James Madison

(1751 - 1836)

The five-foot-four Founding Father, coauthor of the Federalist papers, and fourth president of the United States, James Madison rode a horse from his native Virginia to New Jersey to enter Princeton University. He completed the four-year course of study in two, the strain of his effort resulting in several years of hysteria and fears of premature death. He was secretary of state under President Thomas Jefferson when the Louisiana Territory was purchased from France, and the War of 1812 was fought during his presidency. After leaving the presidency, he never set foot outside of Virginia, spending the rest of his life managing his 5,000-acre farm and cultivating the land by methods regarded today as modern innovations.