This informative post will be published on Saturday in place of my regular one.  You are invited to participate with the opening question.

Brain Teaser Question

I have keys but no locks.  You can enter but you can’t go outside.  I have space but no room.  What am I?

(answer found at the end of this post)

Featured Facts

James Buchanan, nicknamed “The Sage of Wheatland,” was the 15th President of the United States.  

Here are a few facts about President Buchanan:

• Term of office:  1857-1861
• Home state:  Pennsylvania
• Lifespan:  April 23, 1791 to June 1, 1868
• Political party:  Democratic
• College attended:  Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania

As Buchanan’s term of office drew to a close in 1861, the powder keg of emotions between America’s North and South was nearing its implosion point.  Days before Abraham Lincoln’s inauguration, seven southern states seceded from the Union and formed the Confederate States of  America. 

Buchanan was morally opposed to slavery, but he felt it was protected by the U.S. Constitution.  As President, he tried, without success, to maintain peace between the pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions in the country.  His official Cabinet illustrated balance between these two opposing views.  He felt the issue of slavery should best be decided by the states.

Buchanan’s journey toward the Presidency included lengthy terms of office in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate.  He served in diplomatic posts as well as Secretary of State.  

In the election of 1856, Buchanan ran as the “Save the Union” candidate.  Despite this campaign promise, the nation seemed headed toward a bloody conflict.  He did not seek re-election in 1860 because he had promised to only serve only one term (as stated in his Inaugural Address).

Buchanan was unmarried, and he has remained the only bachelor to serve a full-term as President.  Another bachelor, Grover Cleveland, was elected President in 1886, but he was married during his first year in office.

left:  portrait of president buchanan.  Right top:  buchanan and his cabinet.  right bottom:  wheatland, buchanan home in lancaster, pennsylvania.   (photographs courtesy of pinterest.)

Answer to Brain Teaser Question

A keyboard.