William Henry Harrison revolutionized campaigning during his presidential campaign in 1840. He accomplished this by distributing large quantities of merchandise, compiling a songbook of songs, creating a huge “Get Out the Vote” and rallying the American people in large numbers. In addition to campaign strategies, Harrison has successfully personified himself as an ordinary America. This “common man” spirit and new campaign tactics really change the campaign election in the United States and make Harrison the first manufactured presidential candidate. The 1840 election was a battle between then-President Martin Van Buren, who ran on the Democratic Party ticket, and Harrison, the Whig Party candidate candidate came to the game with a different plan of attack, but both had to contend with the American public's cry for reform. During the previous twenty-five years, the country had experienced many trials and tribulations that the American people could no longer endure . The economy was crumbling, the federal government was violating states' rights, and corruption within government was expanding rapidly. For all these reasons, Harrison's campaign committee developed new tactics. One of these tactics was to impersonate Harrison as an ordinary person. This in itself was not difficult because it had been hit with the same hardships as the rest of America. Harrison grew up on a wealthy plantation in Virginia and attended the University of Pennsylvania until his father's death. After his father's death, Harrison joined the Army and rose through the ranks to general, a role in which he successfully overcame the new frontier of the Native American population. At the conclusion of his mil...... half of the document ......story & Life, EBSCOhost (accessed February 28, 2011). Morning Post extra, Boston, November 4,1840. http://memory.loc.gov (accessed July 3, 2011). Proceedings of the Whig State Convention. Worcester, Massachusetts. 17 June 1840. (accessed 3 July 2011). Tippecanoe Song-Book: A Collection of Log Cabins and Patriotic Tunes. Philadelphia: Marshall, Williams, and Butler, 1840. Volk, Kyle G. “The Dangers of Pure Democracy: Minority Rights, Liquor Politics, and Popular Sovereignty in Antebellum America.” diary of the first republic 29, n. 4:641-679. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost, 2009. (accessed July 17, 2011).Winders, Bill. “The Roller Coaster of Class Conflict: Class Segments, Mass Mobilization, and Voter Turnout in the United States, 1840–1996.” Social Forces 77, n. 3 (March 1999): 833-862. Academic research completed, EBSCOhost (accessed July 16, 2011).