A fancy dresser, an expert on fine food and wine, and a cheery conversationalist, Chester A. Arthur was nicknamed "the Elegant Arthur" and "the Gentleman Boss." A boss, in political terms, refers to a powerful person able to organize support and deliver votes for a political candidate. Arthur was a boss in the New York political machine called the Stalwarts (a word meaning "loyal supporters"). During the post-Civil War era from 1865 to 1880, the Stalwarts controlled the state Republican Party and had influence nationally.
Arthur, in fact, was nominated as a vice presidential candidate in an effort to please the Stalwarts. Their candidate for the 1880 presidential election, former president Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885; see entry in volume 3), was passed over at the Republican convention in favor of James A. Garfield (1831-1881; see entry in volume 3), who represented other groups in the party. Arthur was chosen as.....
This is a free excerpt of 150 words. This section contains 3,115 words. This
article contains 7,618 words (approx. 25 pages at 300
words per page).
Read the rest of this Article with our President Chester A. Arthur Access Pass.
