Andrew Jackson

Andrew Jackson was born on March 15, 1767 in the Waxhaws region of South Carolina. He was the third child of Scots-Irish immigrants Andrew and Elizabeth Hutchingson Jackson. His father died three weeks before his birth, leaving his mother to raise him and his siblings alone.

At age 13, Jackson joined the local militia to fight against the British during the American Revolution. Following the war, he attended a school in Salisbury, North Carolina and read law with an established lawyer to become a practicing attorney. In 1788 he moved to Nashville, Tennessee and began a successful legal practice there. 

In 1796, Jackson ran for Congress as a delegate from Tennessee and won overwhelmingly. He also became active in state politics and in 1798 was elected as Tennessee's first U.S. Senator. After leaving Congress he served as a judge on Tennessee's superior court from 1804-1814. 

In 1812, Jackson was appointed major general of the U.S. Army forces in the Southwest Territory (now Alabama). That same year he led U.S. forces against Native American tribes in Florida and won several decisive victories at Pensacola, Mobile, Talladega, Tohopeka Creek (Horseshoe Bend) and New Orleans. The success of these campaigns earned him national fame as "Old Hickory," which helped propel him into the presidency in 1828 when he defeated John Quincy Adams by a landslide victory of 178 electoral votes to 83 electoral votes.  

During his two terms in office (1829-1837), President Andrew Jackson initiated sweeping reforms within the executive branch that drastically reduced federal bureaucracy and promoted greater democracy among citizens by granting more rights to lower class citizens such as voting rights for white males who did not own property or pay taxes. He also supported Indian removal policies that resulted in Native American tribes being forcibly relocated from their lands east of Mississippi River to lands west of it . His time as president has been considered one of the most influential periods of American history during which he left an indelible mark on U.S politics today

<div id="" class="facts-item"><h3 id="" class="facts-title"><span class="facts-number">1.</span> First President to Survive an Assassination Attempt</h3><p id="" class="facts-text">Andrew Jackson is the first president to survive an assassination attempt. On January 30, 1835, a man tried to shoot him with two pistols, but both misfired and he was able to escape.</p></div>

<div id="" class="facts-item"><h3 id="" class="facts-title"><span class="facts-number">2.</span> The People's President</h3><p id="" class="facts-text">Andrew Jackson was the first "people's president" because he was the first president to be elected by the people rather than by the Electoral College.</p></div>

<div id="" class="facts-item"><h3 id="" class="facts-title"><span class="facts-number">3.</span> The Indian Removal Act</h3><p id="" class="facts-text">Andrew Jackson was responsible for passing the Indian Removal Act of 1830, which relocated Native Americans from their ancestral lands in the southeastern United States to land west of the Mississippi River.</p></div>

<div id="" class="facts-item"><h3 id="" class="facts-title"><span class="facts-number">4.</span> Defeated at the Battle of New Orleans</h3><p id="" class="facts-text">Despite being victorious in the War of 1812, Andrew Jackson was defeated at the Battle of New Orleans in 1815 by British forces.</p></div>

<div id="" class="facts-item"><h3 id="" class="facts-title"><span class="facts-number">5.</span> Survived a Duel</h3><p id="" class="facts-text">Andrew Jackson survived a duel with a local attorney named Charles Dickinson in 1806. Dickinson fired first and hit Jackson in the chest, but Jackson refused to fire back until Dickinson had fired twice more, killing him instantly.</p></div>