250 ANNIVERSARY James Madison 4th President of the U S Democratic-Republican Party Served 1809-17 Elected 1808 and 1812 State of birth Virginia Courtesy National Gallery of Art Washington D C Alisa Mellon Bruce Fund 1979 4 2 SIGNIFICANCE James Madison is called the Father of the Constitution because of his instrumental role at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 As a member of the U S House of Representatives he sponsored the first 10 amendments to the Constitution better known as the Bill of Rights He also served as secretary of state under Thomas Jefferson Madison served two terms as the fourth president of the United States during which time the United States and Great Britain fought the War of 1812 to a stalemate DID YOU KNOW James Madison’s portrait is on the front of the U S 5,000 bill no longer in circulation Madison wrote 29 of the 85 Federalist papers Madison’s wife Dolley is credited with creating the role of first lady as a political partner Madison and his wife had to flee the White House in 1814 when British troops set fire to it Madison a slave owner was president of the American Colonization Society which of the president sought to resettle freed slaves in Africa FORMER OFFICES secretary of state member of the U S House of Representatives from Virginia VICE PRESIDENTS George Clinton and Elbridge Gerry FIRST LADY Dolley Madison
250 ANNIVERSARY James Monroe 5th President of the U S Democratic-Republican Party Served 1817-25 Elected 1816 and 1820 State of birth Virginia Courtesy National Gallery of Art Washington D C Alisa Mellon Bruce Fund 1979 4 3 SIGNIFICANCE James Monroe served two terms as the fifth president of the United States He issued the Monroe Doctrine which warned European nations against intervening in the Western Hemisphere and he oversaw a period of growing national wealth and strong westward expansion called the Era of Good Feelings He was the last president of the Revolutionary War generation DID YOU KNOW General George Washington James Monroe started as a lieutenant in the Revolutionary Army and served with Monroe his wife and their daughters were quite fond of France and they often spoke French in the White House during his presidency In 1819 Monroe acquired for the United States the territory that would become Florida The capital of Liberia Monrovia was named for Monroe who as a slave owner supported the efforts of the American Colonization Society to resettle enslaved people in Africa FORMER OFFICES secretary of state secretary of war governor of Virginia minister to France U S senator from Virginia VICE PRESIDENT Daniel D Tompkins FIRST LADY Elizabeth Monroe
250 ANNIVERSARY John Quincy Adams 6th President of the U S National Republican Party a precursor of the Whigs Served 1825-29 Elected 1824 State of birth Massachusetts National Portrait Gallery Smithsonian Institution Washington D C SIGNIFICANCE John Quincy Adams served as the sixth president of the United States Before his election he was one of America’s greatest diplomats and his time as secretary of state under James Monroe helped establish the boundaries for westward expansion During his presidency he was in constant conflict with Andrew Jackson who had lost to Adams in the 1824 election As a U S congressman after his presidency Adams fought against the extension of slavery DID YOU KNOW John Quincy Adams was the eldest son of President John Adams Adams kept a diary from 1779 until 1848 that has more than 14,000 pages During his presidency Adams typically awoke between four and six o’clock in the morning and went for a walk or for a swim in the Potomac River before breakfast In 1841 before the U S Supreme Court Adams successfully defended the slaves who rebelled onboard the ship Amistad Adams suffered a stroke on the floor of the U S House while speaking against the recognition of U S generals who had fought in the Mexican-American War which he called a most unrighteous war He died two days later FORMER OFFICES secretary of state minister to the Netherlands Great Britain Portugal Prussia and Russia U S senator from Massachusetts after presidential term served as member of the U S House of Representatives from Massachusetts VICE PRESIDENT John C Calhoun FIRST LADY Louisa Adams
250 ANNIVERSARY Andrew Jackson 7th President of the U S Democratic Party Served 1829-37 Elected 1828 and 1832 State of birth South Carolina Library of Congress Washington D C SIGNIFICANCE Andrew Jackson was the seventh president of the United States and the first from the area west of the Appalachians He is credited with being the first president to gain office by a direct appeal to the mass of voters he used his military accomplishments in the War of 1812 and the perception of having been wronged in the election of 1824 to win in 1828 Conflicts with Native Americans and controversies over economic policies marked Jackson’s two terms as president and the two-party system was revitalized by the time of his retirement DID YOU KNOW Andrew Jackson was captured by the British in 1781 during their invasion of the western Carolinas which contributed to his lifelong hostility toward Great Britain Jackson’s wife Rachel died soon after his election as president Her niece Emily Jackson was the target of the first assassination attempt against a U S president in Jackson spent more than 50,000 refurbishing the White House including more than Donelson served many of the functions of first lady 1835 4,000 on a silver dinner and dessert set FORMER OFFICES U S senator and congressman from Tennessee military governor of Florida army commander VICE PRESIDENTS John C Calhoun and Martin Van Buren FIRST LADY Rachel Jackson
