Cool Stuff about Andrew Jackson
1. Jackson actually married a “married woman.” Rachel Robard’s husband, although initiating divorce proceedings in 1791 didn’t follow through with it until 1793. By then Rachel had been Mrs. Jackson for more than 2 years.
2. Jackson had a hand in naming the state of Tennessee. During the state constitutional convention, some delegates wished to name the state Franklin (after Benjamin Franklin) but Jackson thought the state should be named for its main river, the Tennessee. “Four years earlier Kentucky had graced itself with an Indian name, and Jackson thought Tennessee should follow the example, keeping the name of the river that had made the first settlements possible” (p. 79). He proceeded to second the motion and it carried by a large majority.
3. Ever since his foray into Charleston as a teenager, Jackson fell in love with horse racing and horse breeding and for ever afterwards. “And as Jackson acquired capital and standing in the community [in Tennessee], he became a pillar of what even rabid democrats didn’t blush at calling the ‘sport of kings’” (p. 130). He even killed a man, Charles Dickinson, in a duel, over implications of cheating in a horse race. In fact, Jackson took the first bullet near his heart so that he would be able freely fire and kill his man.
4. Andrew Jackson was involved in numerous duels over the years. One such duel was between Jackson as head of the Tennessee militia and John Sevier, ex-Governor of the State. They already had a heated rivalry through Tennessee politics but it became personal when Sevier insulted Rachel. Jackson could never stand a slur against his wife so he challenged Sevier to a duel in Virginia where neither was hurt. In another affair right before the Creek War began, Jackson was insulted by a young man, named Jesse Benton. Jackson threatened to beat him next time they came into contact. When that meeting took place, it was in the open street and shots were fired by various people. No one was killed but Jackson was hit in the arm and the wound was so bad that the doctors wanted to amputate. Jackson would not allow it but kept that bullet in his body till he was President.
5. The Jacksons seemingly could not have children, so they adopted a boy, named Andrew Jackson Jr, from a sister of Rachel’s.
6. Jackson spent most of his life involved with slavery. He owned hundreds of them himself and even traded them. “Jackson treated slavery as a business matter but one not devoid of humanity” (p. 149). “A small but not insignificant aspect of Jackson’s business during this early period was commerce in slaves” (p. 71).
7. Aaron Burr, formerly Vice President under Thomas Jefferson, ruined his political career when he murdered Alexander Hamilton in a duel. He ran away but schemed to liberate the west under his leadership, creating a new nation next to the United States. He ran into Jackson in Tennessee and convinced the General that he needed an army to help him “get the Spanish out of New Orleans.” Jackson, who looked forward to the same thing, mobilized his militia as Burr headed southwest. Soon afterwards though Jackson heard uncomfortable information, accusing Burr as a traitor to the US. Jackson cut off all future contact with Aaron Burr (which was just as well because Jefferson soon would haul him before the Supreme Court) but had almost, inadvertently, committed treason himself.
8. Jackson, although ruthless and coldhearted where his enemies were concerned, had a softer side as well. During the Creek Wars as he brought his vengeance to bear upon the Indians, Jackson adopted an orphaned Indian boy, named Lyncoya, as a companion for Andrew Jr.
9. Most presidents, after they were inaugurated, hold a small reception afterwards at the White House. However, when Jackson was inaugurated, the party at the White House became a mob instead. For some reason, security broke down and people just began streaming into the White House in crowds—leaving the place literally trashed. One of Jackson’s first duties as president was to have the White House completely cleaned and restocked.
10. Jackson was also one of the first presidents to have, besides his Cabinet, a group of tightly-knit political allies that he could consult on many issues. Most people called this unofficial group, the “Kitchen Cabinet” and Jackson used them for much of his information and for the dissemination of presidential information. “Jackson’s informal council served him as a sounding board for policy, but it also provided sustenance, especially now that Rachel was gone” (p. 416).
11. Jackson was the first president to completely overhaul his real Cabinet mid-presidential term. “As much to prove the smug reckoners wrong as to jettison the dead weight of his useless advisors, Jackson did something no president had ever done (and none would ever do more dramatically): he overthrew his whole cabinet” (p. 448). For various reasons, Jackson’s cabinet had not gelled at all and were becoming quite irksome for him. Thus, he dexterously planned to have some resign, some he fired, and others he re-hired elsewhere. He then put together another cabinet, who, some said, were even more qualified than the first.
12. Andrew Jackson was also the first president to face an assassination attempt (actually a couple of them!) The first one was due to the “spoils system” when a recently unemployed Robert Randolph of the Navy department tried to hit Jackson for losing his job. Randolph was immediately overpowered and Jackson only bloodied. A far more serious attempt occurred due to Jackson’s war on the Bank of the United States when the country went into a recession. The assailant’s name was Richard Lawrence and he was a painter, from England, and who had lost his job. On the steps of the Capitol building in 1835, Jackson was descending the steps when Lawrence shot at him pointblank but the gun never fired. He then tried to shoot him with his other gun but it also did not fire. “Jackson by this time realized he was under mortal attack, and he charged the man with his cane” (p. 504). Lawrence was taken into custody and it was proved that he was mentally insane. The weird part? “In the course of the investigation the police tested the pistols Lawrence aimed at the president. Each time now, the weapons fired perfectly” (p. 505). This circumstance proved to many people that Andrew Jackson was chosen by divine providence.
13. Jackson was the first president to take a trip by railroad.
I have to admit that after some of those other presidents, reading about Andrew Jackson was just plain refreshing. I mean this guy had balls and he let everyone know about it. But could you blame him? He literally came from nothing which is quite different from all the other presidents up to this date. Washington, Jefferson, Madison and Monroe were all Virginia landholders and although were they were not wealthy (and most were quite broke), they all started with something. John Adams and his son, John Quincy, never lacked for money and came from a long line of New England farmers. Andrew Jackson was born to a destitute family, fatherless, and by the age of 15, he had lost most of the people he loved. Here then was the American Dream in full force.
Even Jackson’s personality is an enigma. So many people blame him for the Indian catastrophe, believing that he was prejudiced against them, but those same people don’t know that he adopted an Indian boy as his own (of course, he had just killed the boy’s parents.) He was involved in so many duels that I find it amazing that he lived so long and he hated indiscriminately but he was a passionate lover of his family, especially his wife. He was courted and feted and loved by the people of the United States but hated by just about everyone else. He destroyed Britain’s best troops but was then taken to court afterwards for taking over the city in time of war. He inspired such loyalty that it was no wonder that people thought that Jackson had too much power. I like him because you can tell that he was the type that believed in asking forgiveness and not permission.
I also really enjoyed reading this book by HW Brands. It was well-written, not too biased, and it flowed beautifully throughout Jackson’s life. Brands opens the book with a classic Michener-esque feel to it, bringing us back the origins of North America. This opening narrative gives the book a heaviness I would not otherwise have felt if he had just plunked down Andrew Jackson’s birth date on page one. Brands give us a sense that history is important and get this, it flows and repeats itself. For the origins of North America begin with the Indians rollicking over their deliciously unmolested land which is sharply contrasted against the land-hungry, cotton-selling Americans killing and double-dealing to get it back. There is a poetry about Jackson’s story that almost crosses the line into fiction.
Brands also did a great job, I thought, of giving just enough information to understand Andrew Jackson’s life in context with the times. Good background information is given on the Constitution and the start of the state of Tennessee. But Brands’ best achievement was his mini-bios that practically peppered the entire book. I learned quite a bit, by proxy, about Aaron Burr, Nicholas Biddle, John Sevier, Sam Houston and Davy Crockett. I loved how Brands weaved these other men into and out of the life of Andrew Jackson and the story is accordingly so much better for it.
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