PunBB

Hey all,

As I was studying away for my class "History of the American Presidency" I came across an interesting fact which I think may explain the origin of 54-40's name.

The 11th Prez. of the United States, James Knox Polk, outlined his platform. It included reoccupying Oregon from the British. This included all land between the latitudes of 54' north and 40' south. Taking as his slogan, "Fifty-Four Forty or Fight."

Maybe it is just a coincidence, but kinda cool none the less. Can anyone confirm or deny this?

Yep. I read that in a lot of places. I can confirm it.

and their cd dear dear clocks in at 54:40 strange

Side Note:

Smiling Buddha Cabaret is a much underated album. I'm guilty of underating it, because this thread makes me want to hear it, but I have no idea where i put it.

"i just wanna go on the radio..."

good stuff.

Aren't they a Vancouver band? I had heard 54 & 40 were Van's lattitude & longitude, but I've never looked it up.

TLB Wrote:Aren't they a Vancouver band? I had heard 54 & 40 were Van's lattitude & longitude, but I've never looked it up.

Yes they're a Vancouver band ("Smiling Buddha" was actually the name of a legendary live music venue in town, though before my drinking age).

54-40 is in fact a lattitude , but the 54th parallel is quite a bit further north than Vancouver (Prince Rupert area??). This was how far north the U.S. wanted to annex British Columbia as part of Polk's "manifest destiny" policy, i.e. "fifty-four forty or fight!"

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LoftyPines Wrote:Hey all,

As I was studying away for my class "History of the American Presidency" I came across an interesting fact which I think may explain the origin of 54-40's name.

The 11th Prez. of the United States, James Knox Polk, outlined his platform. It included reoccupying Oregon from the British. This included all land between the latitudes of 54' north and 40' south. Taking as his slogan, "Fifty-Four Forty or Fight."

Maybe it is just a coincidence, but kinda cool none the less. Can anyone confirm or deny this?

confirmed.

ct

I have seen them several times live and they always sound awesome! Their live CD called " Heavy Mellow" is two cd's, "Heavy" & "Mellow"! I recomend it for any casual and hardcore fans, as it has lots of their hits, and they sound even better than on the studio albumns i.m.o.!

That's without question the source of their name. The campaign for 54-40 had been around for about 20 years before Polk decided to make it an election issue. It was sort of out of his hands, as his predecessor... uh... I forget... hang on *googling* ah yes; Tyler: settled with Britain before Polk became President.

There was no appetite for war with Britain and B.C. had long been established and was obviously not interested in statehood. It was also really impractical for the U.S., especially given their difficulty settling their own West, dealing with Mexico, and because their interests largely rested with the Mississippi and the coasts which they already dominated.

The whole thing was eventually sidelined and totally forgotten by the time "State's Right's" issues began to heat up.

There are some pretty cool posters and newspaper cartoons from both sides of the issue, stuff like a Beaver with helmet and gun gnarling up against an Eagle with fists clenched. I don't think Uncle Sam existed yet, or surely he woulda been rolling up his sleeves.

I recall watching the documentary "Hype" about the Seattle rock explosion of the early 90s, and they showed a band playing a song called "54-40 or Fight" at some small club. I forget the name of the band. I think they were called the Monomen??

I always liked the name 54-40, but I liked it even more when I found out the actual origins of it. Those guys are truly one of the most underrated bands in CanRock history. Another great band who became popular in Canada, but were strangely ignored by the rest of the world. Their latest album "Yes to Everything" is vintage 54-40 rock n' roll. Neil Osborne has always been one of our most talented and intelligent songwriters, and he really shines on the new record. "This is Here, This is Now" is by far one of the best tunes they've ever written.