The United States Congress establishes a uniform date for federal elections, which will henceforth be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. March 4, 1845 – The United States Congress passes legislation overriding a presidential veto for the first time. February 26, 1846 – The Liberty Bell is cracked while being rung for George Washington's birthday. March 1, 1847 – The state of Michigan formally abolishes the death penalty. March 4, 1847 – The 30th United States Congress is sworn into office. July 1, 1847 – The United States issues its first postage stamps (pictured). January 31, 1848 – Construction of the Washington Monument begins in Washington, D.C. March 3, 1849 – The United States Congress passes the Gold Coinage Act allowing the minting of gold coins. Slavery March 9, 1841 – Amistad: The Supreme Court of the United States rules in the case that the Africans who seized control of the ship had been taken into slavery illegally. August 11 (Wednesday) Frederick Douglass spoke in front of the Anti-Slavery Convention in Nantucket, Massachusetts. May – Frederick Douglass's Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave written by himself is published by the Boston Anti-Slavery Society. Settlement May 11, 1841 – Lt. Charles Wilkes lands at Fort Nisqually in Puget Sound. August 4, 1842 – The Armed Occupation Act is signed, providing for the armed occupation and settlement of the unsettled part of the Peninsula of East Florida. August 9, 1842 – The Webster–Ashburton Treaty is signed, settling the dispute over the location of the Maine–New Brunswick border between the United States and Canada, and establishing the United States–Canada border east of the Rocky Mountains. May 22, 1843 – The first major wagon train headed for the American Northwest sets out with one thousand pioneers from Elm Grove, Missouri, on the Oregon Trail. March 3, 1845 – Florida is admitted as the 27th U.S. state. December 2, 1845 – Manifest destiny: U.S. President James K. Polk announces to Congress that the Monroe Doctrine should be strictly enforced and that the United States should aggressively expand into the West. December 29, 1845 – Texas is admitted as the 28th U.S. state. June 15, 1846 – The Oregon Treaty establishes the 49th parallel as the border between the United States and Canada, from the Rocky Mountains to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. 1846 – The