Springfield, Home of Zachary Taylor
Springfield was built in 1790 by Colonel Richard Taylor, a veteran of the Revolutionary War and the French and Indian War, and father to Zachary Taylor, the 12th President of the United States, who was born November 24, 1784, near Barboursville, Virginia. The family moved into this Kentucky frontier home in 1790 on 400 acres, expanding it to a prosperous plantation of 700 acres. Zachary Taylor lived here about 20 years before leaving Springfield in 1808 to begin his military career as a First Lieutenant in the 7th U. S. Infantry. He married Margaret M. Smith at Springfield two years later while on leave.
By the time he became president in 1849, he was the most popular man in America. Called "Old Rough and Ready", he became the hero of the Mexican-American War after defeating General Santa Anna's army of 20,000 men with his army of 6,000. He was the first career army officer to become president. He died July 9, 1850, after only 16 months in office of a sudden stomach illness and is buried at nearby Zachary Taylor National Cemetery.
