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James Buchanan

American, 1791 - 1868

BiographyJames Buchanan was born 23 April 1791 near Mercersburg, Pennsylvania. His family was wealthy, and he graduated from Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, in 1809. James Buchanan had a long career in American politics: he served five terms in the U. S. House of Representatives between 1821 and 1831; he served as President Jackson's minister to Russia from 1832-1834; he served in the U. S. Senate from 1834-1845; he was President Polk's Secretary of State from 1845-1849; in 1853 he was appointed minister to Great Britain by President Pierce; and he served as the fifteenth President of the United States from 1857-1861. The presidency of James Buchanan was marred by the issue of slavery, and the Civil War erupted shortly after he left office. When James Buchanan retired, he returned to Wheatland, his country estate near Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He died there, never having married, on 1 June 1868.

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