Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States (1945-1953). He spent most of his adult life in Independence, Missouri + Jackson County, served on the Jackson County Court (the county’s executive body) during the Pendergast era, and was elected to the U.S. Senate from Missouri in 1934 with Pendergast machine support. He served as Vice President under Franklin D. Roosevelt, assumed the presidency upon Roosevelt’s death in April 1945, oversaw the end of WWII (including the decision to use atomic weapons against Hiroshima + Nagasaki), launched the Marshall Plan, ordered desegregation of the armed forces, and faced the early Cold War + Korean War. He returned to Independence after leaving the presidency in 1953 + lived there until his death in 1972.

Biography

Early life

Harry S. Truman was born on May 8, 1884 in Lamar, Missouri. The middle initial “S” famously stood for nothing — both grandfathers’ names began with “S” + his parents could not choose between them.¹

His family moved repeatedly during his childhood; he grew up in Independence, Missouri + worked on the Truman family farm in Grandview as a young man. He never attended college (a rare circumstance for a US President).

Military service + WWI

Truman served in the Missouri National Guard + was deployed to France during World War I as Captain of Battery D, 129th Field Artillery. His WWI service was distinguished + formed the basis of his later civic-political identity.

Pendergast-era political rise (1922-1934)

After WWI, Truman returned to Missouri + entered Democratic Party politics with the support of the Pendergast machine (tom-pendergast). He was elected to:

• Jackson County Court (executive body) presiding judge — 1922 (lost), 1926, 1930
• U.S. Senator from Missouri — 1934 (re-elected 1940)

His Pendergast-machine ties were always politically problematic. Truman maintained throughout his career that he had accepted machine support but never compromised his personal integrity. Historical consensus generally supports this — Truman appears to have been honest, scrupulous, and personally clean even when working within machine politics.

U.S. Senate (1935-1945)

Truman served two terms in the U.S. Senate (1935-1945). His most significant Senate work was the Truman Committee (Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program, 1941-1945) — which investigated waste, fraud, and inefficiency in WWII defense spending. The committee’s work saved an estimated $15 billion + established Truman’s national reputation as a serious legislator.

Vice President (1945)

Truman was Franklin D. Roosevelt’s third Vice President, taking office in January 1945. The selection of Truman as Vice President in 1944 was the result of Democratic Party machine politics + party-leader maneuvering — Roosevelt was visibly ill, and party leaders wanted a Vice President who could plausibly become President.

Truman served as Vice President for only 82 days before Roosevelt’s death on April 12, 1945.

Presidency (1945-1953)

Truman became President at one of the most consequential moments in 20th-century American history. Major decisions + events:

WWII conclusion (April-September 1945)

• Took office during the final weeks of war in Europe (V-E Day: May 8, 1945)
• Authorized the use of atomic weapons against Hiroshima + Nagasaki (August 6 + August 9, 1945)
• WWII ended with Japan’s surrender (September 2, 1945)

Post-war reconstruction + Cold War

• The Truman Doctrine (1947) — committed the US to containing Soviet expansion
• The Marshall Plan (1948) — economic reconstruction of Western Europe
• Founding of NATO (1949)
• Recognition of Israel (1948)

Domestic policy

• Executive Order 9981 (1948) — ordered desegregation of the U.S. armed forces
• The Fair Deal — Truman’s domestic policy program; partial implementation

1948 election

The 1948 election was Truman’s defining political moment. Trailing badly in polls + facing both a left-wing Democratic challenger (Henry Wallace) + a right-wing Democratic split (Strom Thurmond + the Dixiecrats), Truman conducted a famous whistle-stop tour across the country + defeated Republican nominee Thomas E. Dewey in one of the greatest upsets in American electoral history.

The famous “Dewey Defeats Truman” headline of the Chicago Daily Tribune (printed before votes were fully counted) became iconic. Truman returned to Kansas City + arrived at Union Station the next day, where he was photographed holding the erroneous headline.

Korean War (1950-1953)

The Korean War began in 1950. Truman’s decision to dismiss General Douglas MacArthur as commander of UN forces (1951) was politically costly + remains historically debated.

Post-presidency (1953-1972)

Truman declined to run for re-election in 1952. He returned to Independence, Missouri + spent his remaining decades as a quietly distinguished elder statesman. He oversaw construction of the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum in Independence (opened 1957) + remained politically active in Democratic Party affairs.

Death (1972)

Truman died on December 26, 1972 in Kansas City, Missouri at age 88. He is buried at the Truman Library in Independence.

Defining contributions to Kansas City + Independence

1. The only U.S. President from the Kansas City area. Truman’s lifelong Jackson County identity makes him KC’s most-famous native son in national politics.
2. The Truman Library + Museum in Independence is a major civic institution + attracts visitors nationally.
3. Independence as a national presidential-history destination through the Truman connection.
4. The Truman Sports Complex (Royals + Chiefs stadiums) is named for him.

Cultural legacy

Truman is consistently ranked among the top 10 most-respected US Presidents by historians + the public. His combination of: surprise rise to the presidency, decisiveness on consequential issues, personal modesty, and post-presidency dignity has earned him broad historical respect.

In Kansas City specifically, Truman occupies a quasi-iconic position. His Independence home is preserved as the Harry S. Truman National Historic Site. His grave at the Truman Library draws visitors. The Truman Sports Complex + Truman Library + Truman Road all reference him.

Pendergast-era complexity

Truman’s career was permanently entangled with the Pendergast machine question. His political rise depended on Pendergast support; his Senate seat was secured with machine votes. But Truman appears to have maintained personal integrity throughout — declining to engage in machine corruption, refusing to use his Senate office for machine-favors, and (when Pendergast was indicted in 1939) declining to disavow Pendergast but also declining to defend the machine’s actions.

In January 1945 — three months before Roosevelt’s death — Truman attended Tom Pendergast’s funeral, an act that was politically risky but reflected his loyalty. Truman explained: “He was always my friend, and I have always been his.”

This Pendergast-question remains a defining complexity of Truman’s KC legacy. Historians generally judge Truman as personally honorable while acknowledging the machine connections that enabled his rise.

Sites in KC + Independence associated with Truman

• Truman Home, Independence, MO — National Historic Site
• Truman Library + Museum, Independence, MO
• Truman Sports Complex (Royals + Chiefs stadiums)
• Truman Road (major east-west KC street)
• Union Station — where Truman arrived in November 1948 after his election upset

Sources

Footnotes

1. Wikipedia — “Harry S. Truman” biography. ↩