8 - Martin Van Buren

Martin Van Buren was born on December 5, 1782, in a tiny cabin in Kinderhook, New York.  The cabin no longer exists, but there is a marker on the site.  I visited this site in the summer of 2014:

 

 

 

In 1802, Van Buren moved to New York City to study law.  After a year, he joined the bar and returned home.  In 1807, he married and moved ten miles away to Hudson, New York.  I have been unable to determine the exact location.

From 1821 to 1828, Van Buren represented New York in the US Senate.  I am unsure of his Washington, DC, residence.

In 1828, Van Buren was elected governor of New York and he moved into a home at 92 State Street in Albany.  He lived there for less than three months, as he resigned shortly after taking office to join the cabinet of Andrew Jackson.  The home no longer stands, but there is a marker on the site.  I visited in the summer of 2014:

 

Van Buren became the US secretary of state in 1829 and moved to a home in Washington, DC.  I have not yet visited Decatur House.

 

In 1831, Van Buren resigned as secretary of state and President Jackson appointed him as minister to England.  While in London, he resided at Stratford Place.  He returned in 1832 when the US Senate failed to confirm his nomination.  I have not visited this location.

Van Buren became vice president in 1833 and then president in 1837, and thus, lived in Washington, DC.  Upon leaving the presidency in 1841, Van Buren purchased an estate in his hometown of Kinderhook, New York.  I visited Lindenwald in the summer of 2014:

 

On July 24, 1862, Martin Van Buren died at Lindenwald.  He was buried in Kinderhook Dutch Reformed Church Cemetery in Kinderhook, New York.  I visited this site in the summer of 2014:

 

Back to Index

 

Back to Steve and the Presidents