was not afraid of taking great risks if he thought they were necessary. At the bloody Battle of Antietam, he drove a wagon full of food and water through heavy enemy fire to desperate Union soldiers.

“God bless the lad,” wrote Officer James Comley of McKinley’s heroic action.

Until the end of his life, McKinley preferred to be addressed by his final army rank—Major—saying, “I earned that. I am not so sure of the rest.”

At age 22, the veteran McKinley returned