Spring Break

It's spring break here at DPD. Posting resumes around April 1. Until then, however, the week or so ahead is rich in presidential and quasi-presidential anniversaries. March 22, for instance, is the day that Thomas Jefferson, hardly president yet, first became Secretary of State for George Washington. The office was considered a stepping stone to the presidency in the 19th century. March 23 is Schuyler Colfax's birthday, and on March 24, 1950, James Rudolph Garfield -- son of the assassinated president and the last living member of TR's cabinet (Interior) -- passed away.

Henry Adams, grandson and great-grandson of presidents, died on March 27, Eisenhower died on March 28, Tyler was born on March 29, and Reagan nearly died on March 30. Finally, the US and Japan signed their first-ever treaty on March 31: an achievement of the Fillmore administration.