Fifty-Four Forty or Fight
The phrase "Fifty-Four Forty or Fight" was a campaign slogan of United States president-to-be James K. Polk.
In 1818, the Americans and the British chose a joint sovereignty of what is now the Pacific Northwest of the United States to British Columbia of Canada. The northern boundary of the Oregon Territory then was the parallel 54°40', with Russian claims on Alaska to the north. By the election of 1844, this alliance was growing shaky, Western settlers wanting the land for America.
Polk was ready to go to war to claim all the land, saying "Fifty-four Forty or Fight!" Fortifications like Fort Wayne were built along the U.S.-Canadian border in anticipation of combat. The Democrat Polk beat the Whig Henry Clay 1,337,243 to 1,299,068; the electoral college results were Polk 170 votes versus 105 for Clay.
The argument was settled diplomatically, with the Oregon Treaty of 1846. The border was set at 49 degrees.
The current northern border is still 49 degrees.
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Referenced By
1846 Oregon Treaty | American Imperialism | Annexation | Fifty-four | History of American Imperialism | History of US Imperialism | History of United States Imperialism | James K. Polk | James Knox Polk | James Polk | List of political slogans | List of slogans | Military History of the United States | OregoN | Oregon Boundary Treaty | Oregon Country | Oregon Treaty | President Polk | Treaty of Oregon | United States military history
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