Home > Fifty-Four Forty or Fight

In the Anglo-American Convention of 1818, the Americans and the British chose a joint sovereignty of what is now the Pacific Northwest of the United States to the British crown colony of British Columbia (now a province of Canada). The northern boundary of the Oregon Territory then was the parallel 54°40', with Russian claims on Alaska to the north. By the electionSee also Election (movie) for the film directed by Alexander Payne For the Theological concept of election, see Predestination An election is a process in which a vote is held to elect candidates to an office. It is the mechanism by which a democracy fill of 1844Events January 15 University of Notre Dame receives its charter from Indiana. February 27 The Dominican Republic gains independence from Haiti. February 28 A gun on the USS Princeton explodes while the boat is on a Potomac River cruise, killing two United, this allianceAn alliance is a treaty between nations, business partners or individuals, for their mutual advantage. Such as NATO, SEATO and the Warsaw Pact. They may be considered a form of confederation. A military alliance is an agreement between two or more countri was growing shaky, with Western settlers wanting the land for America.

Polk was ready to go to war to claim all the land, and quipped the slogan "Fifty-four Forty or Fight!" to help win election. Fortifications like Fort WayneFort Wayne was the name of at least two historic forts in the United States of America; one of these gave its name to Fort Wayne, Indiana. Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne in current Fort Wayne, Indiana was established by Captain John Hamtramck under orders were built along the U.S.-British Columbian border in anticipation of combat. The Democratlogo depicts a stylized donkey in red, white, and blue. The Democratic Party is one of the two major United States political parties. The Party is currently the minority in both the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, as w Polk beat the WhigThe United States Whig Party was a political party of the United States. The party was created in order to oppose the policies of Andrew Jackson and called itself the Whig Party by analogy with the English Whigs, who had opposed the power of the King in R Henry ClayHenry Clay ( April 12, 1777 June 29, 1852) was a U. statesman and orator, and was one of the most important figures in U. politics during the first half of the 19th century. Few public characters in the United States have been the subject of more heated c 1,337,243 to 1,299,068; the electoral collegeThe United States Electoral College is the electoral college which chooses the President and Vice President of the United States at the conclusion of each Presidential election. The Electoral College was established by Article Two, Section One of the U. results were Polk 170 votes versus 105 for Clay.

The argument was settled diplomatically, with the Oregon Treaty of 1846. The border was set the 49th parallel, which still marks much of the border between the United States and Canada.

The Canadian rock band 54-40 takes their name from this slogan.