The 1837 State of the Union Address was given by the eighth president of the United States, Martin Van Buren. Excerpt: "We have reason to renew the expression of our devout gratitude to the Giver of All Good for His benign protection. Our country presents on every side the evidences of that continued favor under whose auspices it, has gradually risen from a few feeble and dependent colonies to a prosperous and powerful confederacy."