23. Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison was born August 20, 1833, in North Bend, Ohio, in the home of his paternal grandparents, and he was raised on the family farm. When Harrison was seven years old, his grandfather, William Henry Harrison, was elected as the ninth president of the United States but died a month into office from the pneumonia he contracted during his inaugural address. Harrison’s father studied medicine but was primarily a farmer, and he assumed responsibility for the Harrison property in North Bend. As a child Harrison helped with the farm chores and enjoyed reading, fishing, and hunting. His devout Presbyterian mother saw to his religious education. At fourteen, he attended a preparatory school in nearby Cincinnati before enrolling at Miami University in 1850. Harrison’s birthplace, a large farmhouse, burned down in 1858, and nothing survives of the family estate in North Bend except the remnants of a stone fence.
--Andrew B. Leiter
The Benjamin Harrison site is just across the river from my home in Kentucky. It was also the most difficult site to photograph. There is a historic marker at an intersection in the little town of North Bend. An old rock retaining wall lines one side that is all that is left of the large farm where Benjamin grew up. My first visit did not produce any worthy images, despite good light and a free afternoon to photograph with no kids. With the proximity to home, there was lass pressure to dig deep and make good pictures at that moment--I knew I could come back and try again. At other, more far-flung sites without the possibility of returning due to time and financial constraints, I knew I had to get the photographs no matter what the weather or other circumstances. I've yet to make another visit to the Harrison site, but as seen above, I still need to!