Franklin Pierce

Franklin Pierce was the 14th President of the United States.

Born in New Hampshire in 1804, Pierce's father, Benjamin Pierce served twice as the Governor of the state, and Franklin became a U.S. Representative from New Hampshire at the age of 27. In 1836, he became a U.S. Senator from New Hampshire until his resignation in 1842. Most historians believe Pierce's resignation was related to his alcoholism and his tumultuous relationship with his shy and reclusive wife, Jane Pierce, who hated Washington, D.C.. Pierce served in the Mexican War in the late 1840s and was part of General Winfield Scott's force which captured Mexico City in 1847.

Pierce's presidency is widely considered to be one of the worst in United States history. A dark horse candidate, Pierce had not held elected office in ten years when he was made the Democratic Party's nominee for President in 1852. Pierce defeated his former commander, Whig candidate Winfield Scott in the election. During his administration, Pierce's popularity plummeted after the release of the Ostend Manifesto, a document signed by several of his cabinet members which decreed that Cuba should be taken by force in an effort to extend American influence and perhaps expand slavery. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, enacted with Pierce's approval, repealed the Missouri Compromise and resulted in bloody clashes in Kansas between pro- and anti-slavery settlers. By the end of his term, Pierce had become so unpopular that his own party did not renominate him, instead making James Buchanan the Democratic candidate for President in 1856.

• November 23, 1804: Born in Hillsboro, New Hampshire

• 1833: Elected to New Hampshire House of Representatives

• 1834: Married Jane Means Appleton

• 1836: Elected to U.S. Senate

• 1846-47: Joined the army, serving in the Mexican-American War

• January 6,1853: Son Benjamin "Bennie" Pierce killed in train accident

• 1853: Inaugural Address of Franklin Pierce

• March 4, 1853: Assumed office as President

• 1856: Denied Democratic nomination for a second term

• October 8,1869: Died of cirrhosis of the liver

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