Early Life Zachary Taylor was born on November 24, 1784 near Gordonsville, Virginia. His parents, Richard and Mary Strother moved to Kentucky after she was born. Richard, his father served in the American Revolutionary War as a lieutenant colonel. As a third child out of nine, he spent his childhood in the frontier of Kentucky. They lived in a small cabin, but then moved to a brick house when they gained prosperity. His father owned 10,000 acres of land, and 26 slaves (Britannica 2013). Taylor’s family was rich in American history. He was a descendant of the colonist leader of the Plymouth Colony, William Brewster. Taylor’s second cousin is believed to be the fourth president, James Madison (Britannica 2013). As a child, Taylor received very little education as a child. There were no formal schools available in Kentucky. Taylor was homeschooled for only a couple of months (Britannica 2013). Pre-Presidency Taylor had a rich experience in the military before he became president. He enlisted in the army in 1806 and was commissioned first lieutenant in the infantry in 1808 (National Park Service). He then married Margaret Mackall Smith in 1810. They had six children and two of them were involve in the Confederacy. His daughter, Sarah Knox married Jefferson Davis, future president of the Confederacy. His son, Richard Taylor fought in the Civil War as lieutenant general in the Confederate Army. He then went on to serve in the army for about 40 years. In 1846, he advanced to rank Major General (National Park Service). Taylor commanded troops in The War of 1812, The Black Hawk, and the 2nd of the Seminole Wars in Florida in 1835-42 (National Park Service). He then won promotion to the rank of brigadier general because of the leadershi... ... middle of paper ... ..... After the death of Taylor, rumors spread saying that he was poisoned by pro-slavery Southerners. There is still no definite evidence to prove that Taylor was assassinated. Fun Facts Taylor did not vote until he was 62 years old, it’s ironic because he became a president even though he was not into voting for previous presidents (Maps of World 2013). He was the second president to die in office. Zachary did not vote, because he was a soldier. Abraham Lincoln gave a speech at Zachary’s funeral. He had a horse named Old Whitney who did well in the Mexican War. Taylor awarded his horse by letting him graze on the White House lawn. Taylor chewed tobacco (Maps of World 2013). He was also the last president to own slaves while still in the White House. Taylor gained his nickname, “Old Rough and Ready: because of fighting in the Seminole Indian War (Maps of World 2013).
Abraham Lincoln was born in February 12, 1809 three miles south of Hodgenville, Kentucky. Born of humble origins in a farmer family, he lost his mother at a young age and received minimum education during his younger years. Nevertheless, according to stories from his family and friends he loved to read and spent long periods of time reading. His cousin, Denis Hanks onc...
Born December 29, 1808; Andrew Johnson embarked on a political campaign that watched him rise from absolute destitution to the heights of President of the United States. Andrew Johnson was born in a log cabin in Raleigh North Carolina.(1) His parents Jacob and Polly were both illiterate, hence, Andrew had basically no education during his youth. Jacob Johnson, Andrew’s father, passed away when Andrew was quite young, leaving Polly to take care of Andrew and his brother William four years his senior.(2) With next to no money, Polly Johnson did the only thing she could to make ends meet.
Born on April 12, 1777, Henry Clay was raised in Hanover Country, Virginia. His father, a Baptist minister who went by the name Sir John, owned 22 slaves, which made him part of the “planter” class, (class of men who owned 20 or more slaves). Henry’s father died when he was 4 years old, and left Henry an inheritance of 2 slaves. Henry was the 7th born of of 9 children. He grew up in an above average house, and his mother owned 18 slaves and 474 acres of land after her husbands death.
Andrew Jackson was like no other president before him. The previous presidents had one thing in common, they were all part of the founding fathers or in John Quincy Adam’s case was the son of a founding father. However Jackson was a plantation owner from the west who had no connections with the government. He also had different views from other presidents that made his presidency unique. Two things that separated Andrew Jackson’s presidency from previous presidencies were he reached out to the common people and he was disapproving of the Bank of United States.
Andrew Jackson was born on March 15, 1767, in the Waxhaw settlement, a community of Scotch-Irish immigrants along the border between north and south Carolina. As far as I know they are still disputing his place of origin. he claimed that his place of origin was actually south Carolina though in my opinion if he said he was from there he was from that location. His father had died before his birth Andrew’s mother had three sons and was living with her Crawford relatives. Jackson was attending local schools and received an elementary education.
During the Abraham Lincoln’s short time as president, he managed not only to save a nation deeply divided and at war with itself, but to solidify the United States of America as a nation dedicated to the progress of civil rights. Years after his death, he was awarded the title of ‘The Great Emancipator.’ In this paper, I will examine many different aspects of Lincoln’s presidency in order to come to a conclusion: whether this title bestowed unto Lincoln was deserved, or not. In order to fully understand Lincoln, it is necessary to understand the motives that drove this man to action. While some of his intentions may not have been for the welfare of slaves, but for the preservation of the Union, the actions still stand. Abraham Lincoln, though motivated by his devotion to his nation, made the first blows against the institution of slavery and rightfully earned his title of ‘The Great Emancipator.’
Thomas Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743 in Shadwell, Virginia. Jefferson had seven siblings, one brother and six sisters. From a young age Jefferson loved to read. He had a passion for knowledge, reading and writing. Young Jefferson got some of the best education in the States as well as in Europe. At the young age of sixteen Thomas Jefferson was attending school at William and Mary College. This was not common for a young boy to pursue education let alone this level. While attending William and Mary College he was taken under the wing of George Wythe. George Wythe became a mentor to Jefferson and taught him how to become a successful lawyer as well as taught him about many other topics in politics that were going on at the time. It is said that Wythe helped shape Jefferson and his ideals and political views. One ideal they shared was that all men are created equal. Later Wythe would also sign the Declaration of Independence along side of Jefferson. Thomas Jefferson graduated William and Mary College in 1762 and was practicing law in 1767. After Jefferson became a lawyer he became a member of the House of Burgesses. The Hi...
The slogan for his campaign was “Jackson and Reform” (194). He had won the hearts of the people, and was known as “the peoples candidate” (194). In November 1828 Andrew Jackson was named the seventh President of the United States, by 56% popular vote (194). This began the Age of Jackson. Rachel never made it to the White House, because she was too sick (194). On June 1, 1828, their adoptive Indian son, Lyncoya, died. Then on December 22, 1828, Rachel died
Andrew Jackson was able to surprise everyone by maintaining a calm composure during the battle, which would help propel him to the top of the White House (“americaslibery.gov”). Another battle that Andrew Jackson won was the Battle of Talladega (“encyclopediaofalabama.org”). In this battle, Andrew Jackson, and our current allies the Creek Indians were able to capture Fort Leslie(“encyclopediaofalabama.org”). Other relevant victories include the Battle of Barrancas, where he captured the fort by bombarding it with artillery from a nearby hill. All of these victories earned him a reputation as a well respected general and would eventually propel him to the White House.
After he graduated from college, he served as a judge in the Tennessee state district. He was also on the committee that formed the Tennessee state constitution (“Andrew Jackson,” 2014). His war career really started in his teenage years when he served as a courier during the war of 1812. His hate for the British also started at a young age. It was said that a British officer broke into Andrew's house and demanded that he shine his shoes, when Andrew refused, The drunk soldier slashed him across the face, leaving him with scars that would last forever.
He taught school for a short time after the war but did not enjoy it. When he was seventeen he went to Salisbury, North Carolina which is where he studied law for a few years. He was admitted in to the North Carolina Bar in September of 1787. In June of 1796 Tennessee separated from North Carolina and admitted to the Union as the 16th state. Andrew was soon elected Tennessee’s first congressman. He was also elected as a U.S. senator but resigned after only one session. He then went home and became a judge for six years on the Tennessee Supreme Court. Andrew’s military career which had all started when he was only 13 years old became even more successful when he was elected major general of the Tennessee militia. Jackson later lead troops during the First Seminole War in Florida. General Jackson came from the battlefields of the War of 1812 a national hero. It was during this time he got his nickname which is “Old Hickory.
Before Andrew Jackson became president, he had a rough life. His parents died when he was young, so he grew up without guidance. Jackson was in all the fights he could pick and to many, a wild child. By age 17, he calmed down and began planning his life. It wasn’t until after he had enrolled in the war of 1813 and showed great leadership and strength, that he was in the spot for presidency.
James Garfield is one of the lesser known presidents of the 45 that have successfully been inaugurated. Yet, he is significant along with three presidents: Abraham Lincoln, William McKinley, and John F. Kennedy. They were all assassinated while in office. This list doesn’t include Theodore Roosevelt because he survived the attempted assassination and was out of office by then. James Garfield was assassinated by Charles Guiteau, but the bullet didn’t kill him. The lack of medical support given to Garfield after the accident is what led to his death on September 19th, 1881, in Elberon NJ,
As Washington stated in his book, Up From Slavery, "I am not quite sure of the exact place or exact date of my birth, but at any rate I suspect I must have been born somewhere and at sometime" (29). But, in reality, Booker Taliaferro Washington was born on a slave plantation in Franklin County, Virginia on April 5, 1856, where his mother worked as a cook. Washington's father, who he knew little of, was suspected to be a white man who worked on a near-by plantation. Growing up on the slave plantation, Washington lived in the most destitute surroundings. His "home" was a fourteen by sixteen square foot log cabin that he shared with his mother, brother, and sister. He spent most of his time on the plantation doing odd work, such as cleaning and working at the mill, since he was too small to do much more.
James a Garfield was born, the youngest of four, in orange Township, Ohio on November 19, 1831 (Duckster). His father, Abraham Garfield, died when James A. Garfield turned two years of age leaving his mother, Eliza Ballou Garfield, to fend for herself and four young boys (The American Heritage Book of the Presidents and Famous Americans). Garfield, around age seventeen, drove steamboats through Ohio canals for a year to assist his mother financially while in their state of poverty(The American Heritage Book of the Presidents and Famous Amer...