Andrew Johnson grew up poor in Raleigh, North Carolina. At 14, he was indentured to a tailor but ran away, ending up in Greeneville, Tennessee, where he caught the eye of Eliza McCardle. They married in 1827 and ran a tailor shop that became a hub for local political discussion.

Elected as town alderman and mayor, Johnson then served as a congressman, Tennessee’s governor, and a senator. He remained loyal to the Union as Tennessee seceded. In 1864, as a symbol of unity during the war, Abraham Lincoln persuaded Republican delegates to make Johnson, a Democrat, his running mate.

Johnson became president on April 15, 1865—three hours after Lincoln’s death. Johnson’s Reconstruction policies for the South did not include assurance of rights for newly-freed blacks, a position which put him at constant odds with Radical Republicans in Congress. In a standoff, Congress passed over Johnson’s veto the Tenure of Office Act, which said that the president was prohibited from dismissing certain public officials without the Senate’s approval. In defiance, Johnson dismissed Edwin Stanton, a Radical Republican who was his secretary of war. In return, the U.S. House voted 126-47 to impeach Johnson. After a trial, the Senate acquitted him by one vote. He unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination in 1868 and continued his fights with Congress until the end of his term.

Johnson felt vindicated by his close election to the U.S. Senate in 1875, but he died of a stroke just a few months after taking office. At his request, he was buried with his body wrapped in an American flag and with a copy of the Constitution placed under his head.