Plaque from Former U.S. Capitol

The War of 1812 dealt a damaging blow to the Federalist Party. Opposition to the war
made the members seem unpatriotic and potentially treasonous. In the 1816 presidential election, Federalist Rufus King ran against Republican James Monroe. Monroe won handily, receiving 183 Electoral College votes to King's 34 votes. The 59-year-old Virginia took the oath of office in front of the “Old Brick Capitol” in Washington, D.C., on March 4, 1817. Utilized from 1815 to 1819 while the permanent Capitol was restored, the building was subsequently a private school; a boarding house (where former Monroe administration secretary of war and U.S. senator John C. Calhoun died in 1850); and a federal prison during the Civil War.