Pierce
2 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Pierce. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
Franklin, the fourteenth president of the United States . He was born in Hillsboro, New Hampshire , November 23, 1804. His father was a general in the War of the American Independence and later became governor of New Hampshire. Young Franklin was educated at Bowdoin, Maine. Nathaniel Hawthorne was a student at the same time. A friendship formed between the young men continued through life. After graduation Pierce taught school, studied law, and settled down to practice in the town of his birth. He was a man of good appearance and address and a pleasing public speaker. In politics he was an ardent follower of Andrew Jackson. At twenty-five years of age he was elected to the legislature of his own state. In 1833 he was sent to Congress. Four years later he was elected United States senator. During the Mexican War he served as brigadier-general. His views on the slavery question being satisfactory to the Southern wing of the Democracy, he was nominated and elected president in 1852. On the occasion of his inaugural, a platform of New Hampshire pine was erected over the steps of the eastern portico of the federal capitol. He took the oath of office in a blinding storm of sleet. His cabinet was wisely chosen and served without change during his entire term. Among the events of his administration were the Gadsden Purchase , the Ostend Manifesto, the settlement of the boundary with Mexico, the beginning of commercial relations with Japan, and the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Bill . So far as appointing a governor and other official acts were concerned Pierce aided the pro-slavery element in the Kansas struggle. In fact he sent a special message to Congress declaring the formation of an anti-slavery government in Kansas an act of rebellion. His attitude in this matter cut off his Northern support. He was not renominated for the presidency. At the outbreak of the Civil War he supported the national government. While the historian does not accord Pierce a leading position among the presidents of the United States, he is regarded as a man of fair ability, of integrity, and of kind feeling. He died at Concord, New Hampshire, October 8, 1869. See Hawthorne
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
FRANKLIN, an American statesman, 14th President of the United States; born in Hillsboro, N. H., Nov. 1804. He was educated in the 23, 23, schools of his native State and at Bowdoin College, where he studied in company with Longfellow, Hawthorne, and Prentiss, graduating in 1824. He was admitted to the bar in 1827, and in 1829 was elected to the New Hampshire Legislature. In 1833 he entered Congress, serving four years, and in 1837 was elected eted to the United States Senate, being the youngest member of that body, which contained such men as Webster, Clay ilas, Wright Ca Calhoun., In Benton, Buchanan, and 1842 he resigned from the Senate and retired to private life. He engaged in public debate with John P. Hale on the slavery question, Pierce advocating the constitutional right of that institution. In 1846 he enlisted for the Mexican War, was appointed brigadier and fought in the battles of Contreras and Churubusco. After the war he continued the practice of law, frequently advocating the political principles of the Democratic party in public, and favoring the compromise measures of 1850, 50, including the Fugitive Slave Law. In 1852 he was nominated for the presidency on the 49th ballot, by the Democratic National Convention, and was elected by an electoral majority over General Scott of 254 to 42. During his administration the Missouri Compromise was repealed, a reciprocity treaty for trade with the British American colonies was made; a treaty with Japan was established; and the Mexican boundary disputes settled. After his term expired, he traveled abroad and, returning, lived thereafter in retirement at Concord, where he died, Oct. 8, 1869.