President Warren G. Harding and the 5 Doctors Who Managed His Final Illness

Abstract

Warren G. Harding was elected president of the United States in 1920 and died before he finished his third year in office. Early in 1923, he had progressive weakness, shortness of breath, and chest pain. In July of 1923, while on a western trip, he developed an episode of abdominal pain and fever. His trip was truncated and he was taken to the Palace Hotel in San Francisco, where 5 physicians attempted to treat his worsening symptoms. He died on August 2 of what was presumed to be a stroke. Historians have disagreed over the President’s cause of death. This article reviews the medical evidence available from the doctors who cared for the President in an effort to define Harding’s terminal illness.