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Millard Fillmore was born on January 7, 1800 in Locke Township
(now known as Summerhill), New York. His father was Nathaniel
Fillmore and his mother was Phoebe Millard Fillmore. He had no
formal education but, later in life, he was offered an
honorary degree from Oxford University. He humbly declined
because he had “neither literary nor scientific
attainment.” He served as our 13th President from
July 9, 1850 to March 3, 1853.
Mr. Fillmore was a lawyer. In 1848, he was elected as Zachary
Taylor’s Vice-President. When Mr. Taylor suddenly died in
1850, Mr. Fillmore succeeded him as President. Millard
Fillmore had to deal with many difficult problems in his time,
most notably the issue of slavery. In an effort to reach a
compromise, he signed into law a bill that put federal
officers at the disposal of slave owners who were seeking to
recapture runaway slaves. Even though, on the other hand, he
did a lot to stop the spread of slavery in newly acquired
territories, there were enough members of his party who were
angry with him for signing the Fugitive Slave Act that he was
not nominated in 1852.
Millard Fillmore married Abigail Powers in 1826. They had two
children: Millard and Mary. Mrs. Fillmore died in 1853.
Mr. Fillmore later married Caroline Carmichael McIntosh
in 1858.
President Millard Fillmore died on March 8, 1874 in Buffalo,
New York. He was 74 years old. |
