On this day in history, September 14, 1901, President William McKinley died in Buffalo, N.Y., of gunshot wounds inflicted by an assassin. He was succeeded by Vice President Theodore Roosevelt, who vowed to continue his conservative policies.

Born in Ohio in 1843, McKinley attended public school and enrolled in Allegheny College in Pennsylvania, but dropped out due to illness. He served in the infantry from 1861-65 and saw action at Antietam, rising to the rank of major.

After the Civil War, he studied and began practicing law. He was elected to the House of Representatives and served until 1883 and again from 1885-91, making a name for himself with the McKinley Tariff. In 1892, he was elected governor of Ohio.