Lewis Cass was an American military officer, politician, and statesman. He represented Michigan in the United States Senate and served in the Cabinets of two U.S. Presidents, Andrew Jackson and James Buchanan. He was also the 1848 Democratic presidential nominee. A slave owner himself, he was a leading spokesman for the doctrine of popular sovereignty, which at the time held the idea that people in each U.S state should have the right to decide on whether to permit or prohibit slavery, believing in the idea of states rights.
Secretary Lewis Cass, c. 1855
Photograph of Secretary Cass, by Mathew Brady, c. 1860-65
Posthumous portrait of Cass, by Daniel Huntington, c. 1873
James Buchanan Jr. was an American lawyer, diplomat, and politician. He served as the 15th president of the United States from 1857 to 1861, as the secretary of State from 1845 to 1849, and represented Pennsylvania in both houses of the U.S. Congress. He was an advocate for states' rights, particularly regarding slavery, and minimized the role of the federal government preceding the Civil War.
Portrait c. 1850–1868
Buchanan's birthplace
1834 portrait of Buchanan at age 42–43 by Jacob Eichholtz
Bust of James Buchanan by Henry Dexter at the National Portrait Gallery
