American politician and U.S. President 1945-1952 during the end of WW II and the beginning of the Korean conflict. Working his way up to Vice-President, he became president upon the death of F.D. Roosevelt in 1945. Many in Washington did not know what to expect of the former Senator but soon found that he was hard-headed and sincere with his famous motto, “the buck stops here,” implying that he was not one to evade responsibility. He was a man of action who stood behind his decisions. From a Scottish-Irish descent, hardworking Baptist farmers, Truman was an honest member of the grubby Kansas City political machine.
As a youth, he worked as a construction clerk, road overseer, bank clerk and mail attendant on a newspaper. Running a clothing store in Kansas gave him no success. It was as a Captain in WW I that he learned he had a native talent for leadership. After the war, in the arena of politics, he found his niche.
Truman was sworn in as President on 4/12/1945, age 60, upon Roosevelt’s death. During his presidency, Truman, after much deliberation, ordered the atomic bomb dropped on Japan on 8/06/1945, 09:15 AM, Tokyo. As a result of the bombing, Emperor Hirohito of Japan gave an address surrendering the war on August 15, 1945.
Truman established the Atomic Energy Commission and placed it under the control of civilians and not the military commanders who considered it their domain. While in office, he set up the CIA. In November 1948, he captured re-election in the face of polls predicting defeat and was again inaugurated on 1/20/1949. When the Korean War began in June 1950, he established the Office of Defense Mobilization.
On 4/11/1951, Truman signed the Treaty of Peace with Japan.
He married Bess Wallace on 6/28/1919 and they had one daughter, Margaret. Truman died 12/26/1972, 7:50 AM, Kansas City, MO.
He took the oath of office on 4/12/1945, 7:09 PM EWT, Washington, DC (“Off the Record: The Private Papers of HST, edited by Robert Ferrell”)
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