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 You are in: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice > Former Secretaries of State > Biographies 
Picture of John Caldwell CalhounBIOGRAPHY

John Caldwell Calhoun
Secretary of State, 
Term of Appointment: 04/01/1844 to 03/10/1845

  • Born at "the Long Canes settlement", in what became Abbeville County, South Carolina, March 18, 1782;
  • Graduated from Yale College in 1804 and from Litchfield Law School in 1806;
  • Admitted to the bar in 1807 and practiced law in Abbeville, South Carolina;
  • Married Floride Bonneau Colhoun in 1811;
  • Gave up the practice of law and established himself as a planter;
  • Member of the State House of Representatives, 1808-1809;
  • Representative from South Carolina, 1811-1817;
  • Secretary of War in President Monroe's Cabinet, 1817-1825;
  • Vice President of the United States 1825-1832, when he resigned; was a Senator from South Carolina 1832-1843;
  • Secretary of State in President Tyler's Cabinet from April 1, 1844 until March 10, 1845;
  • As Secretary of State, signed an abortive treaty for the annexation of Texas and aided in accomplishing annexation by joint resolution of Congress;
  • Delegate of South Carolina to, and presiding officer of, a railroad-and-waterway convention held in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1845;
  • Again a Senator from South Carolina 1845-1850;
  • Author of voluminous writings and speeches;
  • Died in Washington, DC, March 31, 1850.


Released on July 15, 2003

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