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Martin Van Buren: A Resource Guide

Martin Van Buren served as the eighth president of the United States (1837-41), after serving as vice president (1833-37) under President Andrew Jackson. This guide compiles digital materials, external websites, and a selected print bibliography.

Introduction

The digital collections of the Library of Congress contain a wide variety of materials associated with Martin Van Buren, including the Martin Van Buren Papers held in the Library's Manuscript Division. Included in the papers are more than 6,000 items spanning his career from the time he was a U.S. senator from New York, through his presidency and the decade thereafter. Van Buren was born on December 5, 1782 in Kinderhook, New York. He rose to fame under the wing of Andrew Jackson, serving as President Jackson's secretary of state (1829-31) during his first term. In 1832, Jackson selected Van Buren to serve as his vice president during his second term (1833-37) leading to Van Buren's nomination as the presidential candidate at the Democrats' first official national convention in 1836. He was elected as the eighth president of the United States and served one term (1837-41).

This resource guide compiles links to digital materials related to Van Buren such as manuscripts, letters, broadsides, government documents, and images that are available throughout the Library of Congress website. In addition, it provides links to external websites focusing on Van Buren and a bibliography containing selected works for both general and younger readers.