Fillmore Was One Of Five “Accidental” Presiden
Taylor and Fillmore were elected president with 47% of the popular vote because the Democrats were divided over the subject of slavery; some had defected to create the Free Soil Party, which was opposed to slavery. The Taylor administration essentially ignored Fillmore while he served as vice president, consulting Weed and Seward even when deciding who would receive favors in New York. Taylor, however, caught a stomach ailment on July 4, 1850, after going to a Fourth of July party at the Washington Monument. His doctors administered the now-discredited medical procedures of the time, including the mercury chemical calomel, which caused bleeding and blisters in him. Taylor passed away a few days later. The abrupt passing of Taylor, known as “Old Rough and Ready,” shocked the country since he had built up a reputation for toughness through his military campaigns in the heat.
On July 8, Fillmore was summoned from his position as Senate president and sat in a vigil outside Taylor's bedroom in the White House with other members of the cabinet. On the evening of July 9, at his apartment at the Willard Hotel, he received the official notice of the president's passing, signed by the cabinet. Following a restless night, Fillmore acknowledged the letter and went to the House of Representatives, where he took the oath of office from William Cranch, the head judge of the federal court for the District of Columbia, who had also sworn in President Tyler, during a joint session of Congress. So, he was one of five accidental president. Chester A. Arthur (1881–1855), John Tyler (1841–1845), Andrew Johnson (1865–1869), and Gerald Ford were the only other American presidents who were never elected to the position (1974-1977).
