WILLIAM McKINLEY

1843-1901

25th President (1897-1901)

Biographical Data
Religious Views
Quotations
References, Links, & Further Reading

Education: Allegheny College (did not graduate)

Occupation: lawyer

Political Affiliation: Republican

Organizational Affiliation(s): Mason

Religious Affiliation: Methodist

Summary of Religious Views:

Views on Religion & Politics:

McKinley believed the U.S. government had a duty to help spread Christianity and Western civilization to the rest of the world.

Quotations:

"I assume the arduous and responsible duties of President of the United States, relying upon the support of my countrymen and invoking the guidance of Almighty God. Our faith teaches that there is no safer reliance than upon the God of our fathers, who has so singularly favored the American people in every national trial, and who will not forsake us so long as we obey His commandments and walk humbly in His footsteps" -- First Inaugural Address, 4 March 1897

"Good-bye - good bye, all. It's God's way. His will, not ours, be done. Nearer my God to Thee, nearer to Thee." -- last words before death, 14 September 1901

References, Links, & Further Reading: Books, Articles, Links

Books

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John M. Dobson, Reticent Expansionism: The Foreign Policy of William McKinley, Duquesne Univ. Press, 1988
Paul W. Glad, McKinley, Bryan, and the People, Lippincott Press, 1953; reprint, I. R. Dee, 1991
Lewis L. Gould, The Presidency of William McKinley, Univ. of Kansas Press, 1980
Lewis L. Gould, The Spanish-American War and President McKinley, Univ. Press of Kansas, 1982
Eva E. Higgins, William McKinley: An Inspiring Biography, Daring Books, 1990
Benjamin R. Justesen, Forgotten Legacy: William McKinley, George Henry White, and the Struggle for Black Equality, LSU Press, 2020
Richard McElroy, William McKinley and Our America: A Pictorial History, Stark County Historical Society, 1996
Robert Merry, President McKinley: Architect of the American Century, Simon & Schuster, 2017
H. Wayne Morgan, William McKinley and His America, Syracuse Univ. Press, 1963
Charles Sumner Olcott, The Life of William McKinley, 2 vols., Houghton Mifflin, 1916; Vol. 1 Vol. 2

Articles

Henry B.F. Macfarland, "Mr. McKinley as President," The Atlantic Monthly, Vol. 87, No. 3, March 1901, pp. 299 - 313

Links

Works by William McKinley

William McKinley (American Presidency Project)
First Inaugural Address (AMDOCS)
First Inaugural Address of William McKinley (Avalon Project -- Yale Law School)
Second Inaugural Address (AMDOCS)
William McKinley -- 1896 campaign speech (Vincent Voice Library -- Michigan State University Libraries)

Biographical Sites

William McKinley (POTUS)
William McKinley (White House)
William McKinley (American President)
William McKinley (USA Presidents)
McKINLEY, William, Jr., 1843-1901 (Biographical Directory of the US Congress)
William McKinley (The Spanish American War Centennial Website)
Life Portrait of William McKinley (C-SPAN)
McKinley Memorial Library & Museum
William McKinley (Medical History of the Presidents of the United States)
William McKinley (Baseball Almanac)

William McKinley's Assassination

The Assassination of President William McKinley (Anarchy Archives -- Pitzer College)
Some lessons from the assassination of President William McKinley : by Rev. Francis J. Grimke (Library of Congress)