GEORGETOWN, Ohio — U.S. Rep. Dave Taylor, R-Ohio, introduced legislation this week to designate the United States Postal Service building at 201 E. Grant Ave. in Georgetown as the “Ulysses S. Grant Post Office Building,” honoring the 18th president who spent his childhood in the Brown County seat.
Taylor was joined by 11 co-sponsors in introducing the bipartisan bill, including Reps. Greg Landsman, Jim Jordan, Bob Latta, Mike Rulli, Max Miller, Warren Davidson, Mike Turner, Shontel Brown, Troy Balderson, Dave Joyce and Mike Carey. The legislation was introduced on the anniversary of Grant’s two presidential inaugurations, both of which took place on March 4 — in 1869 and 1873.
“As one of the eight great presidents home-grown in our Buckeye State, President Ulysses S. Grant played a pivotal role in securing the Union’s victory in the Civil War and advancing civil rights during the Reconstruction period,” Taylor said in a statement. “I am proud to introduce this bill on the anniversary of both of his inaugurations to establish the first post office in the United States honoring the life and legacy of Georgetown’s very own President Ulysses S. Grant.”
Grant was born April 27, 1822, in Point Pleasant, Ohio, and grew up in Georgetown before entering the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1839. He went on to serve in the Mexican-American War and commanded Union forces in major Civil War battles including Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Vicksburg and Appomattox. Congress reestablished the rank of lieutenant general in 1864, and Grant was appointed to the position.
Grant was sworn in as president on March 4, 1869, becoming the second Ohioan to hold the office. During his two terms, he oversaw the establishment of the Department of Justice, the adoption of the 15th Amendment and other Reconstruction-era civil rights efforts. If enacted, the legislation would designate the Georgetown postal facility as the first post office in the United States dedicated to Grant’s life and legacy.