Martin Van Buren was better at acquiring presidential power than using it for himself. Van Buren was elected president in 1836, but he saw financial problems beginning even before he entered the White House.

He inherited Andrew Jackson's financial policies, which contributed to what came to be known as the Panic of 1837. It turned out to be the worst economic depression that the young nation had yet known. Do you know what led to the Panic of 1837?