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The Ulysses S. Grant Association Newsletter. Oct, 1970 & Jan, 1971.

Jesse Root Grant (1794-1873)

Grant's father was a partner in a successful tannery. The following remarks were made by Jesse in 1868:

Perhaps it was my son's taste for horses and the great pleasure he took in riding and driving that prevented his ever becoming addicted, so much as most boys, to other amusements. I do not know that he ever cared for any others at all, except playing marbles; of that he was extremely fond. I believe he never danced until he went to West Point. He never seemed inclined to put himself forward at all; and was modest retiring and reticent, as he is now. But he never appeared to have distrust in himself, or any misgivings about his ability to do anything which could be expected of a boy of his size and age.

Self-possession was always one of his leading characteristics. An example of occurred when he was about 12 years of age. He drove a pair of horses to Augusta, Kentucky, twelve miles from Georgetown, and was persuaded to remain overnight, in order to bring back the two ladies. The route lay across White Oak Creek. The Ohio river had been rising in the night, and the back water in the creek was so high, when they came across it in returning, that the horses were swimming and the water was up to their own waists. The ladies were terribly frightened and began to scream. In the midst of the excitement, Ulysses, who was on a forward seat, looked back at the ladies, and with an air perfectly undisturbed, merely said: "Don't speak. I will take you through safe."

The first book he ever read was The Life of George Washington. He was then six or seven years of age, he was fond of school, but particularly so of the study of mathematics. Ulysses had a very peaceable, equable disposition and had no inclination to quarrel, but he would not be imposed upon. On one occasion, when he was quite small (and he was small for his age), he rescued an inoffensive boy, who worked for us, from a trick which a large number of companions were about to perpetrate upon him. The whole crowd then made for Ulysses, and he came home for a gun to defend himself. But he was never known to pick a quarrel with anyone. Neither was he in the habit of swearing. Indeed- notwithstanding he has served so long in the army - I never knew or heard of his using a profane word. He was always industrious. In respect to looks he was our most beautiful child; but I thought he did not grow up as handsome as our other boys.

Work in the tannery was something which Ulys never fancied. He would rather do anything else under the sun than work in the tannery. I said to him, "We shall have to go to grinding bark," and he would get right up without saying a word and start straight for the village, and a get a load to haul, or passengers to carry, or something another to do, and hire a boy to come and grind the bark. One day we were short of hands, and I told him he would have to go into the beam room and help me. He had never worked in the beam room any. The beam room is so called because in it the hides are worked over beams when the flesh and hair are taken off with knives, after they are taken out of the lime-vat. He came along and went to work, remarking, however: "Father, this tanning is not the kind of work I like. I'll work at though, if you wish me to, until I am 21, but you may depend upon it, I'll never work at it after that." I said to him: "No, I don't want you to work at it now, if you don't like it, and mean to stick to it. I want you to work at whatever you like and intend to follow. Now what do you think you would like?" He replied that he would like to be a farmer; a down-the-river trader, or get an education.

At eight and a half years he became a regular driver, and used to work my team all day, day after day, hauling wood. At about ten years of age, he used to drive a pair of horses alone forty miles to Cincinnati and bring back a load of passengers. He had the habit of riding our horses to water, standing up on their bare backs. He began this practice at about five years old. At eight or nine he would ride them at the top of their speed, he standing upon one foot and balancing himself by the bridle reins. he always broke his own horses. I never knew one to balk with him. He used to get one colt perfectly broken, and then put another in by the side of him. He had a most wonderful faculty for breaking horses to pace; it became known in the neighborhood and he was fond of doing it and making money.

 

 

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