Robert J. Walker
Robert James Walker (July 19, 1801 – November 11, 1869) was an American lawyer, economist and politician. An active member of the Democratic Party, he served as a member of the U.S. Senate from Mississippi from 1835 until 1845, as Secretary of the Treasury from 1845 to 1849 during the administration of President James K. Polk, and briefly as Territorial Governor of Kansas in 1857. He was responsible for drafting the 1849 bill that eventually established the United States Department of the Interior.
For the United States Coast Survey ship, see USCS Robert J. Walker (1844).
Robert Walker
As senator, Walker vigorously supported the annexation of Texas. As Secretary of the Treasury, he held responsibility for the management of funds relating to the Mexican–American War,. He contributed to a bill called the Walker tariff, which reduced rates to some of the lowest in history. Walker was appointed Governor of Kansas in 1857 by President James Buchanan but resigned shortly after due to his opposition to the administration-sponsored pro-slavery Lecompton Constitution. After his retirement from politics, Walker supported the United States during the American Civil War and continued to practice law in Washington, D.C.
Early life and education[edit]
Born in Northumberland, Pennsylvania, to Revolutionary War veteran and Pennsylvania judge, Jonathan Hoge Walker (July 20, 1754 – March 23, 1824) and his wife Lucretia ("Lucy") Duncan Walker (1770–1837), he and his brother Duncan grew up in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, from 1806 to 1814, where Jonathan Walker served as presiding judge of the judicial district. Judge Walker become the first judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania in 1818 (after nomination by President James Monroe and confirmation by the Senate) and served until his death. Initially educated at the Bellefonte Academy,[1] Robert Walker graduated in 1819 at the top of his class at the University of Pennsylvania where he was a member of the Philomathean Society.
He married Mary Blechynden Bache Walker and had five children, including Duncan Stephen Walker. His wife was a great-granddaughter of Benjamin Franklin.
Death and legacy[edit]
Walker died in Washington, D.C., on November 11, 1869. He is buried at Washington's Oak Hill cemetery. His son-in-law Benjamin H. Brewster became Attorney General under Chester A. Arthur. Many of his papers are held by the University of Pittsburgh, which has digitized them.[18]
Initially, Walker County, Texas, was named in his honor. However, due to Walker's support of the Union during the Civil War, the Texas Legislature withdrew the honor and honored Samuel Walker (no relation), a Texas Ranger, instead.
The survey ship Robert J. Walker, which served in the United States Coast Survey from 1848 to 1860, was named for Walker.
A merchant vessel named Robert J. Walker was constructed in 1943, and served until its sinking by a German U-boat off the coast of Australia the following year.
Attribution