10 INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT US INAUGURATIONS

1.      George Washington was inaugurated in Philadelphia, which was then the nation’s capital.

2.      George Washington gave the shortest speech, 135 words only.

3.      Ironically, President Harrison who delivered the longest inauguration address in history – almost two hours – had the shortest White House tenure. Ha caught a severe cold on that day and died of pneumonia after only 32 days into office.

4.      Inaugurations used to happen on 4 March until 1933. Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first president inaugurated on the new date, for his second inauguration on January 20, 1937.

5.      John Adams was the first president to skip his successor’s inauguration. For many years, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson had been close friends. But as their political careers diverged, the two became rivals. Adams and Jefferson eventually made up when, in 1811 and interestingly hey both died within hours of each other on the same day—July 4, 1826.

6.      Ronald Reagan’s first inauguration day was the warmest Inauguration Day on record (13 ^oC at noon) but four years later on January 21, 1985, he hit another weather record—this time for the coldest Inauguration Day on record (it was -14 ^oC).

7.      Harry S. Truman’s second inauguration, which took place on January 20, 1949, was the first-ever televised inaugural ceremony.

8.      Bill Clinton’s second inauguration (1997) was the first ceremony to be streamed live on the web.

9.     Barack Obama’s first inauguration, on January 20, 2009 had the largest attendance of any presidential inauguration in history, It was also the largest event to ever take place in Washington, D.C.

10.  In 2021 Joe Biden became the oldest US president ever inaugurated (78 years old). Before that, Donald J. Trump held that record.