Franklin Pierceby Roy Franklin Nichols | |
| Category: |
"U.S. History - Political" |
|---|---|
| Pages: | 546 |
| Year of Publication: | 1931 |
| Date Added: | 12/14/1998 |
| Date Read: | 01/05/1991 |
| Notes: | Subtitle: Young Hickory of the Granite Hills The son of a Revolutionary War veteran, Pierce used his family connections and his own gifts of intelligence and oratory to rise in the local political community, first on a state level and then eventually into both houses of Congress. While adept enough to get these positions, he never really sparkled at any of them; his period as a general in the Mexican War is similarly unimpressive. The Democratic Party, desperate to find a nominee in 1852, eventually settled on Pierce, not because he was a great candidate, but — as a Northerner with distinctly pro-Southern views — he was the only candidate with wide geographical appeal. Attaining the Presidency, he did little to calm the growing North-South rift and, in fact, left things in a sadder state than when he left. |
| My Rating: | 6 |