The Grant administration was possibly the most corrupt in our nation’s history. So much graft and bribery occurred under his watch that “Grantism” is how some came to describe greed and corruption. Major scandals rocked his administration, including “Black Friday,” a scheme to corner the gold market in which his brother-in-law was involved (Grant did act to foil the scheme, but not before thousands were harmed). The “Whiskey Ring, “scandal saw over 100 federal officials convicted in connection with the selling of whiskey stamps to distillers at huge discounts (Grant sullied his reputation by shielding his personal secretary). The “Credit Mobilier,” scam in which a phony company was set up to help construct the transcontinental railway, but in reality, bilked the government out of $20 million with Grant’s vice president, Schuyler Colfax, taking bribes. One of the worst was the “Indian Ring,” scandal where Secretary of War William Belknap took bribes from companies seeking licenses to trade on reservations.