 |
History of the Treasury
Secretaries of the Treasury
< BACK
Louis McLane
(1831 - 1833)
At the time President Jackson appointed Louis McLane
(1786-1857) Secretary of the Treasury in 1831, the President was increasingly
inclined to oppose the Second Bank of the United States. Though McLane's
views on finance did  not agree with those of the President, Jackson
respected McLane and in making the appointment overlooked this potential
conflict. During thirteen years in Congress (1816-1829), McLane had championed
the cause of the Bank and had denied the power of Congress to interfere
with its operations. As Secretary, he urged Congress to renew the Bank's
charter when the measure was introduced in 1832, although Jackson was opposed
to renewal. The bill to recharter the Bank, passed that year by Congress,
was vetoed by the President.
Jackson ran for reelection that year on the Bank
issue and he interpreted his resounding triumph at the polls as public
disapproval of the Bank. He pressured McLane to remove government deposits
from the Bank, since the Secretary of the Treasury was the only person
authorized to do so. Though McLane refused to withdraw the deposits, he
wanted to avoid further conflict with Jackson and readily agreed to move
to the position of Secretary of State when that office became available
in 1833.
About the Artist
Born in Wytheville, Virginia in 1832, Flavius J.
Fisher was sent to the Pennsylvania Academy to study drawing when he was
twelve. Later, traveling to Germany, he was the first American to be admitted
to the Berlin Institute of Art. Returning to America, Fisher settled in
Lynchburg, Virginia and painted the portraits of many leading citizens.
After 1882 he had a studio in the Corcoran Building in Washington, D.C.
where he painted portraits of figures prominent in Washington politics.
His portrait of Louis McLane, executed in 1893, was copied from a life
portrait by Gilbert Stuart Newton that is still in the possession of the
McLane family.
Office of the Curator
All rights reserved. 2001
|
|
