James K. Polk
James Knox Polk was the 11th president of the United States, serving from 1845 to 1849. Prior to the presidency, Polk served as the speaker of the House of Representative and as the ninth governor of Tennessee.
Polk owned enslaved individuals throughout his presidency. "In addition to using enslaved labor at the White House, Polk secretly purchased enslaved people and separated children aged ten through seventeen from their families while in office" (White House Historical Society).
Polk died in Nashville, Tennessee in 1849.
Resources
- The Enslaved Households of President James K. PolkPresident James K. Polk not only relied on enslaved labor at the White House, but also secretly purchased and sold enslaved people while in office.
- James K. Polk: Miller CenterUnder James Knox Polk, the United States grew by more than a million square miles, adding territory that now composes the states of Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California, Oregon, Idaho, Washington, much of New Mexico, and portions of Wyoming, Montana, and Colorado.
- James K. Polk: White HouseOften referred to as the first “dark horse” President, James K. Polk was the last of the Jacksonians to sit in the White House, and the last strong President until the Civil War.
- The President James K. Polk Home & MuseumExperience one of the most significant Presidential collections in the United States.
Streaming Media
- President Polk and the Mexican American WarPresident Polk is determined to acquire California and the southwest and provokes a war with Mexico to achieve his goal.
- James K. Polk: 60-Second PresidentsHere's everything you need to know about James K. Polk, the 11th President of the United States, in just 60 seconds.
- To Conquer or Redeem: Manifest DestinyWith the closing of the American West, Manifest Destiny was in need of new direction. The section “New Frontiers” considers implications of Frederick Jackson Turner’s Frontier Thesis as it scrutinizes U.S. history from the end of the Gilded Age to the brink of the Spanish-American War. “An Empire of Liberty” takes a step back to assess aspects of Manifest Destiny from its birth during the pre-Revolutionary era through Reconstruction. And “Benevolent Assimilation” provides an in-depth look at the Spanish-American War, the Philippines Insurrection, the annexations of Puerto Rico and Hawaii, and U.S. intervention in China during the Boxer Rebellion to illustrate how expanded economic influence, military might, and presidential powers contributed to U.S. imperialism during the administrations of Presidents McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt. Historians H. W. Brands, Walter LaFeber, Kristin Hoganson, John Lawrence Tone, Eric Love, Paul Kramer, David Hendrickson, and Amy Greenberg are featured. Produced by Lucasfilm Ltd. A part of the series Manifest Destiny. (90 minutes)
Perspectives
A Country of Vast Designs
When James K. Polk was elected president in 1844, the United States was locked in a bitter diplomatic struggle with Britain over the rich lands of the Oregon Territory, which included what is now Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Texas, not yet part of the Union, was threatened by a more powerful Mexico. And the territories north and west of Texas -- what would become California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and part of Colorado -- belonged to Mexico. When Polk relinquished office four years later, the country had grown by more than a third as all these lands were added. The continental United States, as we know it today, was established -- facing two oceans and positioned to dominate both. In a one-term presidency, Polk completed the story of America's Manifest Destiny -- extending its territory across the continent, from sea to sea, by threatening England and manufacturing a controversial and unpopular two-year war with Mexico that Abraham Lincoln, in Congress at the time, opposed as preemptive. Robert Merry tells this story through powerful debates and towering figures -- the outgoing President John Tyler and Polk's great mentor, Andrew Jackson; his defeated Whig opponent, Henry Clay; two famous generals, Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott; Secretary of State James Buchanan (who would precede Lincoln as president); Senate giants Thomas Hart Benton and Lewis Cass; Daniel Webster and John C. Calhoun; and ex-president Martin Van Buren, like Polk a Jackson protégé but now a Polk rival. This was a time of tremendous clashing forces. A surging antislavery sentiment was at the center of the territorial fight. The struggle between a slave-owning South and an opposing North was leading inexorably to Civil War. In a gripping narrative, Robert Merry illuminates a crucial epoch in U.S. history.
Reference, Archives, & Primary Sources
- James K. Polk Papers: Library of CongressThe papers of James K. Polk (1795-1849), governor of Tennessee, representative from Tennessee, Speaker of the House of Representatives, and eleventh president of the United States, contain approximately 20,500 items dating from 1775 to 1891, with the bulk falling in the period 1830-1849.
- James K. Polk Project: UTKBased in the History Department at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, the James K. Polk Project sought to locate all extant letters by or to the United States’ eleventh president (1845–49) and to publish an annotated edition of selected letters in print and online. Students, scholars, and all interested in U.S. history can use these resources to learn about one of the most consequential presidents and about a key period in the country’s development.
- James K. Polk: Credo ReferenceA Credo Reference page on James K. Polk. This page includes links to reference works, journal articles, and a mind map.