Stephen Arnold Douglas was born on April 23, 1813 in Brandon, Vermont. Due to his father’s early death, he grew up fatherless. He was under the care of his uncle until his uncle got married. He took the job of an apprentice cabinet maker and then quit later on. His mother remarried and moved with him to New York. There he studied and became a follower of Andrew Jackson. He learned the ways of law through borrowing and reading books. Stephen became a teacher and then joined in on politics during his early 20s.