Members of the Harding Cabinet
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Ohio Gang Facts for kids: Fast Fact Sheet
Fast, fun facts and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
about the Ohio Gang.
What was the Ohio Gang? The Ohio Gang
was a 'good ol' boy network' of old friends,
campaign organizers and political allies of
President Warren Harding. Many had supported
his presidential campaign from Ohio and were
given prominent posts in the Harding
Administration.
Who is most often associated with the Ohio Gang? The
names of the men most associated with the
Ohio Gang were Harry M. Daugherty, Charles
R. Forbes, Albert B. Fall, Will H. Hays and
Jess Smith
What problems did the Ohio Gang cause?
Members of the Ohio Gang abused their
positions of power and betrayed the public's
trust by using illegal dealings, bribery and
kickbacks which led to financial and
political scandals.
Ohio Gang
Facts for kids: Famous Quote
The Ohio Gang was
described in a famous quote by Alice Roosevelt Longworth. Alice
Roosevelt Longworth was eldest daughter of Theodore Roosevelt and a
sharp observer of Washington Society during the Prohibition period
of American history. The famous quote is as follows:
"No rumor could have exceeded the reality; the
study was filled with cronies, the air heavy with tobacco smoke,
trays with bottles containing every imaginable brand of whiskey
stood about, cards and poker chips ready at hand - a general
atmosphere of waist-coat unbuttoned, feet on the desk, and the
spittoon alongside."
Ohio Gang
Facts for kids
The following fact
sheet contains interesting facts and information on Ohio Gang
for kids.
Facts
about the Ohio Gang for kids
Ohio Gang Fact 1:
Not all members of the Ohio Gang were
in the cabinet. As president, Warren G. Harding
assembled a respected and geographically diverse
cabinet, including Secretary of State Charles Evans
Hughes, Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover and
Secretary of the Treasury,
Andrew Mellon.
Ohio Gang Fact
2:
Socially, the president preferred
relaxing with his cigar-smoking, poker-playing, drinking
friends from the Ohio Gang, than the serious and sober
men in his administration.
Ohio Gang Fact
3:
The Weekly White House poker parties
involving the Ohio Gang often lasted all night which
raised eyebrows in the administration.
Ohio Gang Fact
4:
The Ohio Gang abused their positions
of power in the Harding administration by using bribery,
corruption and kickbacks which eventually led to
financial and political scandals and resulted in
disgrace, jail and hefty fines for some of its members.
Ohio Gang Fact
5:
By 1923, rumors of corruption in
Harding's administration and the Ohio Gang had begun to
surface. Although Harding was not guilty of any
misconduct, the conduct of his administration reflected
badly on him and began to distance himself from his old
cronies.
Ohio Gang Fact
6:
Warren Harding was not a bad man, but
he displayed extremely poor judgment in his choice of
friends. In 1923, Harding declared "I have no trouble
with my enemies...but my damned friends, they're the
ones that keep me up at night!"
Ohio Gang Fact
7:
After serving as president for less
than three years, Warren Harding died unexpectedly of a
heart attack on August 2, 1923. There was wild
speculation that his wife, Florence Harding, had
poisoned him to prevent him from facing charges of
corruption which added to the scandalous revelations
following investigations into the Harding administration
and the Ohio Gang. The subsequent Teapot Dome Scandal
was regarded as the "greatest and most sensational
scandal in the history of American politics" and
remained so until the Nixon administration and the
Watergate
Scandal.
Ohio Gang Fact 8:
The names of men most associated with this close
network of friends in the Ohio Gang were:
● Harry M. Daugherty - appointed as US
Attorney General (Cabinet Member)
● Albert B. Fall -
Secretary of the Interior
Cabinet Member)
● Edwin C. Denby -
Secretary of the Navy
(Cabinet Member)
● Charles R. Forbes - appointed head the
Veterans Bureau
● Daniel Crissinger - boyhood friend,
appointed chairman of the Federal Reserve Board
● Thomas W. Miller - member of the Harding
administration
● Ed Scobey - Director of the United States
Mint
● Jesse Smith - an aide to Harry Daugherty
as Attorney General at the Department of Justice
● Charles "Doc" Sawyer - White House
physician
● Ed Scobey, former Sheriff of Pickaway
County, Ohio, who became Director of the United States Mint
● Gaston Means - Acted as a general 'Gofer'
for the Ohio Gang
Continued...
Facts
about the Ohio Gang for kids
Facts
about the Ohio Gang for kids
The following fact
sheet continues with facts about individual members of the "Ohio Gang"
for kids.
Facts
about the Ohio Gang for kids
Ohio Gang Fact 9:
Harry M. Daugherty: Harding's campaign
manager, Harry M. Daugherty (1860-1941), was appointed to the
Cabinet as US Attorney General. Daugherty became involved in the
illegal sale of Presidential pardons and liquor permits but was
acquitted when he was sent to trial.
Ohio Gang Fact 10:
Albert B. Fall: Albert B. Fall
(1861-1944), Senator of New Mexico, was appointed to the Cabinet as
Secretary of the Interior.
Albert B. Fall receive "loans" (bribes) to lease land in Teapot
Dome, Wyoming, and Elk Hills, California, to oilmen Harry F.
Sinclair and Edward L. Doheny. He was fined $100,000 and served a
year in jail refer to the
Teapot Dome Scandal.
Ohio Gang Fact 11:
Edwin C. Denby: Edwin C. Denby
(1870-1929) was appointed to the Cabinet as
Secretary of the Navy
and played a notable, corrupt role in the Teapot Dome
scandal, leasing oilfields to friends in exchange for
bribes.
Ohio Gang Fact 12:
Charles R. Forbes: Charles R.
Forbes (1878-1952) was appointed to head the Veterans
Bureau and became involved with corrupt financial
dealings with a number of contractors. He was convicted
for bribery and corruption, and fined $10,000 and
sentenced to 2 years in Leavenworth. Forbes involved
Charles Cramer, the general lawyer for the Veterans
Bureau, in his unscrupulous deals. One the scandal
erupted Cramer committed suicide, shooting himself in
the head.
Ohio Gang Fact 13:
Daniel Crissinger: Daniel
Crissinger (1860-1942) was a boyhood friend of the
president and member of the Ohio Gang was appointed
chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, even though he
was not qualified for the job which gave him power over
the Federal Reserve.
Ohio Gang Fact
14: Thomas W. Miller: Thomas W.
Miller (1886-1973) was appointed Custodian of the Office
of Alien Property, which handled property seized during
WW1. He became involved in the sale of the American
Metal Company, whose assets were seized during WW1, to
German metal magnate Richard Merton. This led to charges
of conspiracy to defraud the government and was
sentenced to 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Ohio Gang Fact
15: Jesse Smith: Jesse Smith
(1871-1923) was an aide to Harry Daugherty as Attorney
General at the Department of Justice. He was implicated
in the financial scandals of the administration and was
exposed as a "bagman" carrying bribes to and from the
Attorney General's office. Jesse Smith was indicted on
charges of conspiracy to defraud the government but
committed suicide before his case came to trial.
Ohio Gang Fact 16:
Charles "Doc" Sawyer: Charles "Doc" Sawyer
was from Marion, Ohio and was appointed as White House physician and
was a close confidante of President Harding and a member of the Ohio
Gang.
Ohio Gang Fact 17:
Frank Edgar Scobey: Ed Scobey
(1866–1931), former Sheriff of Pickaway County, Ohio, became
Director of the United States Mint but was not directly implicated
in the scandals surrounding the Ohio Gang.
Ohio Gang Fact 18:
Gaston Means: Gaston Means (1879-1938) was
a distinctly shady associate of the Ohio Gang. He was hired by by
his friend, Attorney General Harry Daugherty to work in the
Department of Justice. Gaston Means had nemerous underworld contacts
that he had developed during his years as a detective. Many were now
bootleggers during the Prohibition era. Means was indicted for
larceny, conspiracy and nearly one hundred violations of the
Prohibition Act and was sentenced to 2 years in jail to which
another 2 years were added in subsequent trials.
Facts
about the Ohio Gang for kids
Facts
about
the Ohio Gang for kids
For visitors interested in this subject also refer to the following article:
Ohio Gang for kids - President Warren Harding Video
The article on the Ohio Gang provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office. The following
Warren Harding video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 29th American President whose presidency spanned from March 4, 1921 to August 2, 1923.
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