Benjamin Harrison (1833-1901) was born here on a farm established by his grandfather, William Henry Harrison. A graduate of Miami University in Oxford, Harrison read law in Cincinnati and then moved to Indianapolis to practice. He became active in Republican politics before he served in the Civil War as a colonel of the 70th Regiment of Indiana Volunteers. In the 1880's, subsequent to his defeat for governor of Indiana, he served in the United States Senate, where he championed pensions for Civil War veterans, high protective tariffs, homesteading, and civil service reform. Harrison ran against incumbent Grover Cleveland in the presidential election of 1888, and received fewer popular votes, but carried the Electoral College. During his term as president, he convened the first Pan-American Conference, modernized the navy, and negotiated reciprocal foreign trade agreements. Harrison was re-nominated in 1892, but was defeated by Cleveland.
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