Inaugural Trivia

Here are a few fun facts, most of which I got here. Okay, maybe you have a different idea of "fun" than I do.

a. Who was the first President to be sworn in wearing long pants?


b. Calvin Coolidge was sworn in by the Chief Justice. Nothing unusual there. But the Chief Justice was a former President. Who was the swearing-iner?

c. The President who gave the longest inaugural address died a month later from pneumonia, said to be caught during his speech. Who was that?

d. Some people say David Rice Atchison should be included in the list of Presidents. Why?

e. Who was the only President not sworn in with his hand on a Bible?

Answers:

a. John Q. Adams (1825).

b. William Howard Taft.

c. William Henry Harrison.

d. Until it was changed during FDR's presidency, a President's term of office ended on March 4. In 1849, March 4 fell on a Sunday, and the incoming President, Zachary Taylor, refused to take the oath of office on the Sabbath -- even privately. He was sworn in the next day. Since Polk's term ended on the 4th, the argument goes, the president pro tempore of the Senate became President under the rules of succession as they were then. Of course, it's not that simple. Atchison is said to have slept through his entire term of office.

e. Teddy Roosevelt. When he was reelected, he had the Bible open to James 1:22-23. Actually, neither Franklin Pierce nor Herbert Hoover were "sworn" in; they "affirmed".

And yes, you're right. Things are a little slow around the house today.