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Chester A. Arthur Birthplace
Fairfield, Vermont |
With all the controversy surrounding President Obama's birth certificate, most people forgot that this is not the first time this has happened. In the late 19th century, there were many people utterly convinced that Chester A. Arthur was born, not in Fairfield, Vermont, but fifteen miles north in Canada.
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Stone marker commemorating site of the original home
(or is it?) |
But if you take the family Bible at its word, Arthur was born on American soil. Regardless of the exact spot, we can be fairly sure it looked something like the replica that stands in Fairfield today, which was modest even for its day. His father was an itinerant preacher, and the family moved around quite a bit when Arthur was a child.
Without the controversy of his mysterious origins, Chester A. Arthur is one of those presidents most people remember as the guys in the middle with funny facial hair. In reality, Arthur was a political hack for much of his career, and was chosen to be Garfield's running mate so he would deliver New York to the Republican cause. Arthur's work in the New York political machine is mentioned in the museum inside the Arthur birthplace, although our guide pointed out, it is often covered by a door, which was something we all got a good laugh out of.
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Panel about Arthur's political career,
cleverly hidden behind a door |
After Garfield's assassination, Arthur was a changed man. He passed the Pendleton Civil Service Act, which fought against the very corruption he once practiced himself. He did not want to be president and he did not run for re-election, but he made the best of a difficult situation, and actually accomplished something of note.
Also, I heard he was from Canada. Eh.
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| View from the home |
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