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Zachary Taylor 12th President of the United States

(March 5, 1849 to July 9, 1850) Nickname: "Old Rough and Ready" Born: November 24, 1784, near Barboursville, Virginia

Died: July 9, 1850, in Washington, D.C.

Father: Lieutenant Colonel Richard Taylor

Mother: Sarah Dabney Strother Taylor

Married: Margaret Mackall Smith (1788-1852), on June 21, 1810

Children: Ann Mackall Taylor (1811-75); Sarah Knox Taylor (1814-35); Octavia P. Taylor (1816-20); Margaret Smith Taylor (1819-20); Mary Elizabeth Taylor (1824-1909); Richard Taylor (1826-79)

Religion: Episcopalian

Education: No formal education

Occupation: Soldier

Political Party: Whig

Other Government Positions:

None

Presidential Salary: $25,000/year

Presidential Election Results: Year Popular Votes Electoral Votes 1848 Zachary Taylor 1,360,967 163 Lewis Cass 1,222,342 127

Vice President: Millard Fillmore (1849-50)

Cabinet:

Notable Events:

1850 The Clayton-Bulwer Treaty signed with Britain guaranteed that any future canal across Central America would be available to all nations.



Internet Biographies:

Historical Documents:

Other Internet Resources:

Palo Alto Battlefield National Historic Site Site commemorating the first battle of the U.S.-Mexican War in May 1846. General Zachary Taylor led 2,300 soldier into battle at this site. From the National Park Service. President Zachary Taylor and the Laboratory: Presidential Visit from the Grave Some historians believe that President Taylor might not have died of gastroenteritis, but might have been poisoned with arsenic. Forensic scientists tested the remains of President Taylor in 1991 and found…

Points of Interest:

Taylor refused all postage due correspondences. Because of this, he didn’t receive notification of his nomination for president until several days later.

As a soldier always moving from location to location, Taylor never established an offical place of residence and never registered to vote, He didn’t even vote in his own election. It wasn’t until he was 62 that he cast his first ballot.

November 7, 1848 was the first time a presidential election was held on the same day in every state.

Visitors to the White House would take souvenier horse hairs from Whitey, Taylor’s old Army horse that he kept on the White House lawn.

Previous President: James Knox Polk | Next President: Millard Fillmore

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