The Smithsonian Institution came into being during the administration of James K. Polk. A Democrat, Polk came to the presidency in 1845 with certain clear objectives--the resolution of the United States's claim to Oregon, where some 5,000 American citizens had already settled; the acquisition of California; and the reduction of the protective tariff of 1842.Dominant figures in the Senate were Daniel Webster of Massachusetts, John C. Calhoun of South Carolina, and Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri. Symbolic of impending war with Mexico was the arrival of colorful Sam Houston, now a senator from the newly annexed state of Texas. In the House of Representatives was "Old Man Eloquent," former President John Quincy Adams.
Early in 1846 John Plumbe Jr., one of the most energetic practitioners of the new art of photography, came to town to take daguerreotypes of the public buildings. A high priority was the Patent Office, where visitors came to see the great variety of patent models, as well as the "National Museum" on the top floor, filled with objects of natural history, works of art, historic relics and curiosities.
Grand National Democratic Banner
Nathaniel Currier
Hand-colored lithograph, 1844
11 3/4 x 8 3/8 inches
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution (NPG.85.154)
John C. Calhoun
George Peter Alexander Healy
Oil on canvas, circa 1846
36 x 29 inches
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution (NPG.90.52)
Daniel Webster
George Peter Alexander Healy
Oil on canvas, 1846
50 3/4 x 40 1/4 inches
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; transfer from the National Gallery of Art; gift of Andrew W. Mellon, 1942 (NPG.65.51)
Thomas Hart Benton
Ferdinand Thomas Lee Boyle
Oil on canvas, circa 1861
36 x 29 inches
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution (NPG.66.1)
Robert Dale Owen
Unidentified photographer
Daguerreotype, circa 1847
3 1/4 x 2 3/4 inches
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Andrew Oliver (NPG.79.170)
Varina Howell Davis
John Wood Dodge
Watercolor on ivory, 1849
2 1/2 x 2 inches
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Varina Webb Stewart (NPG.80.113)
Jefferson Davis
George Lethbridge Saunders
Watercolor on ivory, 1849
6 5/8 x 5 1/2 inches
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Joel A. H. Webb and Mrs. Varian Webb Stewart (NPG.79.228)
Representative William J. Hough and family
Brayton J. Wilcox
Oil on canvas, circa 1852-53
67 1/4 x 60 1/4 inches
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Mrs. Violet Shepherd (S/NPG.69.40)
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