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114-521: Alpha Gamma Rho considers the Morrill Act of 1862 to be the instrument of its inception. Having been signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1862, it provided land and other financial support to establish one institution of higher learning in the agricultural and mechanical sciences within each state. Alpha Gamma Rho, referred to as "AGR", was founded when two local fraternities from Ohio State University (Alpha Gamma Rho, founded on October 10, 1904) and

228-478: A Reserve Officers' Training Corps program. The second Morrill Act (1890) was also aimed at the former Confederate states . This act required each state to show that race was not an admissions criterion, or else to designate a separate land-grant institution for African Americans. Thus, the second Morrill Act facilitated segregated education, although it also provided higher educational opportunities for African Americans who otherwise would not have had them. Among

342-510: A "dangerous" and "geographical" party that had unfairly attacked the South. He also declared, "the object of my administration will be to destroy sectional party, North or South, and to restore harmony to the Union under a national and conservative government." He set about this initially by feigning a sectional balance in his cabinet appointments. Buchanan was inaugurated on March 4, 1857, taking

456-862: A congressional censure of Jackson stemming from the Bank War . Buchanan served in the Senate until March 1845 and was twice confirmed in office. To unite Pennsylvania Democrats at the State Convention, he was chosen as their candidate for the National Convention . Buchanan maintained a strict adherence to the Pennsylvania State Legislature 's guidelines and sometimes voted against positions in Congress which he promoted in his own speeches, despite open ambitions for

570-585: A legitimate reason for war. During the Mexican-American War , Buchanan initially advised against claiming territory south of the Rio Grande, fearing war with Britain and France. However, as the war came to an end, Buchanan changed his mind and argued for the annexation of further territory, arguing that Mexico was to blame for the war and that the compensation negotiated for the American losses

684-598: A log cabin on a farm called Stony Batter , near Cove Gap , Peters Township , in the Allegheny Mountains of southern Pennsylvania . He was the last president born in the 18th century and, until the election of Joe Biden in 2020, the only one born in Pennsylvania. Buchanan was the second of eleven children with six sisters and four brothers, and the eldest son of James Buchanan Sr. (1761–1821) and his wife Elizabeth Speer (1767–1833). James Buchanan Sr.,

798-549: A majority vote. He was appointed to the Agriculture Committee in his first year, and he eventually became chairman of the Judiciary Committee . In 1831, Buchanan declined a nomination for the 22nd United States Congress from his constituency consisting of Dauphin , Lebanon , and Lancaster counties. He still had political ambitions and some Pennsylvania Democrats put him forward as a candidate for

912-810: A militia during the War of 1812, during the British occupation he joined a group of young men who stole horses for the United States Army in the Baltimore area. He was the last president involved in the War of 1812 . In 1814, he was elected for the Federalists to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives , where he was the youngest member, and held this seat until 1816. Since the sessions in

1026-485: A nativist Federalist bill. During the 1824 presidential election , Buchanan initially supported Henry Clay , but switched to Andrew Jackson (with Clay as a second choice) when it became clear that the Pennsylvanian public overwhelmingly preferred Jackson. After Jackson lost the 1824 election, he joined his faction, but Jackson had contempt for Buchanan due to his misinterpretation of his efforts to mediate between

1140-575: A result, anti-slavery residents boycotted the referendum since it did not provide a meaningful choice. Despite the protests of Walker and two former Kansas governors, Buchanan decided to accept the Lecompton Constitution. In a December 1857 meeting with Stephen A. Douglas , the chairman of the Senate Committee on Territories, Buchanan demanded that all Democrats support the administration's position of admitting Kansas under

1254-417: A slave state to a free territory by his owner, John Sanford . After Scott returned to the slave state, he filed a petition for his freedom based on his time in the free territory. Associate Justice Robert C. Grier leaked the decision in the "Dred Scott" case early to Buchanan. In his inaugural address, Buchanan declared that the issue of slavery in the territories would be "speedily and finally settled" by

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1368-738: A state required a constitution be submitted to Congress with the approval of a majority of its residents. Under President Pierce, a series of violent confrontations escalated over who had the right to vote in Kansas. The situation drew national attention, and some in Georgia and Mississippi advocated secession should Kansas be admitted as a free state. Buchanan chose to endorse the pro-slavery Lecompton government. Buchanan appointed Robert J. Walker to replace John W. Geary as Territorial Governor, and there ensued conflicting referendums from Topeka and Lecompton, where election fraud occurred. In October 1857,

1482-420: A trade and shipping treaty with Russia. While Buchanan was successful with the former, negotiating an agreement on free merchant shipping with Foreign Minister Karl Nesselrode proved difficult. He had denounced Tsar Nicholas I as a despot merely a year prior during his tenure in Congress; many Americans had reacted negatively to Russia's reaction to the 1830 Polish uprising . Buchanan returned home and lost

1596-473: A troubled relationship with his vice president from the beginning, when he did not receive him during his inaugural visit but referred him to his niece and First Lady, which Breckinridge never forgave him for and saw as disrespectful. He left out the influential Stephen A. Douglas , who had made Buchanan's nomination possible by resigning at the National Convention the previous year, when filling

1710-462: A wrong legal decision was determined by the ruling parties' preferences and the popularity of the judge's decision. Buchanan persuaded the senators that only judicial crimes and clear violations of the law justified impeachment. In the congressional elections of 1820, Buchanan ran for a seat in the House of Representatives . Shortly after his election victory, his father died in a carriage accident. As

1824-655: A young Representative, Buchanan was one of the most prominent leaders of the "Amalgamator party" faction of Pennsylvanian politics, named that because it was made up of both Democratic-Republicans and former Federalists, which transitioned from the First Party System to the Era of Good Feelings . During this era, the Democratic-Republicans became the most influential party. Buchanan's Federalist convictions were weak, and he switched parties after opposing

1938-553: The Bedford Springs Hotel in Pennsylvania , expressing hope that the newly laid cable would prove "an additional link between the nations whose friendship is founded on their common interest and reciprocal esteem". Queen Victoria's message took 16 hours to send. Buchanan responded: "It is a triumph more glorious, because far more useful to mankind, than was ever won by conqueror on the field of battle. May

2052-516: The Dred Scott decision and its repudiation of federal interference with slavery in the territories. Douglas's Senate term was coming to an end in 1859, with the Illinois legislature, elected in 1858, determining whether Douglas would win re-election. The Senate seat was the primary issue of the legislative election, marked by the famous debates between Douglas and his Republican opponent for

2166-597: The Federalist Party . Like his father, he supported their political program, which provided federal funds for building projects and import duties as well as the re-establishment of a central bank after the First Bank of the United States ' license expired in 1811. He became a strong critic of Democratic-Republican President James Madison during the War of 1812 . Although he did not himself serve in

2280-493: The Gulf of Mexico ". President Pierce hoped for re-nomination, while Senator Stephen A. Douglas also loomed as a strong candidate. He won the nomination after seventeen ballots after Douglas' resignation. He was joined on the ticket by John C. Breckinridge of Kentucky in order to maintain regional proportional representation, placating supporters of Pierce and Douglas, also allies of Breckinridge. Buchanan faced two candidates in

2394-576: The Illinois Legislature adopted a resolution , drafted by Turner, calling for the Illinois congressional delegation to work to enact a land-grant bill to fund a system of industrial colleges, one in each state. Senator Lyman Trumbull of Illinois believed it was advisable that the bill should be introduced by an eastern congressman, and two months later Representative Justin Smith Morrill of Vermont introduced his bill. Unlike

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2508-522: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology ), nearly all of the land-grant colleges are public. (Cornell University, while private, administers several state-supported statutory colleges that fulfill its public land-grant mission to the state of New York.) To maintain their status as land-grant colleges, a number of programs are required to be maintained by the college. These include programs in agriculture and engineering , as well as

2622-671: The Michigan Constitution of 1850 called for the creation of an "agricultural school", though it was not until February 12, 1855, that Michigan Governor Kinsley S. Bingham signed a bill establishing the United States' first agriculture college, the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, known today as Michigan State University , which served as a model for the Morrill Act. On February 8, 1853,

2736-639: The Missouri Compromise and welcomed Congress's rejection of the Wilmot Proviso , which prohibited slavery in all territories gained in the Mexican-American War. Buchanan criticized abolitionism as a fanatical attitude and believed that slavery should be decided by state legislatures, not Congress. He disliked abolitionist Northerners due to his party affiliation, and became known as a " doughface " due to his sympathy toward

2850-945: The Monroe Doctrine , which had been under attack from the Spanish, French, and especially the British in the 1850s. He hoped to re-negotiate the Clayton–Bulwer Treaty to counter European imperialism in the Western Hemisphere, which he thought limited U.S. influence in the region. He also sought to establish American protectorates over the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sonora to secure American citizens and investments, and most importantly, he hoped to achieve his long-term goal of acquiring Cuba. However, Buchanan's ambitions in Cuba and Mexico were largely blocked by

2964-565: The Oregon Treaty and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo , which included territory that is now Texas, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado. In negotiations with Britain over Oregon, Buchanan initially favored the 49th parallel as the boundary of Oregon Territory, while Polk called for a more northerly boundary line. When Northern Democrats rallied around the popular slogan Fifty-Four Forty or Fight ("54°40′ or war") in

3078-576: The Pennsylvania General Assembly lasted only three months, Buchanan continued practicing law at a profit by charging higher fees, and his service helped him acquire more clients. In 1815, Buchanan defended District Judge Walter Franklin in an impeachment trial before the Pennsylvania Senate , over alleged judicial misconduct. Impeachments were more common at the time because the line between abuse of office and

3192-527: The Plantation of Ulster in the seventeenth century and, later, largely because of poverty and persecution by the Crown due to their Presbyterian faith, had further emigrated in large numbers from Ulster to America from the early eighteenth century onwards. Shortly after Buchanan's birth, the family relocated to a farm near Mercersburg, Pennsylvania , and later settled in the town in 1794. His father became

3306-821: The Salt Lake City area. In September 1857, the Utah Territorial Militia , associated with the Latter-day Saints, perpetrated the Mountain Meadows massacre , in which Young's militia attacked a wagon train and killed 125 settlers. Buchanan was offended by the militarism and polygamous behavior of Young. With reports of violence against non-Mormons, Buchanan authorized a military expedition into Utah Territory in late March 1857 to replace Young as governor. The force consisted of 2,500 men, including Alfred Cumming and his staff, and

3420-752: The Supreme Court of the United States . He appointed seven other federal judges to United States district courts . He also appointed two judges to the United States Court of Claims . The case of Dred Scott v. Sandford , to which Buchanan referred to in his inaugural address, dated back to 1846. Scott sued for his release in Missouri , claiming he lived in service to the proprietor in Illinois and Wisconsin Territory . The case reached

3534-613: The United States Military Academy , on fortress construction, and their instructors were the authors of most engineering texts of the day. The Morrill Act changed all of that. Though the Congressional debates about the Act were largely focused on benefits to agriculture, the mechanic arts were specifically included in the Act's language, meaning applied sciences and engineering . The Act prohibited spending

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3648-744: The University of Illinois (Delta Rho Sigma, founded in 1906) met at an International Livestock Competition in Chicago . Sixteen men signed the fraternity's charter at the Claypool Hotel in Indianapolis on April 4, 1908. Expansion increased dramatically over the next three decades to almost all land-grant universities in the country. The first chapter at a non-land-grant university was chartered in 1958 at Arizona State University . The first non-state (private) associated chapter ( Beta Psi )

3762-591: The election . Buchanan was offered the position of Secretary of State in the Polk administration or, as the alternative, a seat on the Supreme Court , to compensate him for his support in the election campaign but also in order to eliminate him as an internal party rival. He accepted the State Department post and served for the duration of Polk's single term in office. During his tenure, the United States recorded its largest territorial gain in history through

3876-432: The endowment on constructing buildings as expensive and unnecessary, so instead the tools for engineering education increased, such as textbooks, laboratories and equipment. The number of engineers skyrocketed. Whereas in 1866 there were around 300 American men who had graduated with engineering degrees and only six reputable colleges granting them, just four years later there were 21 colleges offering engineering degrees and

3990-535: The " Bleeding Kansas " period. The antislavery settlers, with the help of Northern abolitionists, organized their own territorial government in Topeka . The more numerous proslavery settlers, many from the neighboring slave state Missouri, established a government in Lecompton , giving the Territory two different governments for a time, with two distinct constitutions, each claiming legitimacy. The admission of Kansas as

4104-508: The 1828 presidential election, he secured Pennsylvania, while the " Jacksonian Democrats ", an independent party after splitting from the National Republican Party , won an easy victory in the parallel congressional election. Buchanan gained most attention during an impeachment trial where he acted as prosecutor for federal district judge James H. Peck ; however, the Senate rejected Buchanan's plea and acquitted Peck by

4218-645: The 1844 election campaign, Buchanan adopted this position, but later followed Polk's direction, leading to the Oregon Compromise of 1846, which established the 49th parallel as the boundary in the Pacific Northwest . In regards to Mexico, Buchanan maintained a dubious view that its attack on American troops on the other side of the Rio Grande in April 1846 constituted a border violation and

4332-404: The 1858 English Bill , which offered Kansas immediate statehood and vast public lands in exchange for accepting the Lecompton Constitution. In August 1858, Kansans by referendum strongly rejected the Lecompton Constitution. The territory received an abolitionist constitution, which was bitterly opposed in Congress by representatives and senators from the southern states until Kansas was admitted to

4446-614: The 1862 Act was extended to the former Confederate states (see below for more detailed information), and it was eventually extended to every state and territory, including those created after 1862. If the federal land within a state was insufficient to meet that state's land grant, the state was issued scrip which authorized the state to select federal lands in other states to fund its institution. For example, New York carefully selected valuable timber land in Wisconsin to fund Cornell University . The resulting management of this scrip by

4560-589: The American Civil War, has been widely criticized. He simultaneously angered the North by not stopping secession and the South by not yielding to their demands. He supported the Corwin Amendment in an effort to reconcile the country. He made an unsuccessful attempt to reinforce Fort Sumter , but otherwise refrained from preparing the military. In his personal life, Buchanan never married and was

4674-624: The Atlantic telegraph, under the blessing of Heaven, prove to be a bond of perpetual peace and friendship between the kindred nations, and an instrument destined by Divine Providence to diffuse religion, civilization, liberty, and law throughout the world." The Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 created the Kansas Territory and allowed the settlers there to decide whether to allow slavery. This resulted in violence between " Free-Soil " (antislavery) and pro-slavery settlers, which developed into

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4788-465: The Clay and Jackson camps. In Washington, Buchanan became an avid defender of states' rights , and was close with many southern Congressmen, viewing some New England Congressmen as dangerous radicals . Buchanan's close proximity to his constituency allowed him to establish a Democratic coalition in Pennsylvania, consisting of former Federalist farmers, Philadelphia artisans, and Ulster-Scots-Americans. In

4902-469: The Democratic platform. In the election, he carried every slave state except for Maryland, as well as five slavery-free states, including his home state of Pennsylvania. He won 45 percent of the popular vote and decisively won the electoral vote, taking 174 of 296 votes. His election made him the first president from Pennsylvania. In a combative victory speech, Buchanan denounced Republicans, calling them

5016-726: The District of Columbia and the "1994 land-grant colleges" for Native Americans were also awarded cash by Congress in lieu of land to achieve "land-grant" status. In imitation of the land-grant colleges ' focus on agricultural and mechanical research, Congress later established programs of sea grant colleges (aquatic research, in 1966), urban grant colleges (urban research, in 1985), space grant colleges (space research, in 1988), and sun grant colleges (sustainable energy research, in 2003). Starting in 1887, Congress also funded agricultural experiment stations and various categories of agricultural and veterinary research "under direction of"

5130-485: The Homestead Act was very popular, even many Democrats condemned the president's policies, while many Americans who considered education an important asset resented Buchanan's veto of agricultural colleges. Buchanan took office with an ambitious foreign policy, designed to establish U.S. hegemony over Central America at the expense of Great Britain. Buchanan sought to revitalize Manifest Destiny and to enforce

5244-415: The Latter-day Saints had frequently defied federal authority, some historians consider Buchanan's action was an inappropriate response to uncorroborated reports. Buchanan was the first recipient of an official telegram transmitted across the Atlantic. Following the dispatch of test and configuration telegrams, on August 16, 1858 Queen Victoria sent a 98-word message to Buchanan at his summer residence in

5358-558: The Lecompton Constitution. On February 2, he transmitted the Lecompton Constitution to Congress. He also transmitted a message that attacked the "revolutionary government" in Topeka, conflating them with the Mormons in Utah. Buchanan made every effort to secure congressional approval, offering favors, patronage appointments, and even cash for votes. The Lecompton Constitution won the approval of

5472-401: The Lecompton government framed the pro-slavery Lecompton Constitution that agreed to a referendum limited solely to the slavery question. However, the vote against slavery, as provided by the Lecompton Convention, would still permit existing slaves, and all their issue, to be enslaved, so there was no referendum that permitted the majority anti-slavery residents to prohibit slavery in Kansas. As

5586-448: The Senate in March, but a combination of Know-Nothings, Republicans, and Northern Democrats defeated the bill in the House. Buchanan never forgave Douglas, as the Northern Democrats' rejection was the deciding factor in the House's decision, and he removed all Douglas supporters from his patronage in Illinois and Washington, D.C., installing pro-administration Democrats, including postmasters. Rather than accepting defeat, Buchanan backed

5700-429: The Senate. In that year's elections, Douglas forces took control throughout the North, except in Buchanan's home state of Pennsylvania. Buchanan's support was otherwise reduced to a narrow base of southerners. The division between northern and southern Democrats allowed the Republicans to win a plurality of the House in the 1858 elections , and allowed them to block most of Buchanan's agenda. Buchanan, in turn, added to

5814-405: The South, as we have to touch the right of petition." Buchanan thought that the issue of slavery was the domain of the states, and he faulted abolitionists for exciting passions over the issue. In the lead-up to the 1844 Democratic National Convention , Buchanan positioned himself as a potential alternative to former President Martin Van Buren , but the nomination went to James K. Polk , who won

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5928-429: The South. Buchanan emerged as a promising candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, alongside Lewis Cass, Stephen Douglas , and William L. Marcy ; however, the Pennsylvania convention did not vote unanimously in his favor, with over 30 delegates protesting against him. At the 1852 Democratic National Convention , he won the support of many southern delegates but failed to win the two-thirds support needed for

6042-444: The Supreme Court and gained national attention by 1856. Buchanan consulted with Judge John Catron in January 1857, inquiring about the outcome of the case and suggesting that a broader decision, beyond the specifics of the case, would be more prudent. Buchanan hoped that a broad decision protecting slavery in the territories could lay the issue to rest, allowing him to focus on other issues. Catron replied on February 10, saying that

6156-473: The Supreme Court's Southern majority would decide against Scott, but would likely have to publish the decision on narrow grounds unless Buchanan could convince his fellow Pennsylvanian, Justice Robert Cooper Grier , to join the majority of the court. Buchanan then wrote to Grier and prevailed upon him, providing the majority leverage to issue a broad-ranging decision sufficient to render the Missouri Compromise of 1820 unconstitutional. Two days after Buchanan

6270-525: The Supreme Court. According to historian Paul Finkelman : Buchanan already knew what the Court was going to decide. In a major breach of Court etiquette, Justice Grier, who, like Buchanan, was from Pennsylvania, had kept the President-elect fully informed about the progress of the case and the internal debates within the Court. When Buchanan urged the nation to support the decision, he already knew what Taney would say. Republican suspicions of impropriety turned out to be fully justified. Historians agree that

6384-411: The Turner Plan, which provided an equal grant to each state, the Morrill bill allocated land based on the number of senators and representatives each state had in Congress. This was more advantageous to the more populous eastern states. The Morrill Act was first proposed in 1857, and was passed by Congress in 1859, but it was vetoed by President James Buchanan . In 1861, Morrill resubmitted the act with

6498-505: The Union as a slave state under the Lecompton Constitution , and angered not only Republicans but also Northern Democrats. Buchanan honored his pledge to serve only one term and supported Breckinridge's unsuccessful candidacy in the 1860 presidential election . He failed to reconcile the fractured Democratic Party amid the grudge against Stephen Douglas , leading to the election of Republican and former Congressman Abraham Lincoln . Buchanan's leadership during his lame duck period, before

6612-422: The Union in January 1861. The dispute over Kansas became the battlefront for control of the Democratic Party. On one side were Buchanan, the majority of Southern Democrats, and the "doughfaces". On the other side were Douglas and the majority of northern Democrats, as well as a few Southerners. Douglas's faction continued to support the doctrine of popular sovereignty, while Buchanan insisted that Democrats respect

6726-410: The United Kingdom, as he demanded the entire Aroostook River Valley for the United States. In the Oregon Boundary Dispute , Buchanan adopted the maximum demand of 54°40′ as the northern border and spoke out in favor of annexing the Republic of Texas . During the contentious 1838 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election , Buchanan chose to support the Democratic challenger, David Rittenhouse Porter , who

6840-523: The United States into a position of leader in technical education. Before the Civil War, American colleges primarily trained students in classical studies and the liberal arts . For the most part, only the relatively affluent could afford higher education, and entrance requirements often required proficiency in the dead languages of Latin and Ancient Greek . The first Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degrees, which typically required no Latin, came into being around 1850. American engineers were mostly educated at

6954-485: The United States, even if they had full civil rights in a state. Buchanan's letters were not made public at the time, but he was seen conversing quietly with the Chief Justice during his inauguration. When the decision was issued, Republicans began spreading the word that Taney had informed Buchanan of the impending outcome. Rather than destroying the Republican platform as Buchanan had hoped, the decision infuriated Northerners, who condemned it. The Panic of 1857 began in

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7068-452: The White House. Buchanan was known for his commitment to states' rights and the Manifest Destiny ideology. He rejected President Martin Van Buren 's offer to become United States Attorney General and chaired prestigious Senate committees such as the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on Foreign Relations . Buchanan was one of only a few senators to vote against the Webster–Ashburton Treaty for its "surrender" of lands to

7182-511: The acquisition of Cuba. A memorandum draft resulted, called the Ostend Manifesto , which proposed the purchase of Cuba from Spain, then in the midst of revolution and near bankruptcy. The document declared the island "as necessary to the North American republic as any of its present ... family of states". Against Buchanan's recommendation, the final draft of the manifesto suggested that "wresting it from Spain", if Spain refused to sell, would be justified "by every law, human and Divine". The manifesto

7296-432: The act, each eligible state received 30,000 acres (120 km ) of federal land, either within or contiguous to its boundaries, for each member of congress the state had as of the census of 1860. This land, or the proceeds from its sale, was to be used toward establishing and funding the educational institutions described above. Under provision six of the Act, "No State while in a condition of rebellion or insurrection against

7410-486: The amendment that the proposed institutions would teach military tactics as well as engineering and agriculture. Aided by the secession of many states that did not support the plans, the reconfigured Morrill Act was signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln on July 2, 1862. The purpose of the land-grant colleges was: without excluding other scientific and classical studies and including military tactic, to teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and

7524-489: The area's wealthiest resident, working as a merchant, farmer, and real estate investor. Buchanan attributed his early education primarily to his mother, whereas his father had a greater influence on his character. His mother had discussed politics with him as a child and had an interest in poetry, quoting John Milton and William Shakespeare to Buchanan. Buchanan attended the Old Stone Academy in Mercersburg and then Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania . In 1808, he

7638-418: The city. His income rapidly rose after he established his practice, and by 1821 he was earning over $ 11,000 per year (equivalent to $ 250,000 in 2023). At this time, Buchanan became a Freemason , and served as the Worshipful Master of Masonic Lodge No. 43 in Lancaster and as a District Deputy Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania . Buchanan also served as chairman of the Lancaster chapter of

7752-418: The country in the slavery dispute. While he did not overtly seek the presidency, he assented to the movement on his behalf. While still in England, he campaigned by praising John Joseph Hughes , who was Archbishop of New York , to a Catholic archbishop. The latter campaigned for Buchanan among high-ranking Catholics as soon as he heard about it. When Buchanan arrived home at the end of April 1856, he led on

7866-501: The court decision was a major disaster because it dramatically inflamed tensions, leading to the Civil War. In 2022, historian David W. Blight argued that the year 1857 was, "the great pivot on the road to disunion...largely because of the Dred Scott case, which stoked the fear, distrust and conspiratorial hatred already common in both the North and the South to new levels of intensity." As his inauguration approached, Buchanan sought to establish an obedient, harmonious cabinet to avoid

7980-476: The current income from the investment of the sales proceeds of the original land grants. In the fiscal year 2006 USDA budget, $ 1.033 billion went to research and cooperative extension activities nationwide. For this purpose, then President George W. Bush proposed a $ 1.035 billion appropriation for fiscal year 2008. James Buchanan James Buchanan Jr. ( / b j uː ˈ k æ n ə n / bew- KAN -ən ; April 23, 1791 – June 1, 1868)

8094-410: The election in the State Legislature for a full six-year term in the 23rd Congress , but was appointed by the Pennsylvania state legislature to succeed William Wilkins in the U.S. Senate. Wilkins, in turn, replaced Buchanan as the ambassador to Russia. The Jacksonian Buchanan, who was re-elected in 1836 and 1842, opposed the re-chartering of the Second Bank of the United States and sought to expunge

8208-618: The fashion of the time, Buchanan studied the United States Code and the Constitution of the United States as well as legal authorities such as William Blackstone during his education. In 1812, Buchanan passed the bar exam and after being admitted to the bar, he remained in Lancaster, even when Harrisburg became the new capital of Pennsylvania. Buchanan quickly established himself as a prominent legal representative in

8322-571: The federal troops at a peaceable distance for the balance of his administration. Buchanan did not comment on the conflict again until his State of the Union Address in December 1857, leaving open the question of whether it was a rebellion in Utah. One of Buchanan's last official acts in March 1861 was to reduce the size of Utah Territory in favor of Nevada , Colorado , and Nebraska . While

8436-598: The first ballot, supported by powerful Senators John Slidell , Jesse Bright , and Thomas F. Bayard , who presented Buchanan as an experienced leader appealing to the North and South. The 1856 Democratic National Convention met in June 1856, producing a platform that reflected Buchanan's views, including support for the Fugitive Slave Law , which required the return of escaped slaves. The platform also called for an end to anti-slavery agitation and U.S. "ascendancy in

8550-470: The funding boost needed for the fledgling State Agricultural College and Model Farm (eventually renamed Iowa State University of Science and Technology). The first land-grant institution actually created under the Act was Kansas State University , which was established on February 16, 1863, and opened on September 2, 1863. The land grant colleges transformed engineering education in America and boosted

8664-510: The general election: former Whig President Millard Fillmore ran as the candidate for the anti-Catholic, anti-immigrant American Party (or " Know-Nothing "), while John C. Frémont ran as the Republican nominee. The contrast between Buchanan and Frémont was particularly stark, with opposing caricaturists drawing the Democratic candidate as a fussy old man in drag. Buchanan did not actively campaign, but he wrote letters and pledged to uphold

8778-505: The government of the United States shall be entitled to the benefit of this act," in reference to the recent secession of several Southern states and the contemporaneously raging American Civil War . However, after the war, in the 1870s, Mississippi, Virginia, and South Carolina each assigned one African American college land grant status; these were, respectively, Alcorn University, Hampton Institute, and Claflin University. In 1890

8892-496: The hostility with his veto of six substantial pieces of Republican legislation. Among these measures were the Homestead Act , which would have given 160 acres of public land to settlers who remained on the land for five years, and the Morrill Act , which would have granted public lands to establish land-grant colleges . Buchanan argued that these acts were unconstitutional. In the western and northwestern United States, where

9006-755: The in-fighting that had plagued Andrew Jackson 's administration. The cabinet's composition had to do justice to the proportional representation within the party and between the regions of the country. Buchanan first worked on this task in Wheatland until he traveled to the capital in January 1857. There, like many other guests at the National Hotel , he contracted severe dysentery , from which he did not fully recover until several months later. Dozens of those who fell ill died, including Buchanan's nephew and private secretary Eskridge Lane. The cabinet selection

9120-431: The land-grant universities. Congress later recognized the need to disseminate the knowledge gained at the land-grant colleges to farmers and homemakers. The Smith–Lever Act of 1914 started federal funding of cooperative extension , with the land-grant universities' agents being sent to virtually every county of every state. In some states, the annual federal appropriations to the land-grant college under these laws exceed

9234-526: The mechanic arts, in such manner as the legislatures of the States may respectively prescribe, in order to promote the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the several pursuits and professions in life. From the early to mid-19th century the federal government, through 162 violence-backed cessions, expropriated approximately 10.7 million acres of land from 245 tribal nations and divided it into roughly 80,000 parcels for redistribution. Under

9348-467: The military action by mustering a two-week expedition, destroying wagon trains, oxen, and other Army property. Buchanan then dispatched Thomas L. Kane as a private agent to negotiate peace. The mission was successful, a peaceful agreement to replace Governor Young with Cumming was reached, and the Utah War ended. The President granted amnesty to inhabitants affirming loyalty to the government, and placed

9462-511: The oath of office from Chief Justice Roger B. Taney . In his lengthy inaugural address, Buchanan committed himself to serving only one term, as his predecessor had done. He abhorred the growing divisions over slavery and its status in the territories, saying that Congress should play no role in determining the status of slavery in the states or territories. He proposed a solution based on the Kansas-Nebraska Act , which stated that

9576-594: The old-fashioned style of his adolescence, earning him the nickname " Old Public Functionary " from the press. Slavery opponents in the North mocked him as a relic of prehistoric man because of his moral values. He bought the house of Wheatland on the outskirts of Lancaster and entertained various visitors while monitoring political events. During this period, Buchanan became the center of a family network consisting of 22 nieces, nephews and their descendants, seven of whom were orphans. He found public service jobs for some through patronage, and for those in his favor, he took on

9690-438: The only U.S. president to remain a lifelong bachelor, leading some historians and authors to question his sexual orientation. His failure to forestall the American Civil War has been described as incompetence, and he spent his last years defending his reputation. Historians and scholars rank Buchanan as among the worst presidents in American history. James Buchanan Jr. was born into a Scottish-Irish family on April 23, 1791, in

9804-410: The population due to his refusal to implement an economic stimulus program . While the government was "without the power to extend relief", it would continue to pay its debts in specie, and while it would not curtail public works, none would be added. In hopes of reducing paper money supplies and inflation, he urged the states to restrict the banks to a credit level of $ 3 to $ 1 of specie and discouraged

9918-495: The post. Concentrating on foreign policy, he appointed the aging Lewis Cass as Secretary of State. Buchanan's appointment of Southerners and their allies alienated many in the North, and his failure to appoint any followers of Douglas divided the party. Outside of the cabinet, he left in place many of Pierce's appointments but removed a disproportionate number of Northerners who had ties to Democratic opponents Pierce or Douglas. Buchanan appointed one Justice, Nathan Clifford , to

10032-588: The presidential nomination, which went to Franklin Pierce . Buchanan declined to serve as the vice presidential nominee, and the convention instead nominated his close friend, William R. King . Pierce won the election in 1852 , and six months later, Buchanan accepted the position of United States Minister to the United Kingdom , a position that represented a step backward in his career and that he had twice previously rejected. Buchanan sailed for England in

10146-402: The principle of popular sovereignty was decisive, and Congress had no say in the matter. Buchanan recommended that a federal slave code be enacted to protect the rights of slaveowners in federal territories. He alluded to a then-pending Supreme Court case, Dred Scott v. Sandford , which he said would permanently settle the issue of slavery. Dred Scott was a slave who was temporarily taken from

10260-566: The role of surrogate father. He formed the strongest emotional bond with his niece Harriet Lane , who later became First Lady for Buchanan in the White House. In 1852, he was named president of the Board of Trustees of Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, and he served in this capacity until 1866. Buchanan did not completely leave politics. He intended to publish a collection of speeches and an autobiography, but his political comeback

10374-541: The seat, Abraham Lincoln . Buchanan, working through federal patronage appointees in Illinois, ran candidates for the legislature in competition with both the Republicans and the Douglas Democrats. This could easily have thrown the election to the Republicans, and showed the depth of Buchanan's animosity toward Douglas. In the end, Douglas Democrats won the legislative election and Douglas was re-elected to

10488-474: The seventy colleges and universities which eventually evolved from the Morrill Acts are several of today's historically Black colleges and universities . Though the 1890 Act granted cash instead of land, it granted colleges under that act the same legal standing as the 1862 Act colleges; hence the term "land-grant college" properly applies to both groups. Later on, other colleges such as the University of

10602-488: The state's House of Representatives as a Federalist . He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1820 and retained that post for five terms, aligning with Andrew Jackson 's Democratic Party . Buchanan served as Jackson's minister to Russia in 1832. He won the election in 1834 as a U.S. senator from Pennsylvania and continued in that position for 11 years. He was appointed to serve as President James K. Polk 's secretary of state in 1845, and eight years later

10716-442: The summer of 1853, and he remained abroad for the next three years. In 1850, the United States and Great Britain signed the Clayton–Bulwer Treaty , which committed both countries to joint control of any future canal that would connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans through Central America. Buchanan met repeatedly with Lord Clarendon , the British foreign minister, in hopes of pressuring the British to withdraw from Central America. He

10830-672: The summer of that year, when the New York branch of Ohio Life Insurance and Trust Company announced its insolvency. The crisis spread rapidly, and by the fall, 1,400 state banks and 5,000 businesses had gone bankrupt. Unemployment and hunger became common in northern cities, but the agricultural south was more resilient. Buchanan agreed with the southerners who attributed the economic collapse to over-speculation. Buchanan acted in accordance with Jacksonian Democracy principles, which restricted paper money issuance, and froze federal funds for public works projects, causing resentment among some of

10944-443: The total number of engineers graduated had tripled to 866. The following decade added another 2,249 engineers, and by 1911 the United States was graduating 3,000 engineers a year, with a total of 38,000 in the work force. At the time, Germany was graduating 1,800 engineers per year. The US had become the leader in technical education just 50 years after passage of the Morrill Act. With a few exceptions (including Cornell University and

11058-424: The university yielded one third of the total grant revenues generated by all the states, even though New York received only one-tenth of the 1862 land grant. Overall, the 1862 Morrill Act allocated 17,400,000 acres (70,000 km ) of land, which when sold yielded a collective endowment of $ 7.55 million. On September 12, 1862, the state of Iowa was the first to accept the terms of the Morrill Act which provided

11172-677: The use of federal or state bonds as security for bank note issues. The economy recovered in several years, though many Americans suffered as a result of the panic. Buchanan had hoped to reduce the deficit, but by the time he left office the federal budget grew by 15%. In the spring of 1857, the Latter-day Saints and their leader Brigham Young had been challenging federal representatives in Utah Territory , causing harassment and violence against non-Mormons. Young harassed federal officers and discouraged outsiders from settling in

11286-434: The vice presidency in the 1832 election . After Jackson was re-elected in 1832, he offered Buchanan the position of United States Ambassador to Russia . Buchanan was reluctant to leave the country, as the distant St. Petersburg was a kind of political exile, which was the intention of Jackson, who considered Buchanan to be an "incompetent busybody" and untrustworthy, but he ultimately agreed. His work focused on concluding

11400-572: Was able to reduce British influence in Honduras and Nicaragua while also raising the kingdom's awareness of American interests in the region. He also focused on the potential annexation of Cuba , which had long interested him. At Pierce's prompting, Buchanan met in Ostend, Belgium , with U.S. Ambassador to Spain Pierre Soulé and U.S. Ambassador to France John Mason , to work out a plan for

11514-597: Was an Ulster-Scot from just outside Ramelton , a small town in the north-east of County Donegal in the north-west of Ulster , the northern province in Ireland , who emigrated to the newly formed United States in 1783, having sailed from Derry . He belonged to the Clan Buchanan , whose members had emigrated in large numbers from the Scottish Highlands to Ulster in the north of Ireland during

11628-473: Was at Delaware Valley University in Doylestown, Pennsylvania . The four pillars of Alpha Gamma Rho are recruitment, commitment, education, and recognition. Its colors are dark green and gold. Its symbols are the sickle and the sheaf. Its flower is the pink rose. The fraternity's motto is "To Make Better Men". As of 2024, the fraternity has 71 chapters. In 2018, the chapter at University of Minnesota

11742-497: Was commanded by General William S. Harney . Complicating matters, Young's notice of his replacement was not delivered because the Pierce administration had annulled the Utah mail contract, and Young portrayed the approaching forces as an unauthorized overthrow. Buchanan's personnel decision incited resistance from the Mormons around Young, as Harney was known for his volatility and brutality. In August 1857, Albert S. Johnston replaced him for organizational reasons. Young reacted to

11856-642: Was disastrous, with four Southern ministers being large-scale slaveholders who later became loyal to the Confederate States of America . Secretary of the Treasury Howell Cobb was considered the greatest political talent in the Cabinet, while the three department heads from the northern states were all considered to be doughfaces . His objective was to dominate the cabinet, and he chose men who would agree with his views. Buchanan had

11970-462: Was elected by fewer than 5,500 votes as Pennsylvania's first governor under the state's revised Constitution of 1838. Buchanan also opposed a gag rule sponsored by John C. Calhoun that would have suppressed anti-slavery petitions. He joined the majority in blocking the rule, with most senators of the belief that it would have the reverse effect of strengthening the abolitionists . He said, "We have just as little right to interfere with slavery in

12084-669: Was enacted during the American Civil War , and the Morrill Act of 1890 (the Agricultural College Act of 1890 (26  Stat.   417 , later codified as 7 U.S.C.   § 321 et seq.)) expanded this model. For 20 years prior to the first introduction of the bill in 1857, there was a political movement calling for the creation of agriculture colleges. The movement was led by Professor Jonathan Baldwin Turner of Illinois College . For example,

12198-589: Was met with a divided response and was never acted upon. It weakened the Pierce administration and reduced support for Manifest Destiny. In 1855, as Buchanan's desire to return home grew, Pierce asked him to hold the fort in London in light of the relocation of a British fleet to the Caribbean . Buchanan's service abroad allowed him to conveniently avoid the debate over the Kansas–Nebraska Act then roiling

12312-571: Was named as President Franklin Pierce 's minister to the United Kingdom . Beginning in 1844, Buchanan became a regular contender for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination. He was nominated and won the 1856 presidential election . As President, Buchanan intervened to assure the Supreme Court's majority ruling in the pro-slavery decision in the Dred Scott case. He acceded to Southern attempts to engineer Kansas' entry into

12426-435: Was nearly expelled for disorderly conduct; he and his fellow students had attracted negative attention for drinking in local taverns, disturbing the peace at night and committing acts of vandalism, but he pleaded for a second chance and ultimately graduated with honors in 1809. Later that year, he moved to the state capital at Lancaster , to train as a lawyer for two and a half years with the well-known James Hopkins. Following

12540-593: Was suspended after one of its members, Dylan Fulton, was found dead following a night of drinking. After an investigation, it was determined Fulton had died of alcohol poisoning. Morrill Act of 1862 The Morrill Land-Grant Acts are United States statutes that allowed for the creation of land-grant colleges in U.S. states using the proceeds from sales of federally owned land, often obtained from Native American tribes through treaty, cession, or seizure. The Morrill Act of 1862 (12 Stat. 503 (1862) later codified as 7 U.S.C.   § 301 et seq.)

12654-467: Was sworn in as president, Chief Justice Taney delivered the Dred Scott decision, which denied the petitioner's request to be set free from slavery. The ruling broadly asserted that Congress had no constitutional power to exclude slavery in the territories. According to this decision, slaves were forever the property of their owners without rights and no African American could ever be a full citizen of

12768-442: Was the 15th president of the United States , serving from 1857 to 1861. Buchanan also served as the secretary of state from 1845 to 1849 and represented Pennsylvania in both houses of the U.S. Congress . He was an advocate for states' rights , particularly regarding slavery , and minimized the role of the federal government preceding the American Civil War . Buchanan was a lawyer in Pennsylvania and won his first election to

12882-511: Was thwarted by the 1852 presidential election. Buchanan traveled to Washington to discuss Pennsylvania Democratic Party politics, which were divided into two camps led by Simon Cameron and George Dallas . He quietly campaigned for the 1852 Democratic presidential nomination. In light of the Compromise of 1850 , which had led to the admission of California into the Union as a free state and a stricter Fugitive Slave Act , Buchanan now rejected

12996-402: Was too low. Buchanan sought the nomination at the 1848 Democratic National Convention , as Polk had promised to serve only one term, but he only won the support of the Pennsylvania and Virginia delegations, so Senator Lewis Cass of Michigan was nominated. With the 1848 election of Whig Zachary Taylor , Buchanan returned to private life. Buchanan was getting on in years and still dressed in

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