William Howard Taft was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on September 15, 1857. Coming from a political family, he followed his families' history into law to be a career jurist. He was well on his way to his dream job of sitting on the Supreme Court, when he was sidetracked for a term as the 27th president with help from by his wife and Theodore Roosevelt. Taft finally achieved his dream of being elected chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1921, becoming the only person to have served both as a chief justice and president. Taft died in Washington, D.C., on March 8th, 1930.
I. William Howard Taft was born in Cincinnati on September 15, 1857. (World Book pg. 154). He was the second son of Alphonso and Louisa Taft (World Book pg. 154). He was a large child and although his family called him Willie, his playmates called him "Big Lub" (World Book Pg. 154). As an adult, Taft stood 6 feet tall and often had to work hard to keep his weight near 300 pounds (World Book Pg. 154). He had a special bath tub built in the White House because he always got stuck in a normal-sized one and had to be pulled out (World Book Pg. 154). To demonstrate the tubs capacity, four workers once lay in it to pose for pictures; they were not too crowded (World Book Pg. 154). .
II. On the advice of his doctor, a framed weight-loss guru and author of many popular diet books, he went on a low-calorie diet (Gina Kolata Pg. 1). Taft was to eat a small portion of lean meat or fish at every meal, cooked vegetables at lunch and dinner (no butter), a plain salad, and stewed or baked fruit at lunch (Gina Kolata Pg. 1). He also kept a diary of what he ate and he weighed himself regularly (Gina Kolata Pg. 1). He especially avoided snacks (Gina Kolata Pg. 1). Like many dieters today, Taft 6 feet 2 inches tall, lost weight and regained it, fluctuating from more than 350 to 255 pounds (Gina Kolata Pg. 1).
III. Nellie and Will were married at last on June 19th, 1886 (World Book Pg.
