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History of the Treasury
Secretaries of the Treasury
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Robert J. Walker
(1845 - 1849)
When Robert J. Walker (1801-1869) was appointed Secretary
of the Treasury by President James K. Polk in 1845, he had already established
himself as a supporter of an independent treasury system and an apostle
of free trade. His first concern as Secretary was the establishment
of the Independent Treasury System of 1846, whereby the Treasury Department
was made solely responsible for the handling of public monies. The new system
established subtreasuries for the collection, safe-keeping, transfer, and
disbursement of the public revenue.
Walker was also committed to free trade and was responsible
for the Walker Tariff Bill of 1846, which significantly lowered import
duties. He believed that no more money should be collected than was necessary
for the needs of the government and that imports should be free if the
country wanted to export its surplus products. The new lower tariff had
a positive effect, resulting in an increase in trade and a coincidental
increase in revenue for the government. Domestically Walker was an expansionist
and was largely responsible for the establishment of the Department of
the Interior in 1849. He retired at the end of Polk's administration.
About the Artist
The English-born artist William Garl Browne established
himself as a portrait painter in Richmond, Virginia in 1846. After traveling
to Mexico to paint General Zachary Taylor and other heroes of the Mexican-American
War, he concentrated on patrons in the southern states. In North Carolina
and the Virginias, he painted portraits of prominent society figures,
statesmen, and Confederate officers and their families. Browne's works
hang today in the White House, the Treasury Department, and Washington's
Corcoran Gallery, and he is heavily represented in public and private
collections in the South. His portrait of Robert J. Walker painted in
1879, ten years after the subject's death, was probably based on a photograph.
Office of the Curator
All rights reserved. 2001
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