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American history, biographies, book reviews, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Henry Pringle, Lewis Gould, presidential biographies, Presidents, William H. Taft
William H. Taft is often remembered as the president who may have gotten himself stuck in the White House bathtub.
He would prefer to be remembered as the only former president to have also served as Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.
Taft suffered the regrettable misfortune of having his presidency sandwiched between Theodore Roosevelt (a hard act to follow no matter what your political taste) and Woodrow Wilson (who history remembers as a president of great consequence).
But Taft’s story is an interesting tale of a talented legal mind who found himself incessantly (and reluctantly) pulled into the political arena. His wife constantly pushed him to live up to his “full potential” and Theodore Roosevelt, seeking a worthy successor, failed to appreciate that he didn’t have the necessary dose of enthusiasm, or talent, for leading the nation.
The destruction of Taft’s friendship with TR is heartbreaking (and captivating) but in the end, of course, Taft outlived the increasingly unhinged Roosevelt by more than a decade. And Taft spent most of that time exactly where he wanted to be all along: as Chief Justice.
Unfortunately, the world of Taft-oriented biographies is not sizable. There are few to choose from and I have only three in my collection. One is quite old, one is focused primarily on his presidency and one is really a dual-biography providing equal time to Teddy Roosevelt. But despite this limited selection, I came to know Taft quite well.
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* The first biography of Taft I read was actually part of my earlier journey through Theodore Roosevelt’s life: Doris Kearns Goodwin’s 2013 “The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft and the Golden Age of Journalism.”
This biography simultaneously explores the lives of both Roosevelt and Taft in an incredibly interesting and nearly seamless way. Because their public careers were so closely intertwined during decades of great consequence, Goodwin’s approach seems elegant…and almost too obvious.
“The Bully Pulpit” is very well written, consistently entertaining and absolutely compelling. But it cannot quite replace dedicated biographies of TR or Taft, where more emphasis and context can be provided for each. Overall, however, “The Bully Pulpit” proved a fantastic read and should be considered indispensable for anyone tackling either TR or Taft. (Full review here)
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* My first Taft-only biography was Henry Pringle’s 1939 “The Life and Times of William Howard Taft.” Weighing in at a hefty 1,079 pages, this two-volume classic seems to be the best full-scale treatment of Taft despite its flaws.
Its writing style occasionally feels old and stiff and it has a tendency to embrace far more detail than most readers will ever require (or desire). And although it contains countless nuggets of brilliance and wisdom, the reader is forced along a lengthy path to collect them all.
At times this feels more like an exhaustive account of the history of Taft’s era than an analysis of Taft; the reader is left wanting to meet this former president on a more personal level. But no other biography can match the breadth or depth this biography provides so despite its imperfections this remains the standard biography of the 27th president. (Full review here)
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* The last biography of Taft I read was “The William Howard Taft Presidency” by Lewis Gould. I had already read his “The Presidency of William McKinley” (which I didn’t like) and skipped his book “The Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt” since my library was already well-stocked with TR biographies.
But Gould’s survey of the Taft presidency is more interesting and fulfilling than I expected. While Taft’s pre- and post-presidencies were covered with too much efficiency (by design), Gould provides an excellent preface, crisp analysis and a nice review of earlier Taft biographies.
The Taft presidency is not one overflowing with excitement or drama (except for the maelstrom related to Taft’s falling-out with Roosevelt) but Gould handles this four-year period very nicely. Unfortunately, the book’s dispassionate perspective leaves much of Taft’s colorful personality unexplored and it reads more like a fact-focused CIA dossier than a descriptive personality profile. (Full review here)
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Best Biography of William Taft: “The Life and Times of William Howard Taft” by Henry Pringle
Best “Unconventional” Bio of Taft: Doris Kearns Goodwin’s “The Bully Pulpit”
My Journey Through the Best Presidential Biographies 
I am right behind you on this adventure, only I am just trying to tackle 2 bios on each president. One being whichever one you say is best and the other usually being the American President Series. I was disappointed that there is not one for Taft. It appears Taft and Reagan are the only two presidents not represented. Any idea on why? I emailed the publisher but no response yet. Just thought you might be in the know! Thanks for being so dedicated to this project. I found your website shortly after I decided to start this endeavor and it has truly been a time saver as well an inspiration! I find I am usually in whole hearted agreement with your assessments! Keep up the good work and the pace!
Congrats on undertaking this intrepid adventure! But not to fear…an American Presidents Series bio on Taft is scheduled to be published in early 2017 (yes, that seems like scheduling a dental visit a couple years out) but I don’t know why Reagan has slipped through the cracks. I’ll have to investigate! Let me know how you manage and what you really enjoy reading-
Jonathan Lurie’s William Howard Taft- the travails of a progressive conservative 2012 is worth adding to your list. It is a 199 pages and pursues the theme of the subtitle which Taft used to describe himself in a 1916 article. IMHO not quite as good as Gould’s similar analytical account of Taft’s presidency, but is a well documented scholarly work. Justifiably critical of TR and demonstrates the significance of Taft’s accomplishments as president.
Thanks – this looks like it could be fascinating!
I also just read Lurie’s biography on Taft that takes us to the point in his life when he is appointed supreme court Justice. I found it to be an excellent concise biography that was interesting, informative and backed up the thesis that Taft was fairly progressive as president and really did continue many of TR’s policy.
I then read 2019’s follow-up, also by Lurie titled “The Chief Justiceship of William Howard Taft. This was also a very interesting book but it was much more about the court and the legal decisions than about Taft himself. It was similar to The Nine and The Oath, Jeffrey Toobin’s excellent books about the Supreme Court from 2007 and 2012.
However the book certainly did touch on Taft’s personal life. It also showed how as a Chief Justice he was much more conservative, believing in a very strict interpretation of the constitution that limited both federal and state governments ability to intervene in corporate decisions.
I would recommend both books.
I am on a similar journey and will be starting Judith Icke Anderson’s “William Howard Taft: An Intimate History” soon. That and the Pringle volume are about the only true biographies of Taft I could find (although I also have The Bully Pulpit).
I decided that the relative dearth of Taft biographies, coupled with the significance of T.R. presented me with an opportunity. So, I read the Harbaugh book on T.R. and am following up with The Bully Pulpit as my Taft biography. I’m really happy with the way it has turned out. Harbaugh is wonderful, but pretty dry and a fairly tough read. The Bully Pulpit, on the other hand, is a fast and entertaining read. It also provides some additional context on T.R. and a nice amount on Taft, again including some good discussion on the relationship issues between the two.
As an additional bonus, it is my opinion that The Bully Pulpit would make great reading for anyone interested in putting our current economic and political climate in context. The increasing imbalance in wealth between the 1% and the remainder of us seems eerily similar to the conditions in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Whether what is emerging is a new era of progressivism is yet to be seen. In any event, it is a really fun read.