William Henry Harrison Campaign Ribbon, 1836-1840

Sixty-seven-year-old retired military general William Henry Harrison took advantage of a wildly popular campaign staged by Whig Party leaders, who capitalized on the false perception that Harrison was a common frontier farmer living in a log cabin. Cheering crowds lined Pennsylvania Avenue for his inauguration on March 4, 1841. He performed nominal duties before falling ill and dying of pneumonia a month into his presidency.