Ulysses S. Grant (April 27, 1822 – July 23, 1885)

Ulysses S. Grant, Civil War leader and 18th president of the
United States, was born on April 27, 1822, in Point Pleasant,
Ohio.

The son of a tanner, Grant showed little enthusiasm for joining
his father’s business, so the elder Grant enrolled his son at
West Point in 1839.

Though Grant later admitted he had no interest in the military
apart from honing his equestrian skills, he graduated in 1843
and went on to serve in the Mexican-American War, though
he opposed it on moral grounds. He then left his beloved wife
and children again to fulfill a tour of duty in California and
Oregon.