Martin Van Buren!

Often when Americans think of 19th century Presidents, they think of the usual crowd of executives.
Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Jackson, Andrew Johnson, and that guy who died after a month in office.  They
ignore the one truly great President of the 19th century: Martin Van Buren.  Now, there are three
types of people when in comes to Van Buren: those who laugh at the mention of his great name, those
who say, "Who the hell was that guy?" and those who say with pride, "Martin Van Buren was the greatest
President our country has ever had!"  If you are a member of the first group, God be with you, and I hope 
you shall see the error of your ways.  If you don't know who Martin Van Buren is, then we forgive you of your
ignorance, and if you are a member of the third group, congratulations!  You obviously have intelligence, good
looks, and charm!

  This is Martin Van Buren.  He was born on December 5th, 1782
in Kinderhook, New York.  He attended school, and when he was 14,
Martin began studying law.  He took part in his first court trial at 15.
In 1801, Martin moved to New York City to continue his studies, and 1803,
he was admitted to the bar.  Blah blah blah...  In 1820, Van Buren became
Senator Van Buren of New York.  Our hero fought against imprisonment for
debt.  Van Buren was against extending the slave trade, and in 1828, he 
became Governor of New York, and then Secretary of State to President
Jackson.  In 1832, Van Buren became Vice-President.  Finally, in the 
Election of 1836, the American people (read that: white male landowners)
in a rare display of good taste, elected Martin Van Buren to the Presidency
of the United States.  Van Buren won 764,000 votes, to William Henry 
Harrison's piddly 550,000.  Van Buren also won 170 Electoral College votes
to Harrison's 73.  Unfortunately, Van Buren's Presidency was marred by his
predecessor's idiocy.  Andrew Jackson had done something bad to the economy... it's really complicated,
and 67 days after Van Buren takes office, a financial crash happened.  The Panic of 1837.  Banks in
Philadelphia, and New York city closed, and soon every other bank in the country followed suit.
Naturally, this wasn't Van Buren's fault!  Way to go, Jackson.  Needless to say, because of the 
depression, Van Buren was tragically not relected in 1840.  The guy that won died after a month.  Damn
Tippacanoe and Tyler, Too!

Fun Facts

In 1839, a border dispute broke out with Canada.  Maine apparently wanted New Brunswick.  Or vice-versa.
Van Buren settled the issue, avoiding a possible war.  This settlement left thousands of New Brunswick
natives with the horrible embarassment of being Canadians.  They still hang signs on the border: Welcome
to New Brunswick.  Motto: We had a chance to be the 51st state, but we blew it!

This is the Unites States as it appeared during Van
Buren's Presidency.  As you can see, Van Buren has the 
unique distinction of having the Iowa Territory added to the
U.S.!  This territory later made up the great and notable
states of Iowa, North and South Dakota, and Minnesota!

Van Buren fell under harsh criticism from both pro and anti
slavery leaders.  The antis didn't like Van Buren's
continuation of the Seminole War in Florida, and the pros
disagreed with Van Buren's refusal to annex Texas.


This was the U.S. flag during Van Buren's tenure in office.
This nifty star design is definately one of the coolest things about his presidency.
After Van Buren tragically lost the election in 1840, he continues to be active in
politics.  He maintained his strong anti-slavery position and even offered his 
services to Abraham Lincoln.  He died on July 24, 1862, and was buried in
Kinderhook, New York.  

Martin Van Buren was the greatest president ever. Join me, Erin, and Kate in Kinderhook every Dec. 5
for Martin Van Buren Day.  We'll be leading the parade.  Kate will be leading... well... never mind.  See 
ya there!




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