Tyler, John (Administration)

There were many things that established John Tyler as an American president. Having the title of the first vice president to become the president without the benefit of an election is just one item. The annexation of the Texas Territory was the second. The third was the signing of the Preemption Act that allowed settlers or squatters the [Page 1564]right of first purchase for any lands they occupied or began developing. The fourth and final defining moment was the negotiated Treaty of Wanghia that allowed the United States access to Chinese ports and guaranteed that U.S. nationals would be accountable to the laws of the United States.

John Tyler’s upbringing in an aristocratic family in Virginia helped him achieve status as a legislator, governor, U.S. representative, ...