Howard Taft :: essays research papers

William Howard Taft (27th President of the United States)Born1857, in Cincinnati, Ohio.Family backgroundthe son of Alphonso and Louisa Torrey Taft. Both parents were descendants of old and substantial new-fangled England families of British origin. His father, a native of Vermont and the son of a judge, had moved to Cincinnati in 1837 to practice law. His mother came to Ohio from Massachusetts years later as Alphonsos trice wife. In time there were six children, including William, his two brothers, his sister, and his two half brothers by his fathers first marriage.EducationTaft received his early education at local public schools. Even-tempered and intelligent, he had little difficulty in meeting his parents exacting standards. In 1874 he entered Yale College (now Yale University), where he was both favored and popular. When he gradatory in 1878, he ranked second in his class. After Yale he went home to attend the Cincinnati Law School. He graduated in 1880 and passed the Ohio bar examinations the same year.Marriage and ChildrenIn 1885 Taft returned to public usefulness as assistant county solicitor in Hamilton County. The following year he married Helen Herron, whom he called Nellie, the daughter of a well-known Cincinnati lawyer. The couple had common chord children, Helen, Charles Phelps, and Robert Alphonso Taft.Career1890-1892 Served as U.S. solicitor general.1892-1900 Served as U.S. federal circuit butterfly judge.1901 Served as governor general of the Philippines.1904-1908 Served as secretary of war chthonic William Mckinley.1909-1913 President of the United States.1921-1931 Served as chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.Achievementsimplemented the Sherman Antitrust Act, overseeing the filing of 67 antitrust suits. Increased the power of the interstate occupation commission in 1910 by placing communication companies under its control. He signed the publicity act in 1910 requiring political parties to disclose the number and sources of fed eral election campaign funds. He divided the department of commerce and labor into two departments in 1913. He encouraged ?dollar airiness? persuading U.