James Polk, 11th American President

James Knox Polk (1795-1849) was the 11th President of the United States (1845-1849). A Democrat, Polk served as the 17th Speaker of the House of Representatives (1835-1839) and Governor of Tennessee (1839-1841). Polk was the dark horse candidate for president in 1844, defeating Henry Clay of the rival Whig Party. He was a leader of Jacksonian Democracy during the Second Party System. He is noted for his foreign policy successes. He threatened war with Britain over the issue of which nation owned the Oregon Country, then backed away and split the ownership of the region with Britain. When Mexico rejected American annexation of Texas, Polk led the nation to a sweeping victory in the Mexican-American War, which gave the United States most of its present Southwest. He established a treasury system that lasted until 1913. He oversaw the opening of the Naval Academy and the Smithsonian Institution, the groundbreaking for the Washington Monument and the issuance of the first postage stamps in the United States. He promised to serve only one term and did not run for reelection. He died of cholera three months after his term ended

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1795 1835 1839 1835-1839 1844 Annexation Cholera Democrat Eleventh Established Jacksonian Mexican American Mexican-american Postage Presidency Seventeenth Smithsonian Speaker Stamps Tennessee Treasury

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