Franklin Pierce:14th President of the United States, 1853-1857
As President, Franklin Pierce faced two difficult problems: (1) growing Northern opposition to any expansion of slavery, and (2) rising prejudice against immigrants. He angered Northerners by supporting the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which made slavery possible in a large area of the West. He stirred up further opposition when he protected the rights of immigrants.
Despite these problems, the years of Pierce's administration marked one of the most prosperous periods in American history. The California Gold Rush still attracted men westward. Federal grants of land spurred railroads to extend their lines westward. And the Gadsden Purchase added land from Mexico to the Territory of New Mexico.
| Election of 1852 | ||
| Candidate Franklin
Pierce |
Popular
Vote 1,601,117 |
Electoral
Vote 254 |
| Pierce's Vice-President and Cabinet | |
| Vice-President | William R.D. King |
| Secretary of State | William L. Marcy |
| Secretary of the Treasury | James Guthrie |
| Secretary of War | Jefferson Davis |
| Attorney General | Caleb Cushing |
| Postmaster General | James Campbell |
| Secretary of the Navy | James C. Dobbin |
| Secretary of the Interior | Robert McClelland |
| United States Events During His Administration | |
| Territories
Organized Kansas
(1854), Nebraska (1854) Population in 1857 29,000,000 |
|
| 1853 | The Gadsden Purchase added new territory to the United States. |
| 1854-1856 | The Republican Party was organized. |
| May 30, 1854 | Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act. |
| 1854 | Commodore Matthew C. Perry arranged a trade treaty with Japan. |
| 1855 | The Soo Canal was opened to shipping. |
| 1856 | The Territory of Kansas became a battleground between slavery and antislavery forces, leading to the territory "earning" the nickname of Bleeding Kansas. |
| World Events During His Administration | |
| 1853-1856 | Britain, France, Turkey, and Sardinia fought against Russia in the Crimean War. |
| 1854 | About 400,000 immigrants arrived in New York. |
| 1855 | Henry Bessemer invented the Bessemer converter. |
Gadsden Purchase
Mexico
New Mexico
Jefferson Davis
Kansas
Henry Bessemer