5. Rutherford B. Hayes
Rutherford B. Hayes was the 19th President of the United States. He previously served as the governor of Ohio. He was also a Brevet Major General in the Union Army and was wounded five times during the Civil War.
Hayes was elected in 1876 and served one term at the end of Reconstruction. He was elected through the Compromise of 1877 which saw Democrats allow Hayes to be president if he withdrew U.S. troops from protecting Republican office holders in the South.
He believed in a meritocratic government and implemented civil service reforms. He also ended Reconstruction and returned the South to “home rule.”
Hayes ordered federal troops to put down riots during the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. He also returned the country to the gold standard stopping coinage of silver with the Coinage Act of 1873 and redeeming greenbacks for gold with The Specie Payment Resumption Act of 1875.