Presidential Inaugrations

The inauguration for the first U.S. president, George Washington, was held on April 30, 1789 in New York City. Inauguration Day was originally set for March 4, giving electors from each state nearly four months after Election Day to cast their ballots for president.

In 1937, the day of inauguration was changed by the Twentieth Amendment from March 4 to noon on January 20, beginning with Franklin D. Roosevelt's second term in 1937.

Andrew Jackson’s Inauguration March 4, 1829

In 1801, Thomas Jefferson became the first to be sworn in as president in Washington, D.C., which did not officially become the federal capital until that year. Because January 20th falls on a Sunday the next Inauguration Day, will be January 21, 2013.

Abraham Lincoln’s – 2nd Inauguration March 4, 1865

The Inaugural Parade on Pennsylvania Avenue passes the Presidential reviewing stand in front of the White House. Since 1901, all inaugural ceremonies at the United States Capitol have been organized by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies.

US Grant’s 2nd Inauguration – March 4, 1877

The U.S. military have participated in Inauguration Day ceremonies since George Washington, because the president is commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Since the first inauguration of Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953, that participation has been coordinated by the Joint Task Force-Armed Forces Inaugural Committee.

The oath of office is traditionally administered on the steps of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. The vice president-elect takes the oath of office at the same ceremony as the president-elect. This tradition began in 1937.

President U.S. Grants’ Inaugurational Ball - 1873

At noon, the president-elect becomes president. At about that time, the president-elect takes the oath of office, traditionally administered by the Chief Justice of the United States, using the form mandated in Article II, Section 1 of the United States Constitution:

“ I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. ” According to tradition, in the first inauguration, President Washington added the words "so help me God" when reciting the oath.

Calvin Coolidge Inauguration March 4, 1925

Immediately following the oath, the bands play four ruffles and flourishes and "Hail to the Chief", followed by a 21-gun salute from howitzers of the Presidential Salute Battery, 3d United States Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard). The President delivers an inaugural address, setting the tone for the new administration.

George Washington's was the shortest inaugural address at 135 words. (1793) Thomas Jefferson was the only president to walk to and from his inaugural. He was also the first to be inaugurated at the Capitol. (1801) The first inaugural ball was held for James Madison. (1809)

Franklin Roosevelt’s Inauguration March 4, 1933

John Quincy Adams was the first president sworn in wearing long trousers. (1825) Franklin Pierce was the first president to affirm rather than swear the oath of office (1853). Herbert Hoover followed suit in 1929. William H. Harrison's was the longest inaugural address at 8,445 words. (1841)

John F. Kennedy’s Inauguration January 20, 1961

The first inauguration to be photographed was James Buchanan's. (1857) Abraham Lincoln was the first to include African-Americans in his parade. (1865)

Lyndon Johnson taking the Oath of Office November 22, 1963 – Dallas, Texas

James Garfield's mother was the first to attend her son's inauguration. (1881) William McKinley's inauguration was the first ceremony to be recorded by a motion picture camera. (1897)

William Taft's wife was the first one to accompany her husband in the procession from the Capitol to the White House. (1909) Women were included for the first time in Woodrow Wilson's second inaugural parade. (1917)

Warren G. Harding was the first president to ride to and from his inaugural in an automobile. (1921) Calvin Coolidge's oath was administered by Chief Justice (and expresident) William Taft. It was also the first inaugural address broadcast on the radio. (1925)

Harry Truman's was the first to be televised. (1949) John Kennedy's inauguration had Robert Frost as the first poet to participate in the official ceremony. (1961) The only other President to feature poets was Bill Clinton. Maya Angelou read at his 1993 inaugural, and Miller Williams read at his second, in 1997.

Lyndon Johnson was the first (and so far) only president to be sworn in by a woman, U.S. District Judge Sarah T. Hughes. (1963) Jimmy Carter's inaugural parade featured solar heat for the reviewing stand and handicap-accessible viewing. (1977)

Ronald Reagan's second inaugural had to compete with Super Bowl Sunday. (1985) The first ceremony broadcast on the Internet was Bill Clinton's second inauguration. (1997) Barack Obama – 1st African American President

Highest viewership ever of the swearing-in ceremonies on the Internet. Largest attendance of any event in the history of Washington, D.C. Largest attendance of any presidential inauguration in U.S. history

First inaugural webcast to include captioning

Complied and edited by Susan Ging Lent