James Buchanan is the only U.S. president from the Susquehanna Valley. He was born and raised in Franklin County, and he lived in Lancaster for most of his adult life. Sign up for our Newsletters ...

Born: April 23, 1791, in Stony Batter, Pennsylvania... Buchanan presided over the dissolution of the Union. His faith that the legal system would resolve the slavery issue locked him into inaction.

James Buchanan had tried for the Democratic nomination several times and finally succeeded in 1856, in large part because as Ambassador to Great Britain, he had been absent during the controversies ...