Editing Adlai Stevenson I (section)

==Post-vice presidency (1897–1914)==

===Presidential campaigns of 1896 and 1900===
[[File:Two photographs of William Jennings Bryan, Charles A. Towne and Adlai Stevenson I.jpg|thumb|left|First photo, from left: [[Charles A. Towne]], [[William Jennings Bryan]], and Stevenson. Second photo, from left: Stevenson, Bryan, and Towne. Both photos taken in July 1900.]]

Stevenson was mentioned as a candidate to succeed Cleveland in [[1896 U.S. presidential election|1896]]. Although he chaired the Illinois delegation to the Democratic National Convention, he gained little support. Stevenson, 60 years old, received a smattering of votes, but the convention was taken by storm by a 36-year-old former representative from Nebraska, [[William Jennings Bryan]], who delivered his fiery [[Cross of Gold speech|"Cross of Gold" speech]] in favor of a [[free silver]] plank in the platform. Not only did the Democrats repudiate Cleveland by embracing free silver, but they also nominated Bryan for president. Many Cleveland Democrats, including most Democratic newspapers, refused to support Bryan, but Vice President Stevenson loyally endorsed the ticket.

After the 1896 election, Bryan remained the titular leader of the Democrats and frontrunner for the nomination in [[1900 U.S. presidential election|1900]]. Much of the newspaper speculation about who would run as the party's vice-presidential candidate centered on Indiana Senator [[Benjamin Shively]]. When reporter Arthur Wallace Dunn interviewed Shively at the convention, the senator said he "did not want the glory of a defeat as a vice presidential candidate." Disappointed, Dunn said that he still had to file a story on the vice-presidential nomination, and then added: "I believe I'll write a piece about old Uncle Adlai." Shively responded:
{{blockquote|That's a good idea. Stevenson is just the man. There you have it. Uniting the old Cleveland element with the new Bryan Democracy. You've got enough for one story. But say, this is more than a joke. Stevenson is just the man.}}
For the rest of the day, Dunn heard other favorable remarks about Stevenson, and by that night the former vice president was the leading contender, since no one else was "very anxious to be the tail of what they considered was a [[forlorn hope]] ticket."<ref>{{cite book|last1=Dunn|first1=Arthur Wallace|title=Arthur Wallace Dunn, From Harrison to Harding: A Personal Narrative, Covering a Third of a Century, 1888-1921|date=1972|publisher=Baker|location=Washington, NY|pages=174–77|edition=reprint of 1922|url=https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CDOC-104sdoc26/html/CDOC-104sdoc26.htm}}</ref>

The Populists had already nominated the ticket of Bryan and [[Charles A. Towne]], a pro-silver Republican from [[Minnesota]], with the tacit understanding that Towne would step aside if the Democrats nominated someone else. Bryan preferred his good friend Towne, but Democrats wanted one of their own, and the regular element of the party felt comfortable with Stevenson. Towne withdrew and campaigned for Bryan and Stevenson. As a result, Stevenson, who had run with Cleveland in 1892, now ran in 1900 with Cleveland's opponent Bryan. Twenty-five years senior to Bryan, Stevenson added age and experience to the ticket. Nevertheless, their effort failed badly against the Republican ticket of incumbent president [[William McKinley]] and [[Theodore Roosevelt]].

Stevenson was the third U.S. vice president to win nomination for the office with a different running mate. He was seeking to follow [[George Clinton (vice president)|George Clinton]] who served in Thomas Jefferson's second term and James Madison's first as well as [[John C. Calhoun]] who served under John Quincy Adams and then in Andrew Jackson's first term. As of 2023, Republican [[Charles W. Fairbanks]]' failure to win a second vice-presidential term in [[1916 United States presidential election|1916]] is the only example since.

===Final years===
By May 1899, the [[North American Trust Company]] had directors such as [[John G. Carlisle]], Adlai E. Stevenson and [[Wager Swayne]].<ref name=nyt-trowbridge1>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Trust Company Election; The North American Chooses Alvah Trowbridge as Its Leader. He Succeeds Col. Trenholm - The New Head Brings to the Corporation Important Financial Interests -- No Friction. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1899/05/27/archives/trust-company-election-the-north-american-chooses-alvah-trowbridge.html | work=[[The New York Times]] |location=New York City, United States |date=May 27, 1899 | page=3 |access-date=July 16, 2017}}</ref>

After the 1900 election, Stevenson returned again to private practice in Illinois.  He made one last attempt at office in a race for [[governor of Illinois]] in [[1908 Illinois gubernatorial election|1908]], at age 73, losing narrowly. In 1909 he was brought in by founder [[Jesse Grant Chapline]] to aid [[distance learning]] school [[La Salle Extension University]].<ref name="nyt-stevenson">Staff report (March 2, 1909). Stevenson to Quit Law; Former Vice President Will Aid La Salle Extension University. ''[[The New York Times]]''</ref> After that, he retired to Bloomington, where his Republican neighbors described him as "windy but amusing."{{citation needed|date=January 2024}}

Stevenson's wife Letitia died on December 25, 1913. William Jennings Bryan sent a letter of condolence to Stevenson. After this, Stevenson was emotionally broken, and only lived six more months.<ref>{{cite web|title=Adlai E. Stevenson Case 1|publisher=[[Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum]]|url=https://presidentlincoln.illinois.gov/visit/whats-inside/exhibits/museum/accessibility/stevenson/adlai-e-stevenson-1/|accessdate=2024-01-30}}</ref> He died in Chicago,<ref name=":GovInfo"/> on June 14, 1914, aged 78.<ref name=":Miller"/><ref name=":CentreCollege"/> His body is interred in a family plot in [[Evergreen Cemetery (Bloomington, IL)|Evergreen Cemetery]], [[Bloomington, Illinois]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.evergreen-cemetery.com/our-history/|title=History|publisher=[[Evergreen Cemetery (Bloomington, IL)|Evergreen Memorial Cemetery]]| location=Bloomington, Illinois|date=2010-04-13|accessdate=2024-01-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130316060858/http://www.evergreen-cemetery.com/our-history/|archive-date=2013-03-16|url-status=dead}}</ref>