page_title: John C. Frémont
section_title: Republican Party presidential candidate (1856)
hierarchical_section_title: John C. Frémont / Republican Party presidential candidate (1856)
caption_attribution_description: English: Image of John C. Fremont taken from book of Fremont's expeditions
context_page_description: John Charles Frémont or Fremont was an American explorer, military officer, and politician. He was a US Senator from California, and in 1856 was the first Republican nominee for President of the United States.
  A native of Georgia, Frémont acquired male protectors after his father's death, and became proficient in mathematics, science, and surveying. During the 1840s, he led five expeditions into the Western United States and became known as "The Pathfinder". During the Mexican–American War, Frémont, a major in the U.S. Army, took control of California from the California Republic in 1846. Frémont was convicted in court-martial for mutiny and insubordination after a conflict over who was the rightful military governor of California. After his sentence was commuted and he was reinstated by President Polk, Frémont resigned from the Army. Frémont led a private fourth expedition, which cost ten lives, seeking a rail route over the mountains around the 38th parallel in the winter of 1849.
  Afterwards, Frémont settled in California at Monterey while buying cheap land in the Sierra foothills.
context_section_description: In 1856, Frémont (age 43) was the first presidential candidate of the new Republican Party. The Republicans, whose party had formed in 1854, were united in their opposition to the Pierce Administration and the spread of slavery into the West. Initially, Frémont was asked to be the Democratic candidate by former Virginia Governor John B. Floyd and the powerful Preston family. Frémont announced that he was for Free Soil Kansas and was against the enforcement of the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law. Republican leaders Nathaniel P. Banks, Henry Wilson, and John Bigelow were able to get Frémont to join their political party. Seeking a united front and a fresh face for the party, the Republicans nominated Frémont for president over other candidates, and conservative William L. Dayton of New Jersey, for vice president, at their June 1856 convention held in Philadelphia. The Republican campaign used the slogan "Free Soil, Free Men, and Frémont" to crusade for free farms (homesteads) and against the Slave Power. Frémont, popularly known as The Pathfinder, however, had voter appeal and remained the symbol of the Republican Party. The Democratic Party nominated James Buchanan.
  Frémont's wife Jessie, Bigelow, and Issac Sherman ran Frémont's campaign. As the daughter of a Senator, Jessie had been raised in Washington, and she understood politics more than Frémont.  Many treated Jessie as an equal political professional, while Frémont was treated as an amateur. She received popular attention much more than potential First Ladies, and Republicans celebrated her participation in the campaign calling her Our Jessie. Jessie and the Republican propaganda machine ran a strong campaign, but she was unable to get her powerful father, Senator Benton, to support Frémont. While praising Frémont, Benton announced his support for Buchanan.
  Frémont, along with the other presidential candidates, did not actively participate in the campaign, and he mostly stayed home at 56 West Street, in New York City. This practice was typical in presidential campaigns of the 19th century. To win the Presidency, the Republicans concentrated on four swing states, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Indiana, and Illinois. Republican luminaries were sent out decrying the Democratic Party's attachment to slavery and its support of the repeal of the Missouri Compromise. The experienced Democrats, knowing the Republican strategy, also targeted these states, running a rough media campaign, while illegally naturalizing thousands of alien immigrants in Pennsylvania. The campaign was particularly abusive, as the Democrats attacked Frémont's illegitimate birth and alleged Frémont was Catholic. In a counter-crusade against the Republicans, the Democrats ridiculed Frémont's military record and warned that his victory would bring civil war. Much of the private rhetoric of the campaign focused on unfounded rumors regarding Frémont – talk of him as president taking charge of a large army that would support slave insurrections, the likelihood of widespread lynchings of slaves, and whispered hope among slaves for freedom and political equality.
  Frémont's campaign was headquartered near his home (St. George) next to the Clifton ferry landing. Many campaign rallies were held on the lawn, now the corner of Greenfield and Bay Street. Frémont was defeated, having placed second to James Buchanan in a three-way election; he did not carry the state of California. Frémont received 114 electoral votes to 174 votes received by Buchanan. Millard Fillmore ran as a third party candidate representing the American Party. The popular vote went to Buchanan who received 1,836,072 votes to 1,342,345 votes received by Frémont in November 4, 1856. Fremont carried 11 states, and Buchanan carried 19. The Democrats were better organized while the Republicans had to operate on limited funding. After the campaign, Frémont returned to California and devoted himself to his mining business on the Mariposa gold estate, estimated by some to be valued at ten million dollars. Frémont's title to Mariposa land had been confirmed by the 
caption: Image of Fremont taken from 1856 book of Fremont's expeditions
exif: {"Image DateTime": "2017:08:02 11:40:17", "Image ExifOffset": "58", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "106", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "3665"}