Historic Sites - James K. Polk Ancestral Home
12 James K. Polk Ancestral Home
- Sitting room at the Polk Home, featuring the presidential seal table.
This house was built by Samuel Polk in 1816, when his son James K. Polk was twenty-one years old. It was here that James K. Polk began his legal and political career, living in this house until he was inaugurated 11th president of the United States in 1845. He was the first "dark horse" candidate for president and during his term the territory of the United States was extended from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans. Having served in the state legislature, in Congress, as governor of Tennessee, and as president of the United States, Polk died in 1849, a victim of cholera. The house is built in the Federal style and is furnished with relics from the Polk White House. Nearby is the home of Polk’s sisters. Tours of the homes include exhibits of Mrs. Polk’s ball gown and jewels, Polk’s inaugural Bible, Mexican War memorabilia, and the family gardens. The James K. Polk ancestral home is a Presidential historic site that displays original Polk belongings, such as furnishings, documents, White House artifacts, and political memorabilia. The site also features the adjacent Sisters' House museum, a reconstructed nineteenth-century kitchen building, and formal gardens.
James K. Polk Ancestral Home Web Site
301 West Seventh Street,
Columbia, TN 38401
(931) 388-2354
Hours: (Apr-Oct 31) 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Mon.-Sat. and 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Sun.
(Nov 1-Mar 31) 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Mon.-Sat. and 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Sun.
