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7m 59s

Ulysses S. Grant and the Memoir That Sav...

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About this episode

On this episode of Our American Stories, after serving as the Union general who helped win the Civil War and later as the 18th president of the United States, Ulysses S. Grant entered the final chapter of his life facing two crushing blows. He had lost his money in a financial swindle, and he was dying of throat cancer.

With little time left, Grant set out to write his memoirs so his wife would not be left destitute. Working through severe pain and racing against death, he, with the help of Mark Twain, produced what many still consider one of the finest military memoirs in American history. Our regular contributor, Christopher Klein, shares the story.

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