Grover Cleveland was born on March 18, 1837, in
Caldwell. While still young, his family moved to New York. He was admitted to the bar in
Buffalo in 1859. He rose through political offices to become Governor of New York in 1882. As an independent and honest administrator, he earned the enmity of
Tammany Hall. In the 1884 presidential election, he defeated James G Blaine. During his first administration, he enlarged the civil service. In the 1888 election, he won the most popular votes but lost in the
Electoral College to
Benjamin Harrison. Four years later, he defeated Harrison. Faced with serious economic problems in his second administration, he refused to involve the government in business matters or to provide unemployment relief. The party dropped him in favor of
William Jennings Bryan for the 1896 election. Cleveland died in
Princeton on June 24, 1908.
