-
Overview
(1795-1849) In 1806, James Knox Polk moved with his family from North Carolina to Maury County, Tennessee when he was just eleven years old. After a rudimentary frontier education, he attended the University of North Carolina, graduating first in his class in 1818. Admitted to the Maury County Bar, he jumped into politics and was elected clerk of the state senate. He was then elected to the United States House of Representatives, where he became the chief proponent of Andrew Jackson. Elected Speaker of the House, he is to this day, the only Speaker to become President. Leaving his Congressional seat, he was elected Governor of Tennessee before losing two consecutive bids for reelection. In 1844, he was nominated as a compromise candidate by the Democrat party for President. Polk narrowly defeated Henry Clay on the platform of expansion and the admission of Texas into the Union. Promising a single term, he expanded the country by one-third by acquiring the Southwestern portion of the country as a result of a war with Mexico and negotiations with Great Britain to acquire the Pacific Northwest. California was acquired and Polk announced the discovery of gold there in his final State of the Union Address, which prompted the Gold Rush. Information provided by Tom Price, Director of The Maury County Archives
