Van Buren's Administration (1837-1841)

The Panic of 1837. Van Buren owed the presidency to Jackson. But many of the problems that faced him as President had developed during Jackson's Administration. Congress had failed to limit the sales of public lands to actual settlers, even though Jackson urged such action during his last year in office. Everyone was speculating in public lands, even clerks and shoeshine boys. State banks and branches of the Bank of the United States had joined the speculative splurge. They made vast loans without security in gold or silver.

Unable to limit land sales, Jackson had issued his Specie Circular of July 11,1836. It required the government to accept only gold and silver in payment for public lands. Banks could no longer make loans without security, and the speculation ended. A financial crash was inevitable. It came on May 10,1837, just 67 days after Van Buren took office. Banks in Philadelphia and New York City closed, and soon every bank in the country did likewise. The first great depression in U.S. history had begun.

The independent treasury. The Panic of 1837 placed Van Buren in a politically dangerous situation. Although he had pledged to limit the use of federal power, he acted decisively to protect government funds, which were on deposit in private banks. He called Congress into special session and proposed that a treasury be created to hold government money. A bill putting this plan gradually into effect was defeated twice but finally passed Congress on July 4,1840. The battle over the treasury cost Van Buren the support of many bankers and bank stockholders, especially in the strong Democratic states of New York and Virginia. This loss crippled his bid for reelection.

Life in the White House. Van Buren avoided extravagant White House parties because of the depression. He limited his entertaining to simple dinners. Many visitors to the Executive Mansion found the atmosphere formal and austere, even with Van Buren's four sons present. The people of Washington admired the modesty and personal charm of the youths, all in their 20's. But many, especially Dolley Madison, regretted the lack of a woman in the household. She introduced the President's eldest son, Abraham, to Angelica Singleton of South Carolina. A romance soon developed, and the young people were married in late 1838. Angelica Van Buren assumed the role of White House hostess.

Growing unpopularity. The depression was only one of many disturbances during Van Buren's Administration. Border disputes developed with Canada. In 1839, a boundary dispute between Maine and New Brunswick nearly resulted in open warfare. Van Buren handled the problem with tact, and the dispute was settled peacefully. However, he received little credit for his efforts. See New Brunswick (The Aroostook War).

Antislavery leaders blamed Van Buren for the expensive war to drive the Seminole Indians from Florida.

They feared the region might become a new slave state. Proslavery leaders attacked the President for not working to annex Texas. The proslavery people believed that Van Buren did not want to admit a new slave state into the Union.

Election of 1840. The Democrats nominated Van Buren for reelection in 1840 in spite of his unpopularity. Vice President Johnson had so many enemies that he failed to gain renomination. The Democrats could not agree on any vice presidential candidate. As a result, Van Buren became the only presidential candidate in American history to seek election without a running mate. The Whigs again nominated William Henry Harrison for President and chose former Senator John Tyler of Virginia as his running mate.

Harrison launched a boisterous campaign in which he attacked Van Buren as an aristocrat who had no interest in the unemployment caused by the depression. Using the slogan 'Tippecanoe and Tyler too," Harrison campaigned on the basis of his colorful military career. Few people were surprised when Van Buren lost by an electoral vote of 234 to 60. But many were amazed by the close popular vote. Of 2,400,000 votes cast, Van Buren lost by fewer than 150 000. See Harrison, William Henry (Elections of 1836 and 1840).

Later years. Van Buren retired to his country estate, Lindenwald, near his birthplace. He remained active in politics for more than 20 years. In 1848, the antislavery Free Soil Party nominated him for President (see Free Soil Party). He lost the election but took so many New York votes from Democrat Lewis Cass that the Whig candidate, Zachary Taylor, was elected.

As the slavery disputes grew hotter, Van Buren made his antislavery position clear. But he remained a loyal Democrat, supporting Franklin Pierce in 1852 and James Buchanan in 1856. Van Buren died at Lindenwald on July 24,1862, and was buried beside his wife in Kinderhook. The Lindenwald estate became the Martin Van Buren National Historic Site in 1974.