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Primary sourcePhotograph1880

Rutherford Birchard Hayes, President of the United States

1880

A sepia photographic portrait of President Hayes taken in 1880, near the end of his term in office.

This 1880 photograph shows Hayes as sitting president, a direct visual record from his time in office.

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Sepia oval photographic portrait of a bearded man with short swept-back hair, wearing a dark suit jacket, white shirt, and dark bow tie, with the caption 'President Hayes' and the year '1880' printed beneath.
Rutherford Birchard Hayes, President of the United States. Photograph, 1880. Wellcome Collection.

About this source

What it is

This is a sepia oval photograph of Rutherford B. Hayes taken in 1880, while he was serving as President of the United States. It is held by the Wellcome Collection in the United Kingdom.

Why it matters

Photographs like this one were the standard way the public came to recognize their leaders in the late 19th century. It captures Hayes near the end of his single term as president, offering a direct visual record of how he appeared in office.

Look closer

  • What does Hayes's clothing and pose suggest about how presidents wanted to appear to the public?
  • Why might this photograph have been printed with his name and the year included?
  • What can a formal photograph like this NOT tell us about a person's character or decisions?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Rutherford B. Hayes on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Dark maroon cloth book cover with a faint embossed title area and subtle woven texture, showing no legible text. This appears to be the binding of a volume of the Hayes diary and letters.Diary entry

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Rutherford Birchard Hayes

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Black and white photograph of a bearded man with short hair in a dark suit jacket and vest over a white shirt, seated and turned slightly to the side, looking directly at the camera against a plain gray backdrop.Photograph

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