money 44 Fun Facts About Each President Just in Time for President's Day
- 1/45
44 Fun Facts About Each President Just in Time for President's Day
Do you know which U.S. president was a Grammy winner, or which one skinny dipped in the Potomac River every morning? History classes may have taught us plenty of important things about all the different presidents we've had over the past two centuries, but there are actually a lot of interesting facts about our presidents that many might not know — including which president was a lifelong bachelor and which one gave a speech right after being shot! And if you're wondering which stories are actually just myths (like did William Howard Taft really get stuck in a White House bathtub?!), these fun facts about each commander-in-chief will definitely clear up truth from legend. Whether you're celebrating President's Day or just looking for random trivia facts to stump your friends and family, read on to learn interesting tidbits you never knew about each president of the United States!
- 2/45
George Washington didn't have wooden teeth.
Contrary to popular myth, the first president did not in fact have wooden teeth. Instead, his dentures were made of human and cow teeth, ivory, and metal. However, the president was fond of very dark wines, which may have stained his dentures, giving them the appearance of being wooden.
- 3/45
John Adams died on a particularly notable day.
Adams died on July 4th, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Coincidentally, Thomas Jefferson, his former vice president who later became his bitter political rival, died on the same day. Adams' last words reportedly were, "Thomas Jefferson survives," but Jefferson had actually passed away a few hours earlier.
- 4/45
Thomas Jefferson's presidency wasn't his proudest accomplishment.
Jefferson accomplished quite a lot in his lifetime. When it came time to plan his gravestone inscription, he requested that three things be put on it — and his presidency didn't even make the cut! Instead, he wanted to be remembered as: "Author of the Declaration of American Independence and the Statute of Virginia for religious freedom, and Father of the University of Virginia."
- 5/45
James Madison was the shortest president.
The fourth president of the United States was said to be the shortest one. He was only 5'4" and weighed about 100 pounds. And it probably didn't help that he was frequently ill, having been described by various physicians as "fragile" for most of his life.
- 6/45
James Monroe created the "Era of Good Feelings."
Monroe had one of the most peaceful presidencies, as he tried to create a more unified country in the wake of the War of 1812. And it apparently worked — the time period during his presidency became known as the Era of Good Feelings and he was re-elected without opposition in 1820.
RELATED: 25 Feel-Good Movies That Will Always Make You Smile
- 7/45
John Quincy Adams had a strange routine.
We can imagine there would be quite the controversy if any of our modern presidents went skinny-dipping in the Potomac River. But that's exactly what John Quincy Adams did every single morning as part of his daily routine. According to his journal, he regularly took a long walk and a dip in the river early in the morning before returning home for breakfast.
RELATED: 55 Quick and Easy Healthy Breakfasts for Your Busiest Mornings
- 8/45
Andrew Jackson hated paper money.
We're used to seeing his face on the $20 bill, but ironically, Jackson hated paper currency. He only trusted silver and gold, and he even partially shut down the Second Bank of the United States because of its ability to manipulate paper money.
- 9/45
Martin Van Buren was the first American-born president.
Van Buren was the first president to be born in the United States, to parents who immigrated from the Netherlands to Kinderhook, New York. He was born in 1782, six years after the colonists declared their independence from Britain.
- 10/45
William Henry Harrison had the shortest presidency in history.
Harrison had the shortest presidency in U.S. history, lasting only a month. He famously did not wear a coat to his inauguration, where he gave a lengthy 90-minute speech. This likely caused him to fall ill with pneumonia, though it was later theorized that he may have also been suffering from deadly septic shock.
RELATED: 16 Warm & Stylish Winter Coats to Help You Brave the Cold
- 11/45
John Tyler was very, very unpopular.
To say John Tyler was not particularly well-liked is an understatement. When he died in 1862, his obituary in The New York Times called him, "the most unpopular public man that had ever held any office in the United States." Yikes. It probably didn't help that he was considered a traitor to the United States when he died, having recently been elected to the Congress of the Confederacy.
- 12/45
James K. Polk wasn't what you'd call the life of the party.
Polk's devout Presbyterian wife, Sarah, banned dancing, drinking, and card games in the White House during her time as first lady, making for a very dull presidency.
- 13/45
Zachary Taylor was nominated without knowing it.
In 1848, Taylor had no idea the the Wig Party chose him as their nomination for president. Apparently, the party sent him a letter without postage, and when he refused to pay for it, he ended up going weeks without knowing the good news.
- 14/45
Millard Fillmore was a major bibliophile.
Fillmore and his wife, Abigail, were definitely book lovers. They established the first permanent White House Library. In 1851, Fillmore personally helped fight a fire that destroyed parts of the Library of Congress. He later signed a bill to fund the replacement of all the books that had been destroyed.
RELATED: The 20 Best Books of 2020 to Add to Your Reading List ASA
- 15/45
Franklin Pierce was a heavy drinker.
Though presidents before him had been known to have a drink now and again, Pierce was one of the heaviest drinkers to ever hold the office. As he was leaving office, he allegedly said to a friend, "There is nothing left to do but get drunk."
- 16/45
Jamies Buchanan was a lifelong bachelor.
Buchanan is the only president to remain a lifelong bachelor, though he was engaged to a woman at one point. There was much speculation about his personal life, including a persistent rumor that he was in a secret relationship with Alabama Senator William Rufus King.
- 17/45
Abraham Lincoln created the Secret Service only a few hours before his death.
The story of Abraham Lincoln's assassination is well known. But few people are aware that several hours before his death, Lincoln signed legislation to create the Secret Service, which is now responsible for protecting the president's life. However, it probably wouldn't have helped Lincoln: the original purpose wasn't to protect the president, but rather to investigate counterfeit money.
- 18/45
Andrew Johnson escaped indentured servitude as a child.
Though many presidents came from elite, well-educated backgrounds, Andrew Johnson did not. His mother sent him to work as an indentured servant when he was a child, though he and his brother later escaped. He never had a formal education, but his wife, Eliza, helped him learn to read and write.
- 19/45
Ulysses S. Grant was not his real name.
The 18th president's birth name was Hiram Ulysses Grant, but due to a mistake made on his West Point application, he became Ulysses S. Grant. His middle initial doesn't stand for anything and in a letter to his wife he joked, "Find some name beginning with 'S' for me."
- 20/45
Rutherford B. Hayes started the annual Easter Egg Roll.
Hayes had a presidency full of "firsts," including the first White House Easter Egg Roll in 1878. He had reportedly been taking a walk when a group of children approached him and asked about the possibility of an Easter egg roll, on the South Lawn of the White House. Hayes liked the idea and it continues to be a tradition today.
RELATED: 20 Best Chocolate Eggs to to Fill Your Easter Basket
- 21/45
James Garfield was a southpaw.
Though his presidency only lasted 81 days, Garfield sticks out in many people's minds for being the first left-handed president. Apparently, he was also the first ambidextrous president.
- 22/45
Chester Arthur enjoyed a rather luxurious lifestyle.
While it may not seem like a lot for a president today, Arthur owned 80 pairs of pants, which was quite the extravagance for the time period. Other luxuries he enjoyed included: a personal valet, a White House decorated by renowned artist Louis Comfort Tiffany, and fresh flowers placed in front of his deceased wife's portrait daily.
- 23/45
Grover Cleveland served two terms, but they weren't back-to-back.
Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms, as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. He won his first election by a very narrow margin, lost the 1888 election to Benjamin Harrison, and then came back in 1892 after winning the popular vote.
- 24/45
Benjamin Harrison was the first White House occupant with electricity.
Harrison and his wife Caroline were the first occupants of the White House to enjoy the wonders of electricity. But as it was a new technology, the couple was afraid of being electrocuted by the light switch, so they regularly left the lights on all day and night.
- 25/45
William McKinley was very forgiving towards his attempted assassin.
McKinley's reaction to being shot is unlike anything you've ever heard. He was shot in the torso by an anarchist in 1901 in a receiving line, and as they took him away, he said, "Don't let them hurt him," referring to a mob that was forming around the would-be assassin. He later said the shooter was, "some poor misguided fellow," and "he didn't know, poor fellow, what he was doing. He couldn't have known."
- 26/45
Theodore Roosevelt gave a speech right after being shot.
Teddy Roosevelt was one tough guy. Need proof? He was shot at close range shortly before giving a campaign speech in 1912, but instead of heading straight to the hospital, he stayed there to give his planned speech — with the bullet still lodged in his body.
- 27/45
William Howard Taft never got stuck in a bathtub.
Popular legend would have you believe that Taft is the president who got stuck in a White House bathtub, but that's actually not true. However, he did have an embarrassing bathtub incident at a hotel in New Jersey. The bath water displaced by his body flooded the floor in his room and trickled onto the heads of guests in the downstairs dining room.
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- 28/45
Woodrow Wilson was the first president to give an address using broadcast radio.
Although Wilson was obviously used to public speaking, he was reportedly very anxious about giving his the "first live, remote, nationwide radio broadcast," in which he honored the anniversary of Armistice Day and outlined a vision for America.
- 29/45
Warren Harding had unique nicknames.
Legend has it that Harding's mother wanted to name him Winfield, but when she didn't get her way, she found a loophole by giving him the nickname "Winny." Some folks also called him "Sonny."
- 30/45
Calvin Coolidge was born on Independence Day.
Sometimes a person's birthday seems unusually significant. Case in point: Coolidge was born on July 4. But you probably wouldn't see him getting too wild and crazy at his birthday party — he was notoriously quiet, earning the nickname "Silent Cal."
- 31/45
Herbert Clark Hoover was the first president born in a Western state.
Previous presidents were all born in the Eastern part of the county, but Hoover was the first to be born west of the Mississippi. He grew up in the very small town of West Branch, Iowa, and reportedly never even crossed the Mississippi until he was 22 years old.
- 32/45
Franklin Delano Roosevelt was related to his wife by blood.
FDR certainly liked to keep it in the family. He and his wife Eleanor were actually related by blood. They could both trace their lineage back to the same Dutch immigrant, who moved to America in the 1640s. However, FDR and Eleanor were fifth cousins, once removed, so it was a very distant relation.
- 33/45
Harry S. Truman's middle initial doesn't stand for anything.
Like Ulysses S. Grant before him, Truman's middle initial didn't have a real meaning. Supposedly, his parents both wanted to name him after separate relatives whose names began with S., and they compromised by just giving him the middle initial.
- 34/45
Dwight D. Eisenhower didn't mess around when it came to golf.
Eisenhower took his golfing seriously. He had a putting green installed near the Oval Office, but was frustrated by squirrels digging up the green, so he ordered them to be shot. Wisely, groundskeepers did not shoot them, but rather caught and released them in a nearby park.
- 35/45
JFK donated his entire salary to charity.
Many aspects of JFK's life have been analyzed through popular books, movies, among other ways. But one thing that's not often mentioned is that while he was in office, he donated his entire congressional and presidential salaries to charity. He made more than enough money through his family's trusts, so he didn't particularly need the income.
RELATED: 5 Things We've Learned From the JFK Assassination Files
- 36/45
Lyndon B. Johnson is the only president to be sworn in on an airplane.
When LBJ took the oath of office shortly after Kennedy's assassination, it was notable for several reasons. He's the only president to ever be sworn in on an airplane, and the only one to be sworn in by a woman, Judge Sarah T. Hughes. Also notable was the fact the Jackie Kennedy stood by his side for the swearing-in, with blood still on her coat.
- 37/45
Richard Nixon had many talents.
While he certainly isn't remembered as the best politician, he is known for his many other talents outside of the Oval Office. Nixon knew how to play five instruments, was an avid bowler, and a huge football fan.
- 38/45
Gerald Ford could have been a professional football player.
Ford could have taken a very different path as a NFL player instead of becoming a politician. When he graduated from the University of Michigan in 1935, he received offers from Detroit Lions and the Green Bay Packers, but turned them both down to study law and coach football at Yale.
- 39/45
Jimmy Carter won a Nobel Peace Prize after leaving office.
Carter is probably one of the few leaders whose post-presidency accomplishments are more recognized than when he was president. Since leaving office in 1981, he's won a Nobel Peace Prize, built homes for needy families, and written over two dozen books.
RELATED: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Have a Love Story for the Ages
- 40/45
Ronald Reagan was the first divorced president.
Although Reagan left his acting career behind to pursue politics, Hollywood certainly left a mark on him. He was partially deaf in one ear thanks to an accident on a movie set, where a gun went off next to his head. He had also married actress Jane Wyman, but the pair divorced in 1948, making him the first president to enter office divorced.
RELATED: 15 Signs Divorce Isn't in Your Cards, According to Divorce Lawyers
- 41/45
George H.W. Bush once shaved his head.
Bush surprised his friends and family in 2013 when he decided to shave his head (for a very sweet reason). The son of one of his Secret Service guards was diagnosed with leukemia. Bush told TODAY, "A lot of the agents shaved their head...I said, 'Well why not me?' It was the right thing to do."
RELATED: 12 of George H.W. Bush's Greatest Quotes of All Time
- 42/45
Bill Clinton is a Grammy winner.
Did you know that Bill Clinton is also a Grammy winner? He won Grammys in 2003 and 2004 for spoken word albums My Life and Wolf Tracks and Peter and the Wolf (both audiobooks). He's one of three presidents to win a Grammy, along with Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama.
- 43/45
George W. Bush's family is especially unique.
Bush's family is unique for a couple of reasons. In addition to being the son of a former president, Bush is the only president to have twins. He and Laura Bush are parents to twin girls Jenna and Barbara, who are now 37-years-old.
- 44/45
Barack Obama's first job made him hate ice cream.
Long, long before becoming president or even senator, Obama worked a summer job at a Baskin-Robbins. Sounds sweet, but the former president said it actually made him dislike ice cream. Instead, he prefers chocolate-peanut protein bars or caramels.
- 45/45
Donald Trump made several TV cameos in the '90s.
These days, most of us are used to seeing Donald Trump on our screens. But he's no newbie to television: In addition to The Apprentice, Trump appeared in a slew of television shows and movies in the '90s, including Home Alone, The Nanny, and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
Contrary to popular belief, George Washington didn't have wooden teeth.
