Dallas, George Mifflin, 1792-1864

<p>George Mifflin Dallas was born on July 10, 1792, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His parents were affluent members of the community, and his father served for as secretary of the Treasury and interim secretary of War for President James Madison. Dallas attended Princeton University and graduated in 1810. He then studied law and was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar three years later. Albert Gallatin, an old family friend and former secretary of the Treasury, hired Dallas as his private secretary. In that position, Dallas traveled with Gallatin from 1813 to 1814, spending time in Russia and Britain. After he returned home, he became legal counsel for the Bank of the United States, which was based in Philadelphia. Dallas married Sophia Chew Nicklin in 1816, and they eventually had eight children. He also opened his own legal practice, which he maintained throughout much of his lifetime. In 1817, Dallas left the bank to become deputy attorney general of Pennsylvania. He also served as mayor of Philadelphia and as a state district attorney. In 1831, the state legislature appointed him to complete an unexpired term in the U.S. Senate. Although Dallas was a member of the Democratic Party and supported President Andrew Jackson, he was disappointed when the President vetoed a bill to recharter the Second Bank of the United States. Dallas lacked a strong political ambition, and he chose not to run for reelection when his term in the Senate ended in 1833. Still he stayed involved in state politics and served as a state attorney general.</p>

<p>In 1837, President Martin Van Buren appointed Dallas to serve as minister to Russia. Dallas and his family enjoyed their time in Russia although he did not feel his work was very important. They returned home after two years. During the 1844 election, the Democratic Party turned to Dallas as the vice presidential candidate. He had cordial relations with President James K. Polk although he was never part of the President’s inner circle. As vice president, he felt he should support the President’s positions, and he put the administration ahead of his own political future. When he cast the deciding vote in the Senate for the Walker Tariff, which reduced tariffs and was highly unpopular in Pennsylvania, Dallas essentially ended his future political career. Without home state support, the vice president gave up any hope for a presidential nomination in the 1848 election. Dallas returned to private life and his legal practice after leaving the vice presidency. President Franklin Pierce appointed him minister of Great Britain, and he served from 1856 to 1861. He died on December 31, 1864. The city and county of Dallas, Texas, were named after him.</p>

DALLAS, GEORGE MIFFLIN, (great-great-granduncle of Claiborne Pell), a Senator from Pennsylvania and a vice president of the United States; born in Philadelphia, Pa., July 10, 1792; graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) in 1810; studied law; admitted to the bar in 1813; private secretary to Albert Gallatin, Minister to Russia; returned in 1814 and commenced the practice of law in New York City; solicitor of the United States Bank 1815-1817; returned to Philadelphia and was appointed deputy attorney general in 1817; mayor of Philadelphia October 21, 1828-April 15, 1829; United States district attorney for the eastern district of Pennsylvania 1829-1831; elected as a Democrat to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Isaac D. Barnard and served from December 13, 1831, to March 3, 1833; declined to be a candidate for reelection in 1832; chairman, Committee on Naval Affairs (Twenty-second Congress); resumed the practice of law; attorney general of Pennsylvania 1833-1835; appointed by President Martin Van Buren as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Russia 1837-1839, when he was recalled at his own request; elected Vice President of the United States on the Democratic ticket in 1844 with James K. Polk and served from March 4, 1845, to March 3, 1849; appointed Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Great Britain by President Franklin Pierce 1856-1861; returned to Philadelphia, and died there December 31, 1864; interment in St. Peter's Churchyard.

<p>George Mifflin Dallas (July 10, 1792 – December 31, 1864) was an American politician and diplomat who served as mayor of Philadelphia from 1828 to 1829 and as the 11th vice president of the United States from 1845 to 1849.</p>

<p>The son of Secretary of the Treasury Alexander J. Dallas, George Dallas attended elite preparatory schools before embarking on a legal career. He served as the private secretary to Albert Gallatin and worked for the Treasury Department and the Second Bank of the United States. He emerged as a leader of the "Family party" faction of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, and Dallas developed a rivalry with James Buchanan, the leader of the "Amalgamator" faction. Between 1828 and 1835, he served as the mayor of Philadelphia, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the Pennsylvania Attorney General. He also represented Pennsylvania in the United States Senate from 1831 to 1833 but declined to seek re-election. President Martin Van Buren appointed Dallas to the post of Minister to Russia, and Dallas held that position from 1837 to 1839.</p>

<p>Dallas supported Van Buren's bid for another term in the 1844 presidential election, but James K. Polk won the party's presidential nomination. The 1844 Democratic National Convention nominated Dallas as Polk's running mate, and Polk and Dallas defeated the Whig ticket in the general election. A supporter of expansion and popular sovereignty, Dallas called for the annexation of all of Mexico during the Mexican–American War. He sought to position himself for contention in the 1848 presidential election, but his vote to lower the tariff destroyed his base of support in his home state. Dallas served as the ambassador to Britain from 1856 to 1861 before retiring from public office.</p>