President james knox polk biography channels

James Polk’s Early Years

James Knox Polk was born on November 2, 1795, in a log cabin in Mecklenburg, North Carolina. As a boy, Polk, the eldest of 10 children, moved with his family to Columbia, Tennessee, where his father became a prosperous land surveyor, planter and businessman. The younger Polk was often sick as a child, and as a teen he survived a major operation for urinary stones.

The surgery was done before the advent of modern antiseptics and anesthesia; Polk was reportedly given some brandy as a sedative. 

A top student, Polk graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1818 and studied law under a leading Nashville attorney.

He was admitted to the bar in 1820 and opened a law practice in Columbia. He entered politics in 1823 when he was elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives.