He was known as “The Gentleman Boss” and the “Dude President.”
Gore Vidal called him “that most elegant of all presidents.”
While history has recorded only modest political achievements for U.S. President Chester Alan Arthur, Union Class of 1848, he's well regarded for his sense of style in everything from his impeccably tailored clothes to his refurbishing of the White House by noted interior designer Louis Comfort Tiffany.
From his early days in Schenectady to his life in Washington, Arthur “built a reputation for fashionable clothes and carriages, tasteful surroundings, lavish entertaining and impeccable social skills,” said Rachel Seligman, curator of “Chester Arthur: The Elegant President,” now on view in the Mandeville Gallery at the Nott Memorial.
The exhibition, which runs through Oct. 15, features a colorful and sometimes amusing array of Arthur artifacts.
In addition to political cartoons, photos and newspaper accounts, such items as calling cards, cigar bands, a gabardine suit, and his walnut and leather writing desk (rumored to have a secret liquor cabinet) all paint a personal picture of the 21st president.
The son of a Baptist minister, Arthur grew up in Union Village, N.Y. (Greenwich, N.Y.) In 1845 he entered Union, where he was a member of Psi Upsilon and the Delphian Institute debating society. He was elected into Phi Beta Kappa his senior year.
From his Union years, the Mandeville exhibit includes a handwritten speech to the debating society, and, showing a less studious side of his nature, a window sill fragment from North College with his carved initials. Arthur and many of his classmates were “fined for damage to college property, for being absent from prayers, and for writing in ink in a book,” according to one exhibit note.
Later, while practicing law in New York City, Arthur was influenced by the strong anti-slavery views of his father and of Eliphalet Nott, and he worked on several important anti-discrimination cases.
In 1859, Arthur married Ellen (Nell) Lewis Herndon, an upper-class southerner who died before he became president.
A Republican, Arthur held several positions in New York state government and was nominated to be James Garfield's vice president in 1880. He was sworn in as president on Sept. 20, 1881, a day after Garfield died from a gunshot wound.
Arthur ordered extensive renovations to the White House before and after taking up residence. Interior designer Tiffany (of stained glass fame) and his partners introduced decorative painting and luminous tile and glass work featuring Asian and Islamic influences to many White House rooms.
Arthur's sophisticated taste extended to his appearance. One photo, for instance, shows him at a White House reception in frock coat, dark blue necktie and pearl-tinted glove.
While he appeared robust, Arthur secretly suffered from a terminal kidney ailment. He died on Nov. 18, 1886, a year-and-a-half after leaving office, at his home in New York City. He is buried near his wife in the Albany Rural Cemetery in Menands, N.Y., some 20 miles from his alma mater.
In 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt ordered a complete interior redecoration of the White House, eschewing all of Arthur's late 19th century décor in favor of the neo-classical style compatible with the building's architecture. Aside from a few vases, china and fireplace irons, no Tiffany decorations were preserved.
Still, Chester Arthur's legacy lives on. As Seligman observes: “His impression of sophistication, polish and style were so strong that it set him apart from those presidents before and after him.”
Note: A closing reception for “The Elegant President” will be held Thursday, Sept. 28, 5-7 p.m., at the Nott Memorial.