Statue #23: Benjamin Harrison

Rapid City, South Dakota

A President so obscure that he's often forgotten even by people familiar with U.S. Presidents, Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893) was the grandson of President William Henry Harrison, and the guy wedged between the two nonconsecutive terms of Grover Cleveland. Sculptor James Maher, to his credit, did something interesting with this very uninteresting Chief Executive: he'd read that Harrison liked to spend time alone in his garden, so Maher sculpted Harrison sitting on a bench, feeding birds.

Amazing Arcana of the Presidents

Harrison was so terrified of newfangled electricity that he refused to touch the White House light switches, and consequently had to sleep with the lights on.

[Discover more fascinating details in the Roadside Presidents iPhone app!]

City of Presidents

Since 2000, Rapid City has commissioned and installed bronze statues of every former U.S. President on its downtown street corners. Visitors are encouraged to take a walking tour of the City of Presidents and inspect the nation's metallic Commanders in Chief. Paper guides are available year-round at the city's main Visitor Center at 512 Main St.