Martin Van Buren

Martin Van Buren
8th President of the United States
In office March 4, 1837 – March 4, 1841
Vice President	Richard Mentor Johnson
Preceded by	Andrew Jackson
Succeeded by	William Henry Harrison
8th Vice President of the United States
In office March 4, 1833 – March 4, 1837
President	Andrew Jackson
Preceded by	John C. Calhoun
Succeeded by	Richard Mentor Johnson
10th United States Secretary of State
In office March 28, 1829 – May 23, 1831
President	Andrew Jackson
Preceded by	Henry Clay
Succeeded by	Edward Livingston
Personal details
Born	(1782-12-05)December 5, 1782 Kinderhook, New York, USA
Died	July 24, 1862(1862-07-24) (aged 79) Kinderhook, New York
Nationality	American
Political party	Democratic-Republican, Democratic, and Free Soil
Spouse(s)	Widowed Hannah Van Buren (daughter-in-law Angelica Van Buren was first lady)
Children	Abraham Van Buren John Van Buren Martin Van Buren (1812–55) Smith Thompson Van Buren
Occupation	Lawyer
Signature

Martin Van Buren (December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was the eighth president of the United States. He was the first president born after the United States Declaration of Independence, making him the first president who was born as a U.S. citizen after 1776.^[1]

Van Buren was born in Kinderhook, New York, in 1782. Van Buren studied law by working for Francis Sylvester and later became a lawyer in 1803. In 1821 he was elected as a member of the United States Senate, representing New York.^[2] President Andrew Jackson selected him as the Secretary of State in 1827. In 1832, he became vice President of the United States of America for Jackson, and in 1836, he became the 8th president of the United States.^[2] During most of the time he was president, the economy was in very bad shape, and he was blamed for it. He was the first president to have been born a United States citizen,^[3] since all of his predecessors were born British subjects before the American Revolution.^[4]

Van Buren lost the next presidential election in 1840 to William Henry Harrison.^[2] In 1848, he ran again to be president as a part of the Free Soil Party, but he did not win.^[2] Van Buren died on July 24, 1862, of heart failure after suffering from an asthma attack, on his Lindenwald estate.

1. ↑ Lazo, Caroline Evensen (2005). Martin Van Buren. Presidential leaders. Twenty-First Century Books. ISBN 9780822513940. Retrieved January 31, 2010.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3} "Martin Van Buren | The White House". whitehouse.gov. 2011 [last update]. Retrieved April 2, 2011.
3. ↑ NARA.gov Archived 2014-03-10 at the Wayback Machine, Martin Van Buren
4. ↑ "Martin van Buren". Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2013-05-08.