Charles Polk

Charles Polk

Charles Polk Jr. (born November 14, 1788 in Bridgeville , Delaware , † October 27, 1857 in Milford , Delaware) was an American politician and governor of the state of Delaware from 1827 to 1830 and between 1836 and 1837 .

Early years and political advancement

Charles Polk was a distant cousin of James K. Polk , President of the United States from 1845 to 1849. His father was a veteran of the Revolutionary War and a large Delaware landowner. Charles Polk attended Westtown Boarding School in Chester County , Pennsylvania . Then he studied law, but without ever working as a lawyer. Like his father, he, too, became a wealthy landowner in Delaware.

Polk was a member of the Federalist Party . Between 1813 and 1824 he was a member of the House of Representatives from Delaware several times with interruptions . At times he was President of the House. In 1824 he was elected to the State Senate. There, too, he was temporarily President of the Chamber. In 1826 he was elected governor of his state as the last candidate of the Federalist Party against his future successor David Hazzard . His party broke up in those years as well as on the once of Thomas Jefferson founded the Democratic-Republican Party . The Whig Party , which Polk later joined, and the Democratic Party founded by Andrew Jackson were created for this purpose .

Delaware Governor

Charles Polk began his three-year term on January 16, 1827 against the backdrop of the changing political landscape in the United States. During this time, a reform of the school system was sought. The state was divided into new school districts in order to shorten the way to school for students. The project, which was supposed to benefit primary schools in particular, was only partially financed by the state. For the unsupported part of the program, hopes were made for the municipalities, but many of them refused to make their contribution. As a result, the reform failed to achieve great success.

During Polk's tenure, the Federal Customs Act of 1828 was passed, which set import duties and caused bitterness in some southern states . The construction of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal also continued. With the excavated earth, the farmers freshened up their fields and were able to increase their production.

Between gubernatorial times

After the end of his tenure on January 19, 1830 Polk was again a member of the State Senate. In 1831 he was president of an assembly to revise the state constitution. The result was, among other things, the extension of the governor's term of office from three to four years, with the ban on direct re-election. In 1836 he was again President of the Senate. When Governor Caleb P. Bennett died in office in May of this year, Polk had to end his term in office by January 17, 1837, according to the state constitution.

Second term and resume

During this time, the immigration of free African Americans to Delaware was banned. Governor Polk blamed them for the poor economic situation in agriculture. After his second term in office he was again State Senator between 1838 and 1843. From 1843 to 1848 he was an executor in Kent County . Between 1849 and 1853 he was Head of US Customs at Wilmington Harbor . Shortly before his death in August 1857, he was still a judge at the Delaware Supreme Court. Charles Polk died on October 27 of the same year. With his wife Mary Purnell (1796-1865) he had nine children. His son William later became an MP and President of the Delaware House of Representatives.

literature

• Robert Sobel and John Raimo (Eds.): Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789–1978. Volume 1, Meckler Books, Westport, 1978. 4 volumes.

Web links

• The governors of Delaware (English)

• Charles Polk in the database of Find a Grave (English)