Ulysses S. Grant

Name at birth: Hiram Ulysses Grant

Soon after birth, Grant's name was changed to Ulysses Hiram Grant; when he arrived at West Point military academy in 1839, he found that he had been registered as Ulysses Simpson Grant, and he never bothered to change it. A sloppy cadet but a great horseman, Grant went on to serve in the Mexican War. A failure as a farmer and a businessman, Grant soared to fame during the Civil War as President Abraham Lincoln's choice as commander of the Union Armies (from 1864). After the war, Grant was easily elected to two terms as President, but his administration was tainted by corruption among his Cabinet members. He was succeeded by Rutherford B. Hayes.