There Is No Candidate Named James Buchanan
In 1856, James Buchanan became the Democratic Party’s candidate for president, running his campaign from his Lancaster home. In response to the nomination, Buchanan’s colleague and fellow Lancastrian, Thaddeus Stevens, said, “There is no candidate named James Buchanan… Nothing remains but a platform and a bloated mass of political putridity.”
This President’s Day, join us at President James Buchanan’s Wheatland for a Special Subject Tour on these two famous Lancastrians. During your guided tour, you’ll learn how James Buchanan used Wheatland as his campaign headquarters to promote his candidacy in an age before modern media. The campaign not only secured Buchanan’s election, but secured local support of Buchanan as Lancaster’s president.
There Is No Candidate Named James Buchanan, a special guided tour of Wheatland, will be held on Monday, February 16, 2026. Tours will be available on the hour, beginning at 10am and continuing until the last tour at 3pm. Please Note: These tours are not our regular General Admission tours and may be more focused on a particular topic than a general history of Buchanan and the home.
Tickets are available for purchase online or over the phone by calling 717.392.4633. Advance reservations are highly recommended as tours may sell out and walk-in tickets may not be available, especially on Presidents’ Day. Members receive complimentary admission, but should reserve their tickets in advance to guarantee the tour time of their choice.
This event is hosted by the Friends of the Tanger Arboretum. The Friends of the Tanger Arboretum, a subsidiary organization of LancasterHistory, helps foster public interest in, and support for, the maintenance and development of the Tanger Arboretum as a community asset. To learn more about the Arboretum or to become a member, 
Harriet Lane was the first hostess of the White House to be publicly referred to as the “First Lady.” Although she was not the wife of the president, she flourished in the role and helped to define it for future First Ladies. On Harriet Lane’s 196th birthday, visitors to Wheatland will explore Harriet Lane’s life–from her childhood with Uncle Buchanan and her role in the White House, to the personal losses she endured and the legacy she left behind.