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43 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, January 27, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend September 11, 2004 Since you asked Tempo erred in assassin comment I like Richard Moeschl’s weekly columns in Tempo, but he tripped up on a fact of history this week. He says Kennedy was the first president to die at an assassin’s hands in 100 years. I’m pretty sure James Garfield and William McKinley were murdered in office in the interim. — Bill K., Grants Pass You are correct, Bill. Four presidents have died at the hands of an assassin in the past 140 years, starting with Abraham Lincoln in 1865. James Garfield was shot in 1881 (and then killed by his doctors 80 days later) and William McKinley met his demise in 1901. Kennedy was shot in 1963. Of course they’re not the only presidents to have faced a gun or some other means of death in or out of office. Andrew Jackson survived when his would-be killer’s guns misfired. Teddy Roosevelt was fired on as an ex-president. Franklin D. Roosevelt was attacked as president-elect (and later died in office of a cerebral hemorrhage). Harry S. Truman was attacked by a pair of would-be assassins and Gerald Ford had two attempts on his life. Ronald Reagan was shot by John Hinckley Jr. Truman later commuted the death sentence of his one surviving would-be assassin, Puerto Rican nationalist Oscar Collazo. William Henry Harrison died of "bilious pleurisy" — the name of some sort of liver/lung ailment at the time of his death. Zachary Taylor died of cholera. Warren Harding died of pneumonia or stroke or heart attack or poisoning by his wife, depending on whom you believe. (And in case you didn’t know, Harding had the biggest feet of all the U.S. presidents. He wore size 14 shoes.) Some argue that Garfield’s death was brought about by his own bumbling doctors, who infected his gunshot wound by repeatedly probing it in search of the bullet. He died 80 days after the assassination attempt. Send questions to "Since You Asked," Mail Tribune Newsroom, P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501; by fax to 541-776-4376; or by e-mail to [email protected] . We’re sorry, but the volume of questions received prevents us from answering all of them. Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers