Thursday, March 31, 2016

It Is The Seen As A Picture Rein To See What Is The Iron Age Of A Parody That Ironic To Know A The Truth Of Parents Whom Know The Horse On Course Of Say A Unicorn Was Said To Be More Than A Cave Once A Grasp Like A Drill Its Now A Sill; like Wind doughs!!!



How exciting McDonald Found day Shin in the China Peoples,
very exciting for the first borns that will enjoy the laughter & leans,
to drive the chorus of that chortle of parents to the comprehension of skill.

Touch chin the shoulder to comprehend the Package as beautifully loved in scripts marriage Toned,
ringing with Love Inn I cent that kids Train,
to station identification of the rippling see!!



Learning to balance those bouncing balls cart,
karaoke WOW Feat telling prose Well of fun ole Sayings too The Blues!!



In My Country the Monk^keys have been of a certificate With sleeves to Shirts called to be braced,
how Ever the traveling Pants on a tagged,
The United States of America on Constitution off rote!!



Writ stream of Creek the River 'Grand Canyon' describes gently Men have had a bridge Swallows,
birds of Eagle to flight of ba^Rae bread wide the Butter which Popcorn displayed,
big bends once Known to the hop of the brew,
tea leaves on shingles thus cobble is strand,



pebble to sand the grains of the Hand on weird in technical difference is queer.



But in that procession of parade Dean the scene Grade X^Port^take^Shin to ever gone Faxed,
Y is the Palm demonstration to Fern in the fossil of rocks as the Sun got a tier,
lanes of the Chart to cork Bottle Message,
change is the speedometer of lives on the Shade!!



Sew congratulations China Country with Wall,
may grace be the finding a wonderful sand,
draw^Wean this church`d to chill of call,
Numbers to Sole U lore with loving the Fan!!  



Its a Real Universe to a galaxy that Cosmic Orion,
fill in the beams as this earth is of Turf,
cent to Tibet that ticker tape strange,
remind the mind Clock of the pulse beet Ten Men,
collect Shins of Trust become Watts explain From dial of Box Is the basis On Tubs duh!!,
so as the Mountain Wills breeze Zee of US cap a Toll eh is brick bye bricks stoned to recover a grub!! 

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Spy Knoll Tap & Man A Cures To Nail Paul Lash Attach Buy Marrows Roast With eh Bit Piece To "Sweet Ryde" With Reins At The Understanding 'The Concept' off Founders & eh SFOriginals idea. Simply Comprehend A 'Mother Daughter Organization with Aunt Laura&Co.': "A World of Motion!!"



Storms on Mother Earth,
the bearing of the planet,
a degree of what is Well,
in the depth of Solar Moon.

In each for the Galaxy,
a Universe to Cosmic,
dark holes to stitch with darn,
dignity of death.

Thought of Human Cork,
a shoulder to the carriage,
breathe with fog and dirt,
mud is process clerk.

Writing grains of Sand,
fossils on the hand,
a wrinkle from the waist,
tight ends by e! raced.

Dank the blankets smell,
smoke and akin to dead,
lungs of fill turned die,
becoming Facebooks slide.

Applications grave,
chiseled with the tied,
people bump a womb,
than turn to kill the wormed.

Tape on Video baked,
the cookie on the crunched,
smashing minds of brain`d,
vice sin greater bayed.

Ice cream pop sick coals,
im burr rancid burp,
hiccups look to gulch,
the ditch on valley floor.

Across the spell of BC,
eh dee a pawn the fake,
rigid stiff to freeze,
glaciers grade the feeds.

Ocean spoke to wave,
crashing signs at beech,
redwoods saw the burn,
sealed growth to mars,
veins boiled frogs,
stools gave Napkin logged,
owl fa bet told togs,
hub stirs Cruise a sod.

Clover swayed to brain,
connection scanned the balls,
ping tray pong the pad dull,
hand dulled brought the phoned.

Sun shone ray to shine,
kodak snapped the spayed,
new tour breaks a rule,
causing knat shin knoll flew`d.

Chim a knee crawls to the Can,
go roo does not know cue,
words are sigh lens shock,
shore of traded boars.

Tusk won't add mitt,
gloves fit to the dell,
pick cole sang to nice`d,
like peet tour had a Host.

The choir rang the core wrist,
a cellphone joke new clear E! aye,
eye brows rise to lips,
the red stick said its made dew were,
ship pawn chest of gamed,
the Master wrote a lean,
meet Veal its a scour,
the Scrubber on a nailed.

Each Hymn on grounds of All,
shoved the dig to Cert.,
lies came to that grand,
blood began to bam,
flint stone struck the marrow,
relation ships to never,
the recognition skate,
to ice and blocks of bait.

Ponds had silt with Men a role,
elements asked in fear,
does the whoa man lied,
say I belong to swirled,
gargle lean its true,
should the compass photo,
the graph of word in second,
added Men its hare a tick.

Whats a dot^Tour,
whats a Sun,
whats a rig,
whats a ruund,
what is cheese, 
what is Wine,
what is crackers,
what is done,
The Dawn a Hue or Crews duh???

It Was The Reach Off The MacKenzie Trail Lodge LTD. But The Sell Was Defined To The Wonder On The Ridge To Entrust It As The Simple Passport To The Faxed



Funny how the signals go the theme of life on the style ob bells and labels,
that vocal present to the gift of the plug it is the grace of a listing that echoes a stern,
as whom is the great on the Beck in example,
Howard of serious or that Order of glisten,
to star in a tall on the width of the band,
rather clean shave to that pew bess cent of shoe.

Lace with the passing of working it loud,
a trip to the say and that shoppe of the news,
balls of the potted to the plant on a hands beautiful technique,
march onward forward whom to that person feels the Well.



Drive with only this understanding,
bristle to porcupine and shake it like steady,
a cactus to drought but suck ewe lent beds are everywhere wilding the flours on spread.

Each of these callers that have strangled the aye 'V',
remind the mathematics its the Idea of that Gentleman,
be frank with your talent sing like a Cable Car represents the Mark Hopkins a treasury filled with Minuets,

"PS; the World of Motion bringing the Fortune^Ate buy the Bulb bust but WOW does the Sweet Ryde Rein with aye Can^deed and Flavor Rites!!  Linda Fletcher would verify the date and time of this idea simply by seeing per^per^meant on this end kap too day!!!"

should the product revolution of what I was sole'd,
what a cool idea for the Stable of loved,
the Horses would fun^knee the stretch to that from,
but the rafters would hold to the decor being simple.

I did imagine origami on scene,
alive with the life and the freedom to ring,
bringing daylight to sunlight warming the storms,
as the smell of those barns is a beautiful prose.

Surely one would have to personally listen,
for feeding horses is rewarding with measure,
the relaxing move of the rustle of straw,
that sweet scent of Oats or Alfalfa to groat,
one of the most peaceful bearings that carriage of Harness,
a memory of central that gave the tack tracked to bridle the mind for the method of hosed.

Post Script to Scott Landuk,
time to say Target has a Smoot,
the best of Show to the am pole State Us,
what did you say should the me make a stay??



cool beans


What Is A Sir^Kit Board Should the Darbee Bean^Knees Bump The Baste Off Balls&Flake`D??



Strike the Amber and hit the gold,
as that vein in California,
a Mind of thought to actual Goal??
to task the Venue width the slam,
drill the Mountain language gargoyle??
night the hour Minute tick,
pull Sing till the Umm hits dirt.

Dust be skate Ice say cheese,
make akin the lips of lace,
with each stitch of coins in Thick,
remember pocket stem of wrist!!

Hand a suit of lamp type Stile,
inch the method while it comes,
down that throttle just in strum,
dark Nest caliber to raft of sole`D!!

Wince??,
wink Inn??,
flavor spice of No Help only Complaint to gargle Rinsed??,
does the Fee^Lean store the good,
deep in the slot of wetter Now??,
as that Ask keen answered Fore,
did the aspirated soy??, swallowing languish Whole??,
with out a bravo Opera wrest,
guitar speak piano lo??,
Lear rick's Uncle now at Neet,
cold the cube of back in based!!

Coca-Cola  is the straw,
a glass of chill that shallows sell,
horror is Whore to tepid Fall,
dive this timber Lumber still.

Gratitude is held with be,
whoa man I can't be that Crews??,
is the plane an Instrument Too??,
for my witness is the Flew.

Chimney Chimney soot and smile,
shoulder Hell in sexual bell,
staff of certain may Neigh the Hoofs,
kicking dirt Tee to Harness bit All during the spice in skirt.

Sew tired I special this denial Rich`d,
as People sheep with Wool as Tricked,
than that car doors raised to Flip?? chaining drive shaft to speed Den fell??,
dungeon I with Whip and Sane,
grains of Cobble to shingle skilled,
bits and reins??,
guidance crumbs,
as waist sting time with Dimes from sped??,
nigh the Fire in Fir^knees mile,
branch that Thought to Worlds Bot,
remember date to Date the Fig.,
as an Oreo in the hood?,
no, its Newton Shades to gifts of signed!!

What is Opposite to POE^tick^Poe^Lease^duh,
fancy that Pen^hints of Nair^Rows,
than with gentle Liner,
masque care uh with truth and when^Nur.

That chart will Not Not return,
like the bubble of caught^tin wore,
stitch buy thread the Fie^burr score,
a singer machine to Dyer's fade.

Apron deck to Talk a Moon,
as that wok is cool^lure room,
froze Zen calm to lead Ding mix,
Vinyl wreck^chord to made a Vice.

Too bad for Hat that brass marched stilts,
as the trip pen chores the stair,
heave that stub bull and shave with scare,
only head with brains to Pear.

App.^Pull Piel Leans!!!

The Singer Is A Fantastic Stitch for My Mother to Trundle While this is A Vogel Insider join here 718-852-2887



This is for eh great story board to Dictionary brakes,
the Holloway to a Creek that Bridge on finally saying Johno I found your Clause in my brim,
salutes!!



Would the World enjoy being Introduced to the Best Boot Company in the Fact that reality of the Treasure is a True Hear^Owe??,
the bets to the deacon once a gift to lyrics and Bread & butter,
this is the balance of Men to task the gender a Card,
Polo with a Clover to dial the Kilt of Scotland is that Desk of How to Measure the Cobbler of Shield!!

With Out further a do this is E. Vogel BESPOKE, Inc.


E. VOGEL BESPOKE, Inc.

Custom Boots and Shoes Since 1879



To Sarah An Meakin,
Meeting Mr. Vogel at the Washington International Horse Show 2012 ...
www.equestrianstylist.com1003 × 1036Search by image
E. Vogel Custom Children's Riding Boots





To whom it may bother that a person cannot get the same prescription that one has been taking for more than ten years on the done.  No problem and all the appointments go fine, than one day the new Doctor says that its the wrong dosage, worse, saying that all the Doctors that you have ever had are just wrong.  So, off one goes to the blood draw with that wonder piece of paper, and, a bunch of those wonderful coded boxes are checked.  Normal, yes, so off to the Draw Center one goes.

There it is the time between, on average the call comes to the hard line phone but this time its rude and indifferent, even going as far as to treat you as an idiot.  The new appointment with ones new doctor gets made, then one waits some more.

The date comes to day and then the hour.  One waits some more, just now in the Waiting Room actually.  The pictures and magazines aid to the passing seat on the Office with coughing, depressed persons.  That sliding door opens, "excuse me, please fill these out before the doctor can see you".  Plodding across the dull carpeted floor one stands at the window display, here, here and here I also need to see your insurance card your co-pay is blah, blah, blah.

No pause, the now clipboard with irritating falling off papers, the pen that one is handed, you wonder??  Did I not fill all of these messages out a billion trillion times a qua-billion other times??, oh well, patience whens the grade as that is the degree of must to accomplish this absolutely necessary but annoying classical life duty, why you ask, it's my Thyroid and it refuses to work for itself bringing tired a new meaning into reality in ones life.

Finally the call from the Nurse Practitioner, oop's I mean the somebody else I am now unfamiliar because I was taken into where the Nurse Practitioner was now the Doctor of the Office care.  The common shift language, here's your prescription however we have decided to reduce your dosage, changing your daily pill, so don't be surprised a the new color of the pill.  One tries to explain that every single Doctor so far had given you this same dosage because of blah, blah blah; short-stop interruption to point of this conversation, Nurse Practitioner: "they were wrong".

Asking for the Doctor in the Office one is told that a separate appointment would have to be made and in the case of this particular prescription they will only say the same thing.  The conversation done the prescription written and then filled because won gives it no other grace.

Months, years and many many trips to cramping and much more, the calls begin to, interrupted the entire blood draw darning, now repeat above and done.

Why?? because that is what that coded UPC Sheet came back as and it says this is write, "but I am really tired and just say the word Prune Juice gives these rest measures a brand of drink that Streakers would fail these days".  Putting in Frankly those terms, Nurse Practitioner, well we can check your blood again for the levels, halt stop, I say, "every time you are taking my rare AB Positive blood type and lots of it, what it going on, I have been taking the above pictured pill for, well ask Kate her b-day and do the math yourself, 'cause it adds up to about 5 blood draws to your more than 8 blood draws in the past Four Years".

No response, just waiting again, tired and worn out wondering why a Nurse Practitioner and their Office insist I get my blood drawn again on top of the fact that every single time you compromise your body with a pin prick or actual draw you endanger yourself with so much these days.  So, in order to make my Mind feel less stressed you begin to question why on Earth would a Office force the payment of both body, mind and sole to the cost priced of all this worry??. Answer?? I don't know.

So to my last Doctor, Dr. Zacharias, I love you and miss you terribly and I am reminded of those antibiotics that were meant to be working in the Five Day period, they were new but good, I said Okay.  Than three weeks later I came back sicker than I was the first and you felt so bad and I said I still don't feel good.  You said I need to give you the old prescription of antibiotics because those Five Day New Prescriptions have made no . . . you get the point.  You than said why didn't you come back and I said because you said give it a chance they'll work and I said are you sure and you said yes.  I fondly remind the World of this story because I really love Dr. Zacharias in Sacramento, California, he made all my appointments painless and precise to the work of the Physician with a bit of a little teasing.

To this bother of a Post today I day to the Odd Fellows, I have had less Doctors than one would imagine, because I stay with them for reasons as I have already written as done deals above.  The reason we part ways is usually for those passing on but in Doctors Zacharias case, I ran out of money and energy to drive to Sacramento to go and see him, oh for the hi way at you see the emptiness of smaller than a Tier because its a clean sweep.




Tuesday, March 29, 2016

M*A*S*H Say Is Still



What exactly is a Mr. Meaner,
or what say ewe of the Bat^To^Read??,
is it the convenience store ridge of that pause to a fence??,
a bar^tour to the a rest??,
demon^stray^shin to the core^t sir viced??,
a platter of Lie cents to bank Currs and slight in difference to language on the Wrest??

At that AM Pole of the Radio,
is PM the Stand Ding to the obvious??,
is March the Date of April Fools day??,
the Fürst!!

Chains to Too's day on the Dutch^Chess,
dirt Water fox is IM^Meed^dee^it??,
or is Op.^pew^Lents the Price is right on the Left??,
are the Par^Tees dan^sing??,
now are the Inks blues or black in A^Thor^It^Tee??

Trip^pea`N,
Jur. D. Cede while day jaw Voo is french to that pancakes with Sir^up??
sake of the try^bowl to mix^a^Co.??,
designer genes to discuss the whoa^men to that Al Gore theater piece??,
movie Dock^Cue^Meant^tour^Reeds or^a^coals and hauls??,
town meet^tin's??
Cun^Tree and Rob^been^Will^Yams??,
The Drink between the Grip??,
a ladder day rein??,
direction of North buy South^West??,
flight of the egg boil^lean at the brains of mined to drill the grind of cough^fins on the whale^lean Wall.

Dust to particle on the Thermos,
a free^Zur byte??,
the Maid Up words to conversation Hound,
descript to that certain on dancing the Charles^stun??,
swing knee to knee and smoke signs on the so fee a bench to that stage of getting a bell??,
ringing the sweater to Hood that cow^Will on the comment off digit^ties^duh,
what is core^ree^awe on the put to the Slot Machine,
V^it^Nam with the drip to pour the Found on the Time Lee of Absolute as that bay Lagoon photo??

Ask the Pop^a^Wrought^see??,
pimms on the shirt skirt to make up the masque^care^uh as a Mare^Ridge with a less^be^an lover on the snyc??,
that back of the boat to oar the pad^dull on the restroom brakes for kiss^sing Jobs to crust tea bets??,
why is the Yield??
that three in one??,
reality says it all started with the bay^bee,
as that strip to the camera to the back^drop of the friend lee quarter,
dollar Hide to pen^knee plop.

Now the World is on the Glow^Bull,
put to that Gerbil^lean that language will simple the Thumb in the Dutch,
that bowl^EAN??,
may bee it is all just complicated,
the Trojan and that Wheel for the Ships on dry land.

Cost at the E!Ville,
a plight of the Wic goats to belly the Tums on why the Whirled is drought,
waist water at the paints of rack Coons and band^Aids,
to that speak in spell,
rick E! tick E! tim Beau fell In too the Well??,
yet Whom is the Famine to Tradition on Tradition in and of its self??,
that reason for The Blue on the Guard dure,
something for the past, The Present and the future??,
oh pace is that play EAN at the cost of Three Men in a Tub??,
those old sayings of Style on the vol.^Can^Nic.^a^load^dee ^Inn??,
gosh the Threads on that Rae of sun^knee,
it remains to dew as the mountain sigh,
a dawn kneeing of Aquarius on the tore^US of the Wore in dress Sin a truth bare compass.

The Reason the Cause of liberal dispersion of 'Print' is E!^See to Eye^deed; will Yams shakes Peer with a PO or eh purr^chase Or^Dure to system^Mat^ticks pulse???


Christian Moerlein Brewing Co.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Christian Moerlein Brewing Company
Private
IndustryAlcoholic beverage
Founded1853, Reintroduced 1981
FounderChristian Moerlein
HeadquartersCincinnati, OhioUS
Key people
Greg Hardman (owner)
ProductsCraft Beer Christian Moerlein Lagers & Ales
SubsidiariesHudepohl-Schoenling Brewing Company
Websitewww.christianmoerlein.com
Christian Moerlein Brewing Co. is a private beer company that began production in 1853 in Cincinnati, Ohio by German immigrant Christian Moerlein. Before closing its doors in 1919 as result of prohibition, Christian Moerlein was among the ten largest American breweries by volume. In 1981, the brand was revived by the Hudepohl Brewing Company as a "better beer" a precursor to the current craft beer category and is considered a pioneer craft beer of today's craft beer movement. In 1999, Hudepohl-Schoenling Brewing Co. sold to a group of out-of-town owners, which included the famed Christian Moerlein craft beer brand. In 2004, Greg Hardman a Cincinnati resident purchased Christian Moerlein, as well as 65 other historic Cincinnati brands, returning local ownership back to Cincinnati that included a four phase plan to return Cincinnati's grand brewing traditions. The four phase plan was, 1) return the local ownership of Cincinnati's great beer brands back to Cincinnati; 2) build their base of sales to; 3) open local brewing operations in the heart of Cincinnati's historic Brewery District and; 4) open a World-class Moerlein Lager House on the banks of the Ohio River to act as a beacon that beer is back in Cincinnati.
In 2010, Hardman obtained the former Husman Potato Chip factory at 1621 Moore Street and the site of the pre-prohibition John Kauffman brewery's malt house and underground lager cellars. The location is just blocks from the original site of Christian Moerlein in Over-the-Rhine. The first beer brewed in the new location was the Christian Moerlein Arnold's 1861 Porter, which was made available on New Year's Eve 2010, in recognition of the 150th anniversary of Cincinnati's longest continuously running bar, Arnold's Bar and Grill.[1] In March 2013, full production began at the brewery with all Christian Moerlein beers brewed in the historic brewery.
In early 2012, Hardman, led the effort to open the world-class Moerlein Lager House in Smale Riverfront Park adjacent to The Bankslifestyle development along the Ohio River and next to the Cincinnati Reds Great American Ballpark. All Moerlein beers at the Lager House are brewed on site with a limited amount of unique seasonal beers making it to the market.

History[edit]

Christian Moerlein was a Bavarian immigrant born in Truppach, Bavaria in 1818.[2] He traveled to America in 1841 after becoming an apprentice brewer and blacksmith. He settled in the neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio known as Over-the-Rhine. Over-the-Rhine was a heavily populated neighborhood of mostly Germans and German-Americans. In 1853, Christian Moerlein opened the Christian Moerlein Brewing Company.
In its first year of production, the Christian Moerlein Brewing Company produced one thousand barrels of beer.[3] In just over a decade, twenty-six thousand barrels were being produced and Christian Moerlein fast became the most prominent brewer in the city of Cincinnati.[3] When production reached its peak, Christian Moerlein beer was being shipped to places as far as Europe and South America, and was the only Cincinnati beer exported internationally. Moerlein died in 1897, but the company continued until Prohibition began. The company never recovered from Prohibition, and sat idle until the brand was reintroduced in 1981 by the Hudepohl Brewing Company.
The new Christian Moerlein Brewing Company is part of the craft beer movement. The Christian Moerlein Select Lager became the first American beer to certifiably pass the strictReinheitsgebot, or Bavarian Purity Law of 1516.[citation needed]

The modern company[edit]

In 2004, the Christian Moerlein brand was purchased by Greater Cincinnati resident Greg Hardman. Over a period of five years, Hardman also acquired Hudepohl, Hudy Delight, Hudy 14-K, Burger, and Little Kings, the best-known of the Cincinnati brands. He purchased not only those, but 65 other long-forgotten brand names, such as Top Hat, Hauck, and Windisch-Muhlhauser, bringing many of the historical Cincinnati Brands under the same roof.[4] Since the purchase, Christian Moerlein has reintroduced several classic Cincinnati brands including Hudepohl and Burger.[5]
In 2010, Hardman purchased the former Husman Potato Chip factory at 1621 Moore Street. The location is just blocks from the original site of Christian Moerlein in Over-the-Rhine. The first beer brewed in the new location was the 1861 Porter, which was made available on New Year's Eve 2010, in recognition of the 150th anniversary of Cincinnati's longest continuously running bar, Arnold's Bar and Grill.[1]
A Christian Moerlein Lager House restaurant was opened on the Banks development in February 2012.[6][7] This sits along the new Riverfront Park in Downtown Cincinnati and adjacent to Great American Ball Park, home of the Cincinnati Reds. The 15,000-square-foot (1,400 m2) site is two stories tall and has multiple beer gardens. Approximately 500 seats are inside and an additional 600 can be seated outside. A large beer garden adjoins an outdoor event lawn on the new Riverfront Park. The building serves as a restaurant and a working microbrewery. Food featured on the menu replicates 19th-century German cuisine prominent in Over-the-Rhine's historic beginnings.[citation needed] The site provides live entertainment.
In 2013 the Christian Moerlein production brewery opened to full operations at 1621 Moore Street in the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. It is in the site of the historic Kauffman Brewery and a former Husman Potato Chip factory. The brewery has the capacity to brew 15,000 barrels in its first year (2013) with plenty of additional space to add capacity.[8]
Since Greg Hardman's ownership of Christian Moerlein Brewing Co., they has acquired all remaining brands of the Hudepohl-Schoenling Brewing Company and is the first American Craft Brewery of the current era to rescue a city's heritage beer brands. The current Hudepohl-Schoenling Brewing Company is a subsidiary of the Christian Moerlein Brewing Co.
Two of the modern company`s breweries are located close to the route of the new Cincinnati Streetcar.[9] In 2015 Brad Thomas, a member of the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority board, convinced four different brewers with breweries near the streetcar's route to each brew a new specialty beer to honor the delivery of the first five vehicles. The two Christian Moerlein breweries were the Christian Moerlein Tap Room and the Christian Moerlein Lager House.

Family of beers[edit]

Beer titleABV%Description
Arnold's 1861 Nitro Porter - year-round production5.3%Opaque brown color, firm but pleasant malty aroma with definite licorice notes, pillowy nitro head, moderate to strong (but smooth) malty flavor with licorice and rock candy elements. Brewed in honor of Arnold's Bar and Grill in Cincinnati, OH's 150th Anniversary. Only available on draft. First beer brewed by Moerlein in their Over-the-Rhine brewery.
Zeppelin Bavarian Pale Ale - year-round production5.0%, 40 IBUThis is a unique pale ale which uses a German/Czech Pilsner malt base to achieve a crisp, light, easy-drinking, and exceptionally dry beer. The star of the show in this beer, however, is the Hersbrucker hops which is used in the dry-hop. This hop lends a floral, almost potpourri-like aroma and flavor along with notes of grapefruit peel.
Exposition Vienna Style Lager - year-round production5.4%A Vienna style lager recognizing the national events of the late nineteenth century that helped make Christian Moerlein Brewing Company a household name far and abroad with awards won at every Exposition. This pale copper lager has a rich malt flavor with a toasty character balanced by noble hops for a dry, clean finish. Moerlein Exposition is a toast to the past with a beer to be crowned wherever exhibited.
OTR Ale - year-round production6%With a rich copper color, this ale is made with three separate malts and Cascade and Fuggle hops, and is named after the historic Over-the-Rhine neighborhood in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Lager House - year-round production5.2%A Muncher-styled Helles, this golden colored lager features a slightly toasted, yet defined malt character, with a touch of hops for a clean finish. Made to the standard of the Reinheitsgebot Purity Law.
Northern Liberties IPA - year-round production6.3% ABV, 74 IBUNamed after a section of old Cincinnati downtown north of Liberty street, prior to 1849 an area outside of municipal law known to for its tolerance of beliefs and behavior otherwise shunned in Cincinnati proper.
Barbarossa - year-round production5% ABV, 20 IBUA Bavarian double dark lager, the Barbarossa is slow-aged with a reddish-brown color and a malt aroma derived from Munich dark malt. Named in honor of Frederick I, emperor of Germany, known as Barbarossa.
Emancipator Doppelbock - Late winter/early spring seasonal7% ABVBrewed with six unique varieties of malts, this doppelbock boasts a toasted character with a deep brown color and hints of caramel and toffee. First brewed to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the repeal of prohibition.
Fifth & Vine Oktoberfest - Fall seasonal5.4% ABV, 19 IBUA marzen style lager with a lightly toasted character with a touch of sweetness and a deep copper color. This selection is a seasonal offering available only in the autumn months.
Christkindl Ale - Winter seasonal7% ABVAn unspiced winter-warmer, this beer is a large malt-bodied ale with the essence of chocolate sweetness and a spiciness that is achieved from the addition of Target and East Kent Golding hops. This selection is a seasonal offering available during the winter holiday season.
Saengerfest Lager - Late spring seasonal6.5% ABVA golden lager with malt notes and a clean hop finish. Its name refers to the Saengerfest choral celebrations that began in Cincinnati starting in 1849 and led to the construction of Cincinnati Music Hall in 1878.

Ye Good Ole Say EAN at Price or Cost of Whom deals The Play^EAN of Uncle Sam Wants You Four The Yu Ess Arm MI, or, is it finding The source of the chalk let Outline to Were^Read over The Seed??


James K. Polk

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the U.S. president. For other uses, see James Polk (disambiguation).
James K. Polk
James Knox Polk by GPA Healy, 1858.jpg
James Knox Polk by George Healy (White House, 1858)
11th President of the United States
In office
March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849
Vice PresidentGeorge M. Dallas
Preceded byJohn Tyler
Succeeded byZachary Taylor
9th Governor of Tennessee
In office
October 14, 1839 – October 15, 1841
Preceded byNewton Cannon
Succeeded byJames C. Jones
13th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
In office
December 7, 1835 – March 4, 1839
PresidentAndrew Jackson
Martin Van Buren
Preceded byJohn Bell
Succeeded byRobert M. T. Hunter
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Tennessee's 9th district
In office
March 4, 1833 – March 4, 1839
Preceded byWilliam Fitzgerald
Succeeded byHarvey Magee Watterson
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Tennessee's 6th district
In office
March 4, 1825 – March 4, 1833
Preceded byJohn Alexander Cocke
Succeeded byBalie Peyton
Personal details
BornJames Knox Polk
November 2, 1795
Pineville, North Carolina, U.S.
DiedJune 15, 1849 (aged 53)
Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Resting placeTennessee State Capitol
Nashville, Tennessee
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)Sarah Childress (m. 1824; his death 1849)
Alma materUniversity of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
ProfessionLawyer
Planter
ReligionMethodist (formerlyPresbyterianism)
SignatureCursive signature in ink
The house where Polk spent his adult life before his presidency, in Columbia, Tennessee, is his only private residence still standing. It is now known as the James K. Polk Ancestral Home.
James Knox Polk (November 2, 1795 – June 15, 1849) was the 11th President of the United States (1845–49). Polk was born inMecklenburg CountyNorth Carolina.[1] He later lived in and represented Tennessee. A Democrat, Polk served as the 13th Speaker of the House of Representatives (1835–39)—the only president to have served as House Speaker—and Governor of Tennessee(1839–41). Polk was the surprise (dark horse) candidate for president in 1844, defeating Henry Clay of the rival Whig Party by promising to annex Texas. Polk was a leader of Jacksonian Democracy during the Second Party System. His nickname was "Young Hickory" because of his close association with "Old Hickory", Andrew Jackson.
Polk is often considered the last strong pre–Civil War president, having met during his four years in office every major domestic and foreign policy goal set during his campaign and the transition to his administration: When Mexico rejected American annexation of Texas, Polk led the nation to a sweeping victory in the Mexican–American War, seizing nearly the whole of what is now the American Southwest. He ensured a substantial reduction of tariff rates by replacing the "Black Tariff" with the Walker tariff of 1846, which pleased the less-industrialized states of his native South by rendering less expensive both imported and, through competition, domestic goods. He threatened war with the United Kingdom over the issue of which nation owned the Oregon Country, eventually reaching a settlement in which the British were made to sell the portion that became the Oregon Territory. Additionally, he built an independent treasury system that lasted until 1913, oversaw the opening of the U.S. Naval Academy, the Smithsonian Institution, the groundbreaking for the Washington Monument, and the issuance of the first United States postage stamp.
True to his campaign pledge to serve only one term as President, Polk left office and returned to Tennessee in March 1849. He died of cholera three months later.
Scholars have ranked him favorably on lists of greatest presidents for his ability to promote, obtain support for, and achieve all of the major items on his presidential agenda. Polk has been called the "least known consequential president"[2] of the United States.

Early life[edit]

James Knox Polk, the first of ten children, was born on November 2, 1795 in a farmhouse (possibly a log cabin)[1] in what is nowPineville, North Carolina in Mecklenburg County, just outside Charlotte.[3] His father, Samuel Polk, was a slaveholder, successful farmer and surveyor of Scots-Irish descent. His mother, Jane Polk (née Knox), was a descendant of a brother of the Scottishreligious reformer John Knox. She named her firstborn after her father James Knox.[3] Like most early Scots-Irish settlers in the North Carolina mountains, the Knox and Polk families were Presbyterian. While Jane remained a devout Presbyterian her entire life, Samuel (whose father, Ezekiel Polk, was a deist) rejected dogmatic Presbyterianism. When the parents took James to church to be baptized, the father Samuel refused to declare his belief in Christianity, and the minister refused to baptize the child.[3][4] In 1803, most of Polk's relatives moved to the Duck River area in what is now Maury County, Middle Tennessee; Polk's family waited until 1806 to follow.[5] The family grew prosperous, with Samuel Polk turning to land speculation and becoming a county judge.[5]
Polk was home schooled.[5] His health was problematic and in 1812 his pain became so unbearable that he was taken to Dr. Ephraim McDowell of Danville, Kentucky, who operated to remove urinary stones.[6] Polk was awake during the operation with nothing butbrandy available for anesthetic, but it was successful. The surgery may have left Polk sterile, as he did not sire any children.[7]
When Polk recovered, his father offered to bring him into the mercantile business, but Polk refused.[6] In July 1813, Polk enrolled at the Zion Church near his home. A year later he attended an academy in Murfreesboro, where he may have met his future wife, Sarah Childress.[8] At Murfreesboro, Polk proved a promising student. In January 1816, he transferred and was admitted into the University of North Carolina as a second-semester sophomore. The Polks had connections with the university, then a small school of about 80 students: Sam Polk was their land agent for Tennessee, and his cousin, William Polk, was a trustee.[9] While there, Polk joined the Dialectic Society where he regularly took part in debates and learned the art of oratory. His roommate William Dunn Moseley later became the first governor of Florida. Polk graduated with honors in May 1818.[10] The University later named the lower quad on its main campus, Polk Place.[11]
After graduation, Polk traveled to Nashville to study law under renowned Nashville trial attorney Felix Grundy.[12] Grundy became Polk's first mentor. On September 20, 1819, Polk, with Grundy's endorsement, was elected clerk for the Tennessee State Senate.[13] Polk was reelected as clerk in 1821 without opposition, and would continue to serve until 1822. Polk waslicensed to practice law in June 1820. His first case was to defend his father against a public fighting charge. He secured his client's release for a one-dollar fine.[13] Polk's practice was successful, in large part due to the many cases arising from debts after the Panic of 1819.[14]

Early political career[edit]

In 1822 Polk joined the Tennessee militia as a captain in the cavalry regiment of the 5th Brigade. He was later appointed a colonel on the staff of Governor William Carroll, and was afterwards often referred to or addressed by his military title.[15][16] Polk's oratory became popular, earning him the nickname "Napoleon of the Stump." In 1822 Polk resigned his position as clerk to run his successful campaign for the Tennessee state legislature in 1823, in which he defeated incumbent William Yancey, becoming the new representative of Maury County.[15][17] In October 1823 Polk voted for Andrew Jackson to become the next United States Senator from Tennessee.[18] Jackson won and from then on Polk was a firm supporter of Jackson.[19]
James K. Polk and Sarah Childress Polk.
Polk courted Sarah Childress, and they married on January 1, 1824 in Murfreesboro.[17] Polk was then 28, and Sarah was 20 years old. They had no children. During Polk's political career, Sarah assisted her husband with his speeches, gave him advice on policy matters and played an active role in his campaigns. An old story told that Andrew Jackson had encouraged their romance when they began to court.[20]
In 1824, Jackson ran for President but was defeated.[21] Though Jackson had won the popular vote, neither he nor any of the other candidates (John Quincy AdamsHenry Clay, and William H. Crawford) had won a majority of the electoral vote. The House of Representatives then had to select the verdict; Clay, who had received the least amount of electoral votes and dropped from the ballot, supported Adams.[21] Clay's support proved to be the deciding factor in the House and Adams was elected President.[21]Adams then offered Clay a position in the Cabinet as Secretary of State.[21]
In 1825, Polk ran for the United States House of Representatives for the Tennessee's 6th congressional district.[22] Polk vigorously campaigned in the district. Polk was so active that Sarah began to worry about his health.[22] During the campaign, Polk's opponents said that at the age of 29 Polk was too young for a spot in the House, but he won the election and took his seat in Congress.[22] When Polk arrived in Washington, D.C. he roomed in Benjamin Burch's boarding house with some other Tennessee representatives, including Sam Houston. Polk made his first major speech on March 13, 1826, in which he said that the Electoral College should be abolished and that the President should be elected by the popular vote.[23] After Congress went into recess in the summer of 1826, Polk returned to Tennessee to see Sarah, and when Congress met again in the autumn, Polk returned to Washington with Sarah. In 1827 Polk was reelected to Congress.[24] In 1828, Jackson ran for President again and during the campaign Polk and Jackson corresponded, with Polk giving Jackson advice on his campaign. With Jackson's victory in the election Polk began to support the administration's position in Congress.[25] During this time, Polk continued to be reelected in the House. In August 1833, after being elected to this fifth term, Polk became the chair of the House Ways and Means Committee.[26]

Speaker of the House[edit]

In June 1834, Speaker of the House Andrew Stevenson resigned, leaving the spot for speaker open.[27] Polk ran against fellow Tennessean John Bell for Speaker, and, after ten ballots, Bell won. However, in 1835, Polk ran against Bell for Speaker again and won.[28]
Polk worked for Jackson's policies as speaker, and Van Buren's when he succeeded Jackson in 1837; he appointed committees with Democratic chairs and majorities, including the New York radical C. C. Cambreleng as Chair of the Ways and Means Committee, although he maintained the facade of traditional bipartisanship.[29] The two major issues during Polk's speakership were slavery and the economy, after the Panic of 1837. Van Buren and Polk faced pressure to rescind the Specie Circular, an act that had been signed by Jackson to boost the economy. The act required that payment for government lands be in gold and silver. However, with support from Polk and his cabinet, Van Buren chose to stick with the Specie Circular.[30]
Polk attempted to make a more orderly house. He never challenged anyone to a duel no matter how much they insulted his honor as was customary then.[31] Polk also issued thegag rule on petitions from abolitionists.[31] He remains the only president who served as Speaker of the House.

Governor of Tennessee[edit]

In 1838, the political situation in Tennessee—where, in 1835, Democrats had lost the governorship for the first time in their party's history—persuaded Polk to return to help the party at home.[32] Leaving Congress in 1839, Polk became a candidate in the Tennessee gubernatorial election, defeating the incumbent WhigNewton Cannon by about 2,500 votes, out of about 105,000.[33]
Polk's three major programs during his governorship; regulating state banks, implementing state internal improvements, and improving education all did not get approval by the legislature.[34] In the presidential election of 1840, Van Buren and James Polk were overwhelmingly defeated by a popular Whig, William Henry Harrison. Polk received one electoral vote from Tennessee for Vice President in the election.[35] Polk lost his own reelection to James C. Jones, in 1841, by 3,243 votes.[36] He challenged Jones in 1843, campaigning across the state and publicly debating against Jones, but was defeated again, this time by a slightly greater margin of 3,833 votes.[37][38]

Election of 1844[edit]

1844 campaign banner, produced by Nathaniel Currier
Polk initially hoped to be nominated for vice president at the Democratic convention, which began on May 27, 1844.[39] The leading contender for the presidential nomination was former President Martin Van Buren,[40] who wanted to stop the expansion of slavery. Other candidates included James Buchanan, General Lewis CassCave JohnsonJohn C. Calhoun, and Levi Woodbury. The primary point of political contention involved the Republic of Texas, which, after declaring independence from Mexico in 1836, had asked to join the United States, but was refused by Washington. Van Buren opposed the annexation but in doing so lost the support of many Democrats, including former President Andrew Jackson, who still had much influence. Van Buren won a simple majority on the convention's first ballot but did not attain the two-thirds supermajority required for nomination. In subsequent rounds the vote swung toward Cass, but he also fell short of the supermajority. When it became clear after another six ballots that neither of the front-runners would win the required majority, Polk emerged as a "dark horse" candidate. After an indecisive eighth ballot, the convention unanimously nominated Polk.
Before the convention, Jackson told Polk that he was his favorite for the nomination of the Democratic Party. Even with this support, Polk instructed his managers at the convention to support Van Buren if he could win the nomination. This assured that if a deadlocked convention occurred, initial supporters of Van Buren would pick Polk as a compromise candidate for the Democrats. In the end, this is exactly what happened as a result of Polk's support of westward expansion.[41]
When advised of his nomination, Polk replied: "It has been well observed that the office of President of the United States should neither be sought nor declined. I have never sought it, nor should I feel at liberty to decline it, if conferred upon me by the voluntary suffrages of my fellow citizens." Because the Democratic Party was splintered into bitter factions, Polk promised to serve only one term if elected, hoping that his disappointed rival Democrats would unite behind him with the knowledge that another candidate would be chosen in four years.[42]
Polk's Whig opponent in the 1844 presidential election was Henry Clay of Kentucky. (Incumbent President John Tyler—a former Democrat and Whig—had been expelled from the Whig Party in September 1841 and was not nominated for a second term.) The annexation of Texas, which was at the forefront during the Democratic Convention, again dominated the campaign. Polk was a strong proponent of immediate annexation, while Clay seemed more equivocal and vacillating.
Results of the 1844 Presidential election
Another campaign issue, also related to westward expansion, involved the Oregon Country, then under the joint occupation of the United States and the United Kingdom. The Democrats had championed the cause of expansion, informally linking the controversial Texas annexation issue with a claim to the entire Oregon Country, thus appealing to both Northern and Southern expansionists. (The slogan "Fifty-four Forty or Fight", often incorrectly attributed to the 1844 election, did not appear until later.) Polk's consistent support for westward expansion—what Democrats would later call "Manifest Destiny"—likely played an important role in his victory, as his opponent Clay hedged his position.
In the election, Polk and his running mate, George M. Dallas, won in the South and West, while Clay drew support in the Northeast. Polk lost both his birth state, North Carolina, and his state of residence, Tennessee, the most recent successful presidential candidate to do so. However, he won New York, where Clay lost votes to the antislavery Liberty Party candidate James G. Birney. Also contributing to Polk's victory was the support of new immigrant voters, who opposed the Whigs' policies. Polk won the popular vote by a margin of about 39,000 out of 2.6 million, and took the Electoral College with 170 votes to Clay's 105.[43] Polk won 15 states, while Clay won 11.[44]

Presidency (1845–1849)[edit]

The inauguration of James K. Polk, as shown in the Illustrated London News, v. 6, April 19, 1845.
When he took office on March 4, 1845, Polk, at 49, became the youngest man at the time to assume the presidency. This was the first inaugural ceremony to be reported by telegraph and to be shown in a newspaper illustration (in The Illustrated London News).[45] According to a story told decades later by George Bancroft, Polk set four clearly defined goals for his administration:
Pledged to serve only one term, he accomplished all these objectives in just four years. By linking acquisition of new lands in Oregon (with no slavery) and Texas (with slavery), he hoped to satisfy both North and South.
During his presidency James K. Polk was known as "Young Hickory", an allusion to his mentor Andrew Jackson, and "Napoleon of the Stump" for his speaking skills.

Fiscal policy[edit]

In 1846, Congress approved the Walker Tariff (named after Robert J. Walker, the Secretary of the Treasury), which represented a substantial reduction of the high Whig-backedTariff of 1842.[46] The new law abandoned ad valorem tariffs and set rates independent of the monetary value of the product. Polk's actions were popular in the South and West; however, they were despised by many protectionists in Pennsylvania.
In 1846, Polk approved a law restoring the Independent Treasury System, under which government funds were held in the Treasury and not in banks or other financial institutions. This established independent treasury deposit offices, separate from private or state banks, to receive all government funds.

Rivers and Harbors Veto[edit]

Congress passed the Rivers and Harbors Bill in 1846 to provide $500,000 to improve rivers and harbors, but Polk vetoed the bill. It would have provided for federally fundedinternal improvements on small harbors. Polk believed that this was unconstitutional because the bill unfairly favored particular areas, including ports which had no foreign trade. Polk believed that these problems were local and not national. Polk feared that passing the Rivers and Harbors Bill would encourage legislators to compete for favors for their home districts – a type of corruption that would spell doom to the virtue of the republic.[47] In this regard he followed his hero Andrew Jackson, who had vetoed the Maysville Road Bill in 1830 on similar grounds.[48]

Slavery[edit]

President Polk photograph by Mathew Brady
James Polk's desire to gain territory in the West caused a battle over the expansion of slavery between North and South. During his presidency, many abolitionists harshly criticized him as an instrument of the "Slave Power", and claimed that spreading slavery was the reason he supported annexing Texas and later war with Mexico.[49] The Wilmot Proviso, introduced by Democratic RepresentativeDavid Wilmot of Pennsylvania on August 8, 1846 (just two months after the outbreak of the Mexican–American War), aimed to ban slavery anywhere in any territory that might be acquired from Mexico. Polk and many other Southerners were against the measure (which passed in the House, but not in the Senate). Polk argued instead for extending the Missouri Compromise line west to thePacific Ocean. That would have allowed slavery below the 36° 30' latitude line west of Missouri, and prohibit it above.[50]
Polk was a slaveholder for his entire life. His father, Samuel Polk, had left Polk more than 8,000 acres (32 km²) of land, and divided about 53 slaves to his widow and children after he died. James inherited twenty of his father's slaves, either directly or from deceased brothers. In 1831, he became an absentee cotton planter, sending slaves to clear plantation land that his father had left him nearSomerville, Tennessee. Four years later Polk sold his Somerville plantation and, together with his brother-in-law, bought 920 acres (3.7 km²) of land, a cotton plantation near Coffeeville, Mississippi. He ran this plantation for the rest of his life, eventually taking it over completely from his brother-in-law. Polk rarely sold slaves, although once he became President and could better afford it, he bought more. Polk's will stipulated that their slaves were to be freed after his wife Sarah had died. However, the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation and the 1865 Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution freed all remaining slaves in rebel states long before the death of his wife in 1891.[51]

Foreign policy[edit]

Polk strongly supported expansion. Democrats believed that opening up more land for yeoman farmers was critical for the success of republican virtue. (See Manifest Destiny.) Like most Southerners, he supported the annexation of Texas. To balance the interests of North and South, he wanted to acquire the Oregon Country (present-day Oregon,WashingtonIdaho, and British Columbia) as well. He sought to purchase California, which Mexico had neglected.

Oregon territory[edit]

Main article: Oregon boundary dispute
The Oregon Territory, established by the Oregon Treaty
Polk put heavy pressure on Britain to resolve the Oregon boundary dispute. Since 1818, the territory had been under the joint occupation and control of the United Kingdom and the United States. Previous U.S. administrations had offered to divide the region along the 49th parallel, which was not acceptable to Britain, as they had commercial interests along the Columbia River. Although the Democratic platform asserted a claim to the entire region, Polk was willing to compromise. When the British again refused to accept the 49th parallel boundary proposal, Polk broke off negotiations and returned to the Democratic platform's "All Oregon" demand (which called for all of Oregon up to the 54-40 line that marked the southern boundary of Russian Alaska). "54-40 or fight!" now became a popular rallying cry among Democrats.[52]
Polk wanted territory, not war, so he compromised with the British Foreign Secretary, Lord Aberdeen. The Oregon Treaty of 1846 divided the Oregon Country along the 49th parallel, the original American proposal. Although there were many who still clamored for the entire territory, the treaty was approved by the Senate. By settling for the 49th parallel, Polk angered many midwestern Democrats. Many of these Democrats believed that Polk had always wanted the boundary at the 49th, and that he had fooled them into believing he wanted it at the 54th parallel. The portion of the Oregon Territory acquired by the United States later formed the states of WashingtonOregon, and Idaho, and parts of the states of Montana and Wyoming.

Texas[edit]

Main article: Texas Annexation
Map of Mexico in 1845, with the Republic of Texas, the Republic of Yucatan and the disputed territory between Mexico and Texas in red. Mexico claimed to own all of Texas.
Upon hearing of Polk's election to office, Tyler urged Congress to pass a joint resolution admitting Texas to the Union; Congress complied on February 28, 1845. Texas promptly accepted the offer and officially became a state on December 29, 1845. The annexation angered Mexico, which had lost Texas in 1836. Mexican politicians had repeatedly warned that annexation would lead to war. Nonetheless, just days after the resolution passed Congress, Polk declared in his inaugural address that only Texas and the United States would decide whether to annex.

Invasion of Mexico[edit]

Main article: Mexican–American War
Polk's presidential proclamation ofwar against Mexico
After the Texas annexation, Polk turned his attention to California, hoping to acquire the territory from Mexico before any European nation did so. The main interest wasSan Francisco Bay as an access point for trade with Asia. In 1845, he sent diplomatJohn Slidell to Mexico to purchase California and New Mexico for $24–30 million. Slidell's arrival caused political turmoil in Mexico after word leaked out that he was there to purchase additional territory and not to offer compensation for the loss of Texas. The Mexicans refused to receive Slidell, citing a technical problem with his credentials. In January 1846, to increase pressure on Mexico to negotiate, Polk sent troops under General Zachary Taylor into the area between the Nueces River and theRio Grande—territory that was claimed by both the U.S. and Mexico.
Slidell returned to Washington in May 1846, having been rebuffed by the Mexican government. Polk regarded this treatment of his diplomat as an insult and an "ample cause of war",[53] and he prepared to ask Congress for a declaration of war. Meanwhile, Taylor crossed the Rio Grande and briefly occupied Matamoros, Tamaulipas. Taylor continued to blockade ships from entering the port of Matamoros. Mere days before Polk intended to make his request to Congress, he received word that Mexican forces had crossed the Rio Grande area and killed eleven American soldiers. Polk then made this the casus belli, and in a message to Congress on May 11, 1846, he stated that Mexico had "invaded our territory and shed American blood upon the American soil."
Some Whigs, such as Abraham Lincoln, challenged Polk's version of events,[54] but Congress overwhelmingly approved the declaration of war. Many Whigs feared that opposition would cost them politically by casting themselves as unpatriotic for not supporting the war effort.[55]
In the House, antislavery Whigs led by John Quincy Adams voted against the war; among Democrats, Senator John C. Calhoun was the most notable opponent of the declaration.

Military action[edit]

Polk selected the top generals and set the military strategy of the war. By the summer of 1846, American forces under General Stephen W. Kearny had captured New Mexico. Meanwhile, Army captain John C. Frémont led settlers in northern California to overthrow the Mexican garrison in Sonoma (in the Bear Flag Revolt). General Zachary Taylor, at the same time, was having success on the Rio Grande, although Polk did not reinforce his troops there. The United States also negotiated a secret arrangement with Antonio López de Santa Anna, the Mexican general and dictator who had been overthrown in 1844. Santa Anna agreed that, if given safe passage into Mexico, he would attempt to persuade those in power to sell California and New Mexico to the United States. Once he reached Mexico, however, he reneged on his agreement, declared himself President, and tried to drive the American invaders back. Santa Anna's efforts, however, were in vain, as Generals Taylor and Winfield Scott destroyed all resistance. Scott captured Mexico City in September 1847, and Taylor won a series of victories in northern Mexico. Even after these battles, Mexico did not surrender until 1848, when it agreed to peace terms set out by Polk.

Peace: the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo[edit]

The Mexican Cession (in red) was acquired through theTreaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The Gadsden Purchase (in orange) was acquired through purchase after Polk left office.
Polk sent diplomat Nicholas Trist to negotiate with the Mexicans. Lack of progress prompted the President to order Trist to return to the United States, but the diplomat ignored the instructions and stayed in Mexico to continue bargaining. Trist successfully negotiated the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848, which Polk agreed to ratify, ignoring calls from Democrats who demanded that all Mexico be annexed. The treaty added 1.2 million square miles (3.1 million square kilometers) of territory to the United States; Mexico's size was halved, while that of the United States increased by a third.CaliforniaNevadaUtah, most of Arizona, and parts of New MexicoColorado and Wyoming were all included in the Mexican Cession. The treaty also recognized the annexation of Texas and acknowledged American control over the disputed territory between the Nueces River and the Rio Grande. Mexico, in turn, received $15 million. The war claimed fewer than 20,000 American lives but over 50,000 Mexican ones.[56] It may have cost the United States $100 million.[57]Finally, the Wilmot Proviso injected the issue of slavery in the new territories, even though Polk had insisted to Congress and in his diary that this had never been a war goal.
The treaty, however, needed ratification by the Senate. In March 1848, the Whigs, who had been so opposed to Polk's policy, suddenly changed position. Two-thirds of the Whigs voted for Polk's treaty. This ended the war and legalized the acquisition of the territories.
The war had serious consequences for Polk and the Democrats. It gave the Whig Party a unifying message of denouncing the war as an immoral act of aggression carried out through abuse of power by the president. In the 1848 election, however, the Whigs nominated General Zachary Taylor, a war hero, and celebrated his victories. Taylor refused to criticize Polk. As a result of the strain of managing the war effort directly and in close detail, Polk's health markedly declined toward the end of his presidency.

Cuba[edit]

In mid-1848, President Polk authorized his ambassador to Spain, Romulus Mitchell Saunders, to negotiate the purchase of Cuba and offer Spain up to $100 million, an astounding sum at the time for one territory, equal to $2.74 billion in present-day terms.[58] Cuba was close to the United States and had slavery, so the idea appealed to Southerners but was unwelcome in the North. However, Spain was still making huge profits in Cuba (notably in sugar, molasses, rum, and tobacco), and thus the Spanish government rejected Saunders' overtures.[59]

Department of the Interior[edit]

One of Polk's last acts as President was to sign the bill creating the Department of the Interior (March 3, 1849). This was the first new cabinet position created since the early days of the Republic. Polk had misgivings about the federal government usurping power over public lands from the states; however, the delivery of the legislation on his last full day in office gave him no time to find constitutional grounds for a veto, or to draft a sufficient veto message, so Polk signed the bill.[60]

Administration and cabinet[edit]

Polk and his cabinet in the White House dining room.
Front row, left to right: John Y. MasonWilliam L. Marcy, James K. Polk, Robert J. Walker
Back row, left to right: Cave JohnsonGeorge Bancroft
Secretary of State James Buchanan is absent.
The Polk Cabinet
OfficeNameTerm
PresidentJames K. Polk1845–1849
Vice PresidentGeorge M. Dallas1845–1849
Secretary of StateJames Buchanan1845–1849
Secretary of TreasuryRobert J. Walker1845–1849
Secretary of WarWilliam L. Marcy1845–1849
Attorney GeneralJohn Y. Mason1845–1846
Nathan Clifford1846–1848
Isaac Toucey1848–1849
Postmaster GeneralCave Johnson1845–1849
Secretary of the NavyGeorge Bancroft1845–1846
John Y. Mason1846–1849

Judicial appointments[edit]

Robert Cooper Grier, one of President Polk's two appointees to the Supreme Court.

Supreme Court[edit]

Polk appointed the following Justices to the U.S. Supreme Court:
JusticePositionBegan active
service
Ended active
service
Robert Cooper GrierSeat 1August 4, 1846January 31, 1870
Levi WoodburySeat 2September 20, 1845[61]September 4, 1851
Woodbury was from New Hampshire, and Grier from Pennsylvania. Polk also nominated George W. Woodward of Pennsylvania in 1846, but theUnited States Senate rejected the nomination.

Other judicial appointments[edit]

Polk appointed eight other federal judges, one to the United States Circuit Court of the District of Columbia, and seven to various United States district courts.

Congress[edit]

29th Congress (March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1847)
  • Senate: 31 Democrats, 31 Whigs, 1 Other (President Pro Tempore – Willie P. Mangum (Whig-NC), Ambrose H. Servier (D-AR), and David R. Atchison (D-MO))
  • House: 143 Democrats, 77 Whigs, 6 Others (Speaker – John W. Davis of Indiana)
30th Congress (March 4, 1847 – March 4, 1849)
  • Senate: 36 Democrats, 21 Whigs, 1 Other (President Pro Tempore – David R. Atchison (D-MO))
  • House: 115 Whigs, 108 Democrats, 4 Others (Speaker – Robert C. Winthrop of Massachusetts)

States admitted to the Union[edit]

Post-presidency[edit]

James K. Polk's tomb lies on the grounds of the state capitol in Nashville, Tennessee.
Polk's time in the White House took its toll on his health. Full of enthusiasm and vigor when he entered office, Polk left on March 4, 1849, exhausted by his years of public service. He lost weight and had deep lines on his face and dark circles under his eyes. He is believed to have contracted cholera in New OrleansLouisiana, on a goodwill tour of the South after leaving the White House.[62] He died of cholera at his new home,[63] Polk Place, in Nashville, Tennessee, at 3:15 pm on June 15, 1849, three months after leaving office. He was buried on the grounds of Polk Place. Polk's last words illustrate his devotion to his wife: "I love you, Sarah. For all eternity, I love you."[64] She lived at Polk Place for over forty years after his death. She died on August 14, 1891. Polk was also survived by his mother, Jane Knox Polk, who died on January 11, 1852.[65][66] In 1893, the bodies of President and Mrs. Polk were exhumed and relocated to their current resting place on the grounds of the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville. Polk Place was demolished in 1900.
Polk had the shortest retirement of all Presidents at 103 days. He was the youngest former president to die in retirement at the age of 53. Along with George WashingtonAndrew JohnsonChester A. ArthurCalvin Coolidge and Lyndon B. Johnson, he is one of six presidents to have died while his direct successor was in office.

Reputation[edit]

A statue of James Knox Polk at the North Carolina State Capitol
Polk's historic reputation was largely formed by the attacks made on him in his own time; the Whigs claimed that he was drawn from a well-deserved obscurity; Senator Tom Corwin of Ohio remarked "James K. Polk, of Tennessee? After that, who is safe?" The Republican historians of the nineteenth century inherited this view. Polk was a compromise between the Democrats of the North, like David Wilmot and Silas Wright, and the plantation owners who were led by John C. Calhoun; the northern Democrats thought that when they did not get their way, it was because he was the tool of the slaveholders, and the conservatives of the South insisted that he was the tool of the northern Democrats. These views were long reflected in the historical literature, until Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr and Bernard De Voto argued that Polk was nobody's tool, but set his own goals and achieved them.[67]
Polk is now recognized, not only as the strongest president between Jackson and Lincoln, but the president who made the United States a coast-to-coast nation. When historians began ranking the presidents in 1948, Polk ranked 10th in Arthur M. Schlesinger's poll. and has subsequently ranked 8th in Schlesinger's 1962 poll, 11th in the Riders-McIver Poll (1996), 11th in the most recent Siena Poll (2002), 9th in the most recent Wall Street Journal Poll (2005), and 12th in the latest C-Span Poll (2009).[68]
Polk biographers over the years have sized up the magnitude of Polk's achievements and his legacy, particularly his two most recent. "There are three key reasons why James K. Polk deserves recognition as a significant and influential American president," Walter Borneman wrote. "First, Polk accomplished the objectives of his presidential term as he defined them; second, he was the most decisive chief executive before the Civil War; and third, he greatly expanded the executive power of the presidency, particularly its war powers, its role as commander-in-chief, and its oversight of the executive branch."[69] President Harry S. Truman summarized this view by saying that Polk was "a great president. Said what he intended to do and did it."[70]
While Polk's legacy thus takes many forms, the most outstanding is the map of the continental United States, whose landmass he increased by a third. "To look at that map," Robert Merry concluded, "and to take in the western and southwestern expanse included in it, is to see the magnitude of Polk's presidential accomplishments."[71]
Nevertheless, Polk's aggressive expansionism has been criticized on ethical grounds. He believed in "Manifest Destiny" even more than most did. Referencing the Mexican–American War, General Ulysses S. Grant stated that "I was bitterly opposed to the [Texas annexation], and to this day regard the war, which resulted, as one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation. It was an instance of a republic following the bad example of European monarchies, in not considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory."[72] Whig politicians, including Abraham Lincoln and John Quincy Adams, contended that the Texas Annexationand the Mexican Cession enhanced the pro-slavery factions of the United States.[73] Unsatisfactory conditions pertaining to the status of slavery in the territories acquired during the Polk administration led to the Compromise of 1850, one of the primary factors in the establishment of the Republican Party and later the beginning of the American Civil War.[74]
Humorously, Sam Houston is said to have observed that Polk was "a victim of the use of water as a beverage".[75]