1808: Born in North Carolina

1827: Arrives in Greeneville, Tennessee, and sets up tailor shop

1828-35: Involved in Greeneville politics as alderman and mayor

1835-42: Serves in the Tennessee State Legislature as congressman and senator

1843-53 Serves in the U.S. House of Representatives

1853-56: Serves as governor of Tennessee

1857-62: Serves as U.S. senator

1862: Serves as military governor of Tennessee

1864: Elected as Abraham Lincoln's vice president

1865-69: Serves as seventeenth U.S. president following Lincoln's assassination

1868: Survives trial of impeachment by one vote

1875: Serves as U.S. senator for nearly four months before dying in Tennessee