William Polk (1758 - 1834)

Refresh this page to see various historical events that occurred during William's lifetime.

In 1800, by the time he was 42 years old, the federal government moved from Philadelphia to Washington D.C. The site of the new capital had been chosen by President George Washington several years earlier and he appointed Pierre (Peter) Charles L'Enfant to lay out a plan for the new city.

In 1801, when he was 43 years old, on November 10th, the state of Kentucky outlawed dueling. The oath of office for Kentucky has since said: ""I, being a citizen of this State, have not fought a duel with deadly weapons within this State nor out of it, nor have I sent or accepted a challenge to fight a duel with deadly weapons, nor have I acted as second in carrying a challenge, nor aided or assisted any person thus offending, so help me God."

In 1811, by the time he was 53 years old, on December 16th, the New Madrid earthquake - in the Mississippi Valley near the city of New Madrid, Missouri - temporarily reversed the course of the Mississippi River. The quake is estimated to have been 7.5 - 7.9. Other large earthquakes along the fault occurred on January 23rd and February 7th, 1812. These quakes were the largest ever recorded east of the Rockies.

In 1823, when he was 65 years old, President James Monroe first introduced the Monroe Doctrine in his State of the Union address. He didn't deliver the speech personally - it was written and delivered to Congress. The Doctrine said that any European attempts to re colonize the Americas would be considered a hostile act towards the United States. It also stated that the US wouldn't interfere with any European colonies and wouldn't interfere with any European affairs.

In 1834, in the year of William Polk's passing, on March 28th, President Andrew Jackson was censured by the United States Congress, 26–20, due to his efforts to close The Second Bank of the United States - which eventually led to the Panic of 1837. The censure was expunged in 1837, after years of effort by Jackson supporters.