1853-1857
As a young man, Pierce was known more for hard partying and socializing than for any religious persuasion. He married a devoutly religious woman, Jane Appleton, who seemed in every way his opposite. Having suffered the death of two boys in early childhood, the Pierces experienced tragedy yet again two months before Pierce's inauguration, when their 11-year-old son Benjamin, their only remaining child, died before their eyes in a train accident. According to Pierce's biographer, Roy Nichols, "Much of the difficulty which he experienced in administration during the next four years may be attributed to this terrible tragedy and its long-continued after effects."
Never interested in politics, Jane Pierce came to believe that God had taken her son so that her husband could concentrate on being president and not be distracted. Pierce came to believe that his son's death was a punishment for his sins. His tenure in the White House was somber and largely a disappointment; his pro-slavery stance as a Northerner made him extremely unpopular.
After leaving office, Pierce was baptized and became a member of the Episcopal Church in Concord, N.H.
As a young man, Pierce was known more for hard partying and socializing than for any religious persuasion. He married a devoutly religious woman, Jane Appleton, who seemed in every way his opposite. Having suffered the death of two boys in early childhood, the Pierces experienced tragedy yet again two months before Pierce's inauguration, when their 11-year-old son Benjamin, their only remaining child, died before their eyes in a train accident. According to Pierce's biographer, Roy Nichols, "Much of the difficulty which he experienced in administration during the next four years may be attributed to this terrible tragedy and its long-continued after effects."
Never interested in politics, Jane Pierce came to believe that God had taken her son so that her husband could concentrate on being president and not be distracted. Pierce came to believe that his son's death was a punishment for his sins. His tenure in the White House was somber and largely a disappointment; his pro-slavery stance as a Northerner made him extremely unpopular.
After leaving office, Pierce was baptized and became a member of the Episcopal Church in Concord, N.H.
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