In 1860 he was obliged to accept a clerkship in his brothers' leather-goods store in Galena, Ill. For six years he struggled in Missouri as a farmer, real estate salesman, unsuccessful candidate for county engineer, and agent in a customhouse. He apparently so overindulged in alcohol that he was impelled to resign from the army in 1854.
In 1852, however, he was sent to the Pacific Northwest, where he was unable to have his family with him. His early postings in the Great Lakes region were happy because he was with his new wife, Julia Dent Grant (1826 - 1902), whom he married on Aug. In the Mexican War, Grant served effectively with Zachary Taylor's army at Monterrey and then with Winfield Scott's army in the campaign for Mexico City he won two brevets for meritorious conduct at Molino del Rey and Chapultepec.Īfter the war Grant was assigned to garrison duty. He graduated 21st in a class of 39 in 1843. Grant made some mark as an equestrian at the United States Military Academy otherwise his performance there was undistinguished. Although baptized Hiram Ulysses, Grant was listed by the congressman who secured his appointment to West Point as Ulysses Simpson, the latter being his mother's maiden name. He was born in the Ohio River village of Point Pleasant, Ohio, on Apr. Ulysses Simpson Grant, the best-known Federal general in the Civil War, served also as 18th president of the United States.