Martin Van Buren (1782-1862)

He was preceded in the Presidency by Andrew Jackson and after serving one term in office for the Democrats he was succeeded in 1841 by William Henry Harrison. His Vice-President throughout was Richard Mentor Johnson. He was born at Kinderhook, New York, and was nicknamed "Old Kinderhook" (O.K.). His first spoken words were in Dutch, but he was the first President of the United States to be born under the American flag and hence he is often referred to as "the first American president". He began his career in law and New York state politics, where he earned the nickname "the Little Magician" for his political cunning. He held many significant posts: Member of the New York State; Attorney-General of New York; U.S. Senator from New York; and, Governor of New York. He played a crucial role in organizing the Democratic Party and was instrumental in Andrew Jackson's rise to power, serving as Jackson's Secretary of State, U.S. Minister to the U.K., and Vice President (1833-37).

As President, Van Buren inherited the Panic of 1837, a severe economic depression that dominated his term. His response -maintaining government fiscal restraint and opposing federal intervention - proved unpopular and contributed to his 1840 electoral defeat to William Henry Harrison. Van Buren's most significant long-term contribution was his role as a political architect. He helped establish the modern American party system and pioneered many campaign techniques still used today. After leaving office, he remained politically active, eventually joining the Free Soil Party and running for President again in 1848 on an anti-slavery expansion platform, demonstrating his evolution on the slavery question. He and his wife had five children (all sons), four of whom lived to adulthood.