Richard M. Nixon :: essays research papers

Richard M. Nixon   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Richard Milhous Nixon came from a family with a strong heritage. His father's side of the family were Methodists originally from Scotland. Then, in the early 1600s, they migrated to Ireland, and to America in the 1730s. His grandfather, George Nixon, died in the Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil war. Richard's father, Frank Nixon, was born in Ohio. His mother died when he was only 7, and he left home when he was only 14. He went from town to town doing odd jobs and eventually made his way to California where he met his future wife, Hannah.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nixon's mother's side of the family was originally from Germany. They then migrated to England around 1688, where they became Quakers. From England they migrated to Ireland, and from Ireland to America. During the civil war they were part of the underground railroad. Richard's mother, Hannah Milhous, was born in Indiana, but her family moved and she grew up in Whittier, California, where she met Frank Nixon. They fell in love at first sight, and were married four months later in June 1908. Frank converted to Quakerism.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Frank and Hannah's first son, Harold, was born in 1909, only a year after they were wed. In 1908, Frank bought a lemon ranch in Yorba Linda, CA, and built a small house there. Then, on January 9, 1913, Richard Milhous Nixon was born in that very house. Hannah and Frank would have three more children: Donald (born in 1914), Arthur (born in 1918), and Edward (born in 1930).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Nixon family lived on the edge of poverty. The lemon ranch didn't make enough money to provide for the family of seven, so Frank started doing odd jobs (namely building houses) AND ran the lemon ranch to provide for his family. In 1922, the Nixon's moved back to Whittier, and things took a turn for the better. Frank bought a plot of land and built a gas station and a general store on it. Business was good, but it took much work to keep the store running. The whole family worked hard at the store and the children worked hard at school. But tragedy struck in 1925. Arthur died.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Richard was always a serious child. By the age of six, he was already reading the newspaper and talking politics with his father. He was a good public speaker, and by junior high school, he was a master debater. He tried his hardest to get the best grades in school. In 1926, he entered high school. He was very busy. He did his schoolwork, he studied, he helped with the store, he