Eleventh president of the United States, born to a wealthy family and a descendant of the religious reformer John Knox. The family moved from North Carolina to Tennessee when James was 11. He graduated from the University of North Carolina and established a law practice in Nashville. Polk was a fervent supporter of president Andrew Jackson and steadily rose through the ranks of the Democratic Party. He was in the Tennessee state legislature for two years and in the House of Representatives from 1825-1839. He was the Speaker of the House from 1836-39. In 1839, Polk was elected as Governor of Tennessee. In 1840, ran unsuccessfully as vice-presidential candidate on the Van Buren ticket. In 1844, he became the party's choice for presidential candidate due to his pro-annexation feelings regarding Texas.
Polk achieved most of the goals that he had set forth in his pre-election manifesto. These included the independency of the Treasury, the Walker Tariff Act of 1846, and the territorial acquisitions of Texas, California and Oregon territories up to the present northern border of Washington state. The Mexican War was fought during Polk's tenure which resulted in a complete victory and the annexation of the future states of California, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico. Polk died a few weeks after leaving office in 1849. |
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