Grover Cleveland’s work ethic

     President Grover Cleveland is the subject of many biographies and scores of web entries. They largely focus on his two administrations and events occurring during the intervening Harrison years. If you are interested in learning more about the Cleveland administrations, I direct you to the list of outstanding books at the bottom of this post. If you look carefully at this list, you may notice a pattern in the publication dates of these books. 
	The publication dates on the listed biographies reveal a burgeoning interest in President Cleveland over the last twenty years or so. Is this pattern part of the phenomenon of renovating our appreciation of past figures who were negatively pigeon-holed in our view of history and consequently ignored? Two examples are Alexander Hamilton and Ulysses Grant, whose reputations were resurrected by Ron Chernow. Maybe, just maybe, we are in store for Grover Cleveland: The Musical! Lin-Manuel Miranda, are you listening? 
	Most biographies of Grover Cleveland focus on his life as a politician and on his presidential administrations, but they largely pass on describing Grover Cleveland, the man. I suggest that to understand the man, we must appreciate the child. In High Bridge, Grover’s childhood is fictionalized, but my portrayal is heavily inspired by stories told by Grover himself, Fayetteville residents, and teachers at the Fayetteville Academy. As such, he was a fun-loving lad who reveled in playing sports (e.g., baseball), tramping through the outdoors (hiking and fishing), and pranking people. Though he did not distinguish himself academically, he was persistent, diligent, and capable. When his schooling was done, he had shown the aptitude and achievement to attend college. 
	As with most people, Grover Cleveland’s temperament as a child directly translated to his actions as an adult. He was a serious law apprentice. Over time, he held important positions as an adult – sheriff, mayor, governor, and president. He devoted himself wholly to these jobs. President Cleveland was so thorough, reading the small print to find clauses advantageous to the authors, that he was referred to as President Veto. Grover Cleveland assiduously read every bill put before him and assured that he protected the rights of the unrepresented, not the politicians. As a result, he vetoed more bills than all of his predecessors combined. 
	Grover Cleveland worked hard all of his life. He came from a family of limited means. Though his father was well-educated and reasonably successful as a minister, his growing family, that topped off at nine, constrained how far a minister’s salary extended. Grover’s situation was further compounded by the early death of his father. The death scuttled Grover’s dreams of attending college. Note, he hoped to attend Hamilton College in Clinton NY. This school was named after Alexander Hamilton. [Have we gone full circle?]