Franklin Pierce

Welcome to Civics and Coffee. My name is Alycia and I am a self-professed history nerd. Each week, I am going to chat about a topic on U.S history and give you both the highlights and occasionally break down some of the complexities in history; and share stories you may not remember learning in high school. All in the time it takes to enjoy a cup of coffee. 

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The youngest man to be elected to the presidency at the time, Franklin Pierce was a charismatic, affable politician. A man who party leaders hoped would keep the peace, Pierce experienced tragedy heading into his administration and struggled throughout his presidency. Far from maintaining the status quo, many historians argue Pierce’s actions while president only further propelled the country toward Civil War.  

So this week, I am diving into the life and presidency of Franklin Pierce. Who was he? How was his presidency impacted by tragedy? And what is his legacy?

Grab your cup of coffee, peeps. Let’s do this. 

Franklin Pierce was born on November 23, 1804 to Anna Kendrink and Benjamin Pierce. One of eight children, Franklin was the sixth child born into the large Pierce household. His family held deep roots as both his father and mother’s families could trace their arrival back to the puritan settlements in the 1620s. Pierce would later describe him mother as affectionate and forgiving, but it was father who would have the most influence over his son. Benjamin Pierce was known to be stern, perhaps a byproduct of his time serving in the American Revolution. 

Education was important to the Pierce family and they made sure young Franklin attended local schools before transitioning him to private academies at the age of 12. He enrolled at Bowdoin college at 15 where he met and became friends with famed author Nathaniel Hawthorne. The two would remain lifelong friends and as Pierce sought the presidency, Hawthorne lent his abilities in crafting a flattering biography to help raise his national profile. Franklin had a little too much fun enjoying college life and his grades quickly suffered, putting him at the bottom of his class. He somehow managed to rally and by the time he graduated in 1824 was among the top five. 

He met his future wife, Jane Means Appleton, in 1826 and the two would have an extended courtship before marrying in 1834. Franklin studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1827 and quickly entered the political arena, getting elected to the state legislature in 1829. His father, Benjamin Pierce, had won the governorship just two years prior. Pierce was a proud democrat and a staunch supporter of President Andrew Jackson. Upon Jackson’s re-election in 1832, Franklin was one of many elected to Congress, further increasing the Democrat’s majority.

Separated from his wife, who outwardly detested politics and stayed behind at their family home, Pierce struggled to thrive in the district. He began drinking heavily, quickly developing a problem. After two terms a representative, Pierce was elected to the Senate in 1837. Despite serving in both houses, Pierce’s congressional career was rather unremarkable. He did not introduce or pass any major legislation and secured no major projects or funding for his state. Regardless, Pierce remained a popular figure and it likely surprised many when he suddenly announced his resignation from the Senate in 1841, just a few months before the end of his term. 

Historians speculate this was to placate his wife, who suffered from frail health throughout her life and who was unimpressed with her husband’s political career. Whatever his reason, Pierce joined the temperance movement and returned to practice law, becoming a successful litigator in Concord, New Hampshire. Franklin seemed to have a knack for trial law, as historian Jean Baker writes, quote: “he was a master at assessing a jury and then appealing to its emotions,” end quote. Pierce did not back away from a challenge, accepting several high profile cases which further increased his national profile. 

Despite his supposed removal from politics, Franklin never truly gave it up. He worked to secure support for James Polk’s run for office in 1844, effectively running the New Hampshire campaign. Upon Polk’s election, the new president sought to repay Pierce, offering him several patronage positions including Attorney General. However, his overtures were declined and Pierce remained home with his family in New Hampshire.

When war broke out with Mexico, Franklin could hold back no longer. Refusing prior offers at appointments in Polk’s administration, Pierce decided to cash in his chips and requested a commission to serve in battle. I imagine this request originated in some small part from Franklin’s desire to emulate his father’s success during the revolution. Polk acquiesced and Pierce became a Brigadier General in charge of over two thousand men despite having zero military training and experience. His lack of experience only further hurt him amongst his troops when he suffered a fall from his horse in August 1847. The injury prevented Pierce from participating during a key moment in the conflict and troops began referring to him as “fainting frank” behind his back. 

After the war, Pierce returned to New Hampshire and continued to work within the Democratic party and quickly became the state’s party leader. Having lost the election in 1848 to Whig candidate Zachary Taylor, the Democrats were determined to take back the presidency in 1852. However, the party, much like the country, was increasingly split over just who their candidate should be. Sitting at the convention in Baltimore over the summer, leaders were unable to secure the two-third majority required to select a candidate. Heading into the contest heavy hitters like James Buchanan, Lewis Cass, and Stephen Douglass were all considered, however none of the men could satisfy a sufficient number of voters. 

The convention went through an exhaustive 34 ballots before Franklin Pierce was mentioned as a potential compromise candidate. Much like James Polk, Pierce was seen as a bit of a dark horse candidate. A man who could be all things to all people and who had not made many enemies. However, it seems as though there were some in the audience who still required convincing as Pierce’s nomination was not confirmed until the 48th ballot. 

The Whigs did not fare much better as it took their convention a whopping 53 ballots to select General Winfield Scott as their leader. As the issue of slavery continued to plague the country, sectional loyalties were quickly overriding party loyalty creating a bit of a mess in the political arena. The fact that neither party seemed to have a sense of who they wanted and where they wanted to go only reinforces how fractured the country was becoming. 

Neither party really ran a campaign based on issues because, of course, the only issue Americans cared about domestically was the institution of slavery. Because both parties had members who held deeply opposing views on the topic, leaders felt their only recourse was to focus on the character of the opposition. Missing the memo to remain silent about slavery, Scott misstepped and announced his agreement with the Whig party platform, which touted support for compromise in addressing slavery. This eroded what little support Scott enjoyed in the south, basically clearing the path for Franklin Pierce. For his part Pierce, who neglected to inform his wife ahead of time that he was thinking of running for president, did not really campaign. Other than the biography written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Pierce remained quiet and let others do the jockeying for him. 

When the votes were tallied, Franklin Pierce smashed his competition. Carrying 27 states to Scott’s 4, Franklin Pierce won both the popular vote and the electoral vote to become the 14th president of the United States. Two months before his inauguration, the Pierce family were visiting friends, traveling from Andover to Boston when their train derailed. The couple was traveling with their last living son, referred to as Bennie and had to go through the horror of watching him die right before their eyes. This destroyed the couple and was especially hard for Mrs. Pierce, who withdrew even further from public life. 

The mood was somber come inauguration day. As people gathered to welcome the new president, Washington was beseeched by cold and dreary weather. A sign of things to come, there were no inaugural balls planned and the new first lady remained sequestered in a self-imposed exile. The new president was also distracted, understandably bereft at losing his last remaining son and increasingly concerned about the health and wellness of his wife. 

A northern man with southern sympathies, Pierce pleased no one in choosing Jefferson Davis as his secretary of war. And yes, it is the same Jefferson Davis who would later become president of the confederacy. His vice president, Rufus King, also a southerner, had contracted tuberculosis and was in Cuba on inauguration day. Unable to take his oath of office in Washington, Congress passed a special bill permitting his ceremony to take place on foreign soil. As of this recording in 2023, King remains the only Vice President to take his oath overseas. King never got to perform his duties of Vice President, dying shortly after his return from Cuba in April 1853. Passing away so quickly into his tenure, Rufus was not replaced and the office of Vice President remained open until the next election in 1857.

As I mentioned, slavery remained the single largest domestic policy issue. In the Senate, Stephen A Douglas was pushing to open the west for further expansion, hoping to build a transcontinental railroad with a major base of operations in his home state. Willing to compromise and negotiate to get his way, Douglass proposed what became known as the Kansas-Nebraska Act. The bill provided that the issue of slavery would be decided based on popular sovereignty, or the people’s vote. Pierce preferred to let the courts decide the issue. However, surrounded by southerners and slavery sympathizers, Pierce eventually signed the bill, leading to some of the bloodiest conflicts in the lead up to the Civil War. 

Historians often point to the Kansas Nebraska Act as one of the most influential pieces of legislation as it not only proved to be the ending of the Whig party but helped foster a budding Republican party. This bill also weakened the Democrats and turned the Kansas territory into a battleground as leaders from both sides of the slavery debate sent men into the area to stake their claim. The pro-slacery faction struck first, setting up a temporary government and demanding federal support. However anti-slavery advocates, known as free soilers, pushed back, demanding the territorial governor withhold said support. The Governor sided with the abolitionists which prompted demands for his replacement by slavery supporters. Pierce caved under the pressure of the demands and appointed a new territorial governor by the name of Andrew Reeler. 

Tensions escalated even further when free soilers tried to set up their own government. Animosity only intensified and soon devolved into violence while Pierce seemed frozen. He delayed sending in troops to help quell the chaos, further highlighting his inability to be an effective leader. 

His foreign policy was not much better. A proponent of annexing Cuba, Pierce sent an ambassador to Spain to attempt to negotiate a treaty. However the ambassador, Pierre SoulE grew impatient and quickly resorted to threats of violence should Spain not agree to the terms. This plan backfired as Spain refused to budge. SoulE worked with future president and then-ambassador to England James Buchanan and the minister of France, John Mason, to write the Ostend Manifesto. The document tried to justify the United States’ purchase of Cuba and insinuated the country was willing to go to war should Spain refuse. This only further angered the Spanish government and circular had to be walked back by Secretary of State William Marcy. 

Pierce’s foreign policy blunders continued as he decided to recognize a forced dictatorship in Nicaragua set up by an American. William Walker, a slavery supporter who hoped to add the country to the nation as a slave state, Walker had forcefully taken over the country leveraging a private army. His actions were in clear violation of previously established law, including the Neutrality Act of 1818 which prohibited attacks against foreign countries who were at peace with the United States. 

Despite these highly questionable choices, Pierce desperately wanted a second term and actively sought his party’s nomination in the 1856 election. But it seemed as though Pierce made too many enemies and the Democrats nominated James Buchanan instead. Pierce is the only candidate in the nineteenth century who sought nomination for re-election from his party, only to be denied. Thus, upon Buchanan’s inauguration in 1857, the former president first lady departed the executive mansion. 

While perhaps an ineffective president, Pierce managed his finances well. While president, he invested his salary and earned a sizeable return, leaving the presidency with an estate of over a million dollars. This allowed Pierce and his wife to enjoy some extended travel before they settled back home in New Hampshire. 

As the country broke apart in the aftermath of Lincoln’s election, Pierce voiced his support for the Union, but was a stiff critic of the newly elected chief executive going so far as to blame him for the start of the war. His opinions on Lincoln lost Pierce more than a few friends and he came face to face with an angry mob after Lincoln’s assassination. Pierce, realizing the crowd intended to vandalize his house or worse, utilized his gift of oratory and successfully talked the mob down. 

Mrs. Pierce preceded her husband in death, dying in 1863. Alone and without the demand of caring for his frail wife, Franklin returned to drinking before passing away in 1869 at the age of 64. 

Considered quote unquote “one of the most amiable and congenial men” to hold the office, Franklin Pierce was just one in a long line of ineffective, passive leaders during a period when the country needed something more. He was a party loyalist and perhaps too blinded by this dedication to truly see where the country was headed. Suffering the loss of his only remaining son just weeks before taking the oath of office undoubtedly weighed on the president, further distracting from his ability to take command of the nation’s trajectory. 

In the end, Franklin Pierce’s fierce commitment and loyalty to maintaining Democratic party unity blinded him to the rapidly deteriorating state of the country and his signature on the Kansas Nebraska Act served to further divide the nation. A man who had a knack for reading the jury box missed the mark in reading the electorate. 

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Thanks, peeps. I’ll see you next week.

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