Fascinating Facts About US Presidents That Will Change How You See American History
From secret affairs to bizarre habits that shaped America, the weird hidden lives of US Presidents will blow your mind!
ST. PAUL, MN – From hidden love affairs in White House closets to skinny-dipping in the Potomac River, the lives of American presidents are far more scandalous and surprising than you might imagine. These leaders, revered in history books and immortalized on currency, were also deeply flawed, often eccentric, and sometimes downright bizarre human beings.
Prepare to have your perception of American history turned on its head as we dive into a treasure trove of presidential secrets, quirks, and shocking revelations.
As we peel back the layers of historical varnish, we’ll explore astounding facts about U.S. presidents that your history teacher probably never mentioned. From the Founding Fathers to modern-day leaders, these surprising tidbits reveal the all-too-human side of America’s commanders-in-chief. Brace yourself for a whirlwind tour through the hidden corridors of power, where the personal and political collide in ways you never expected.
Fascinating Facts About US Presidents
The first president to receive every electoral vote was George Washington. He also chose not to accept his presidential compensation of $25,000 per year.
Harry Truman’s relationship with the KKK is debated. Some accounts claim he was inducted but never active, while others suggest he demanded a refund of his $10 fee and was never officially involved.
Among U.S. presidents, only Grover Cleveland had experience as an executioner. As Erie County sheriff in New York, he personally carried out two hangings.
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Harry S Truman’s middle initial doesn’t stand for a specific name, so it’s written without a period.
The toy “Lincoln Logs” was invented by John Lloyd Wright, son of architect Frank Lloyd Wright, and named after Abraham Lincoln’s log cabin birthplace.
Thomas Jefferson and John Adams once vandalized Shakespeare’s chair during a visit to his birthplace, taking wood chips as mementos.
James Madison and Thomas Jefferson were once arrested in Vermont for violating a law against Sunday carriage rides.
The only tailor to become president was Andrew Johnson. He continued to visit tailor shops while in office and wore only suits he made himself.
George Washington never lived in the White House, as the capital was in other cities during his presidency. He’s also the only president who wasn’t affiliated with a political party.
The first president to use a telephone was James Garfield. When speaking to Alexander Graham Bell 13 miles away, he requested that Bell speak more slowly.
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Warren Harding allegedly had a romantic encounter with a young woman in a White House closet, nearly resulting in his wife discovering them.
The first presidential inauguration in Washington, D.C. was that of Thomas Jefferson.
The term “O.K.” is believed to have originated from Martin Van Buren’s nickname “Old Kinderhook,” derived from his hometown in New York.
Grover Cleveland is unique in having served two non-consecutive terms as president, making him both the 22nd and 24th president.
George H.W. Bush inadvertently created a new Japanese word, “Bushusuru,” meaning “to do the Bush thing” or to vomit in public, after an incident with the Japanese Prime Minister.
John F. Kennedy’s famous inaugural quote echoed similar sentiments expressed by others throughout history, including Cicero and Warren G. Harding.
The first president born as a United States citizen was Martin Van Buren. All previous presidents were born as British subjects.
Six U.S. presidents shared the first name James: Madison, Monroe, Polk, Buchanan, Garfield, and Carter.
Dwight D. Eisenhower was the only president to serve in both World Wars.
Richard Nixon was the first president to visit all 50 states and China. He’s also the only one to resign from office.
Jimmy Carter holds the distinction of being the first president born in a hospital.
The first president to officially report a UFO sighting was Jimmy Carter.
Before his presidency, Abraham Lincoln was a licensed bartender and co-owned a saloon in Springfield, Illinois.
George H. W. Bush was the first sitting vice president to be elected president since Martin Van Buren.
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Bill Clinton was the first Democratic president to win re-election since Franklin D. Roosevelt.
In the 1860 election, Abraham Lincoln was the sole presidential candidate who wasn’t a Freemason.
James Buchanan quietly purchased slaves in Washington, D.C. and freed them in Pennsylvania.
Herbert Hoover instructed White House staff to hide from him or risk losing their jobs.
James Buchanan remains the only bachelor president. His close relationship with Senator William R. King led to speculation about their personal lives.
John F. Kennedy allegedly had numerous extramarital affairs with high-profile women, including Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn.
Lyndon B. Johnson reportedly had a system installed to warn him of his wife’s approach while he was with other women in the Oval Office.
Theodore Roosevelt’s entire family, including the First Lady, owned stilts.
Sally Hemings, Thomas Jefferson’s slave, was also his late wife’s half-sister. DNA tests in 1998 suggested a male in Jefferson’s lineage fathered at least one of her children.
Martin Van Buren’s autobiography, written after his presidency, made no mention of his wife of 12 years.
John Tyler fathered more children than any other president, with 15 in total from two marriages. His youngest child was born when he was 70.
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Ronald Reagan won a “Most Nearly Perfect Male Figure” award from the University of California in 1940.
A plant species, Jeffersonia diphylla, was named after Thomas Jefferson.
Thomas Jefferson authored “The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth,” which presented Jesus as a great thinker rather than a divine figure.
The shortest U.S. president was James Madison, standing at 5’4″ and never weighing more than 100 pounds.
George Washington delivered the briefest inaugural address, lasting less than two minutes.
William Henry Harrison gave the longest inaugural speech, speaking for an hour and 40 minutes in bad weather. He died of pneumonia a month later, serving the shortest presidency.
John Quincy Adams was known to swim naked in the Potomac River at 5 a.m. to relieve stress.
Fourteen presidents were Freemasons, including George Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, and Gerald Ford.
The body of John Scott Harrison, father of President Benjamin Harrison, was stolen by grave robbers and sold to a medical college before being recovered and reburied.
As a young man, Rutherford B. Hayes struggled with a fear of going insane.
Three presidents died on July 4th: Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and James Monroe. Calvin Coolidge is the only president born on that date.
George H. W. Bush is unique in having four names.
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James Garfield could write in Latin with one hand and Greek with the other simultaneously.
The “Teddy Bear” was named after Theodore Roosevelt following an incident where he refused to shoot a bear cub.
In China, three of the best-known Western names are Jesus Christ, Elvis Presley, and Richard Nixon.
James Monroe once chased his Secretary of State from the White House with fire tongs.
Andrew Jackson reportedly participated in over 100 duels, many to defend his wife’s honor.
Herbert Hoover’s first job was picking bugs off potato plants, earning a dollar per hundred bugs.
Gerald Ford worked as both a model and a forest ranger at Yellowstone National Park during his college years.
In 1945, Congress voted to put Franklin D. Roosevelt’s profile on the dime to commemorate his work with the March of Dimes.
The first presidential inauguration to be photographed was Abraham Lincoln’s, with John Wilkes Booth visible in the crowd.
Robert Lincoln, Abraham’s son, witnessed the assassinations of three presidents: his father, James Garfield, and William McKinley.
James Garfield’s assassin chose his weapon, a British Bulldog pistol, hoping it would be displayed in a museum. The gun’s current location is unknown.
William Howard Taft, nicknamed “Big Bill,” weighed 325 pounds and occasionally got stuck in the White House bathtub.
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The first assassination attempt on a president targeted Andrew Jackson. Both of the assassin’s guns misfired, an incredibly rare occurrence.
James Garfield’s death was likely caused by infection from doctors probing for the assassin’s bullet with unsterilized instruments.
Warren Harding once bet and lost a set of White House china in a poker game.
Theodore Roosevelt continued giving a speech for over an hour after being shot in the chest during his second presidential campaign.
Woodrow Wilson painted his golf balls black to play in the snow.
Thomas Jefferson believed that soaking his feet in cold water daily would prevent him from catching colds.
George Washington had to borrow $600 to attend his own inauguration due to financial constraints.
Eight presidents, including George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, did not attend college.
Thomas Jefferson’s self-written epitaph mentions his authorship of the Declaration of Independence but not his presidency.
John Adams once said that no man who became president would congratulate a friend on obtaining the office.
Liberia’s capital, Monrovia, is named after President James Monroe.
In 1978, Jimmy Carter restored U.S. citizenship to Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederate States of America.
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Ulysses S. Grant pardoned Samuel Mudd, the doctor who treated John Wilkes Booth’s broken ankle, in 1869.
No U.S. president has ever been an only child.
The phrase “so help me God” at the end of the presidential oath may have been first added by Chester A. Arthur.
John Adams’ campaign against Thomas Jefferson included claims that Jefferson’s election would lead to widespread immorality.
Ulysses S. Grant’s inauguration was so cold that the canaries meant to sing at the inaugural ball froze to death.
Calvin Coolidge had the unusual habit of having petroleum jelly rubbed on his head while eating breakfast in bed.
Calvin Coolidge would occasionally prank his staff by pressing all the buttons on his desk and hiding, then surprising them when they rushed in.
Abraham Lincoln was the first president born outside the original 13 states.
Jimmy Carter, a wealthy peanut farmer, had a permanently bent finger due to a farming accident.
The $500, $1000, and $5000 bills feature William McKinley, Grover Cleveland, and James Madison respectively.
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Abraham Lincoln is the only president to hold a patent. He was also the first to have a beard, grown at the request of a young girl.
At 6’4″, Abraham Lincoln was the tallest U.S. president.
Some historians argue that John Hanson, the first president under the Articles of Confederation, should be considered the first U.S. president.
William McKinley was the first president to ride in a self-propelled vehicle, albeit an ambulance after being shot.
The presidential faces on Mount Rushmore are as tall as a five-story building, with 4-foot wide eye pupils and 18-foot wide mouths.
George Washington’s original family name was de Wessyngton, derived from a 12th-century knight.
Woodrow Wilson was the first to show a motion picture in the White House: “The Birth of a Nation.”
John F. Kennedy died younger than any other U.S. president to date.
JFK was the first Roman Catholic president, the first former Boy Scout to become president, and the first born in the 20th century.
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Warren Harding was the first president to own a radio, make a radio speech, and ride to his inauguration in a car.
Rutherford Hayes banned alcohol from the White House and held nightly gospel sing-alongs.
Abraham Lincoln’s mother died after drinking milk from a cow that had eaten a poisonous plant.
Andrew Johnson was the first president to be impeached, with Bill Clinton becoming the second 131 years later.
US Presidents: Wonderfully Weird and Imperfectly Human
As we conclude this journey through the secret lives and shocking facts about America’s presidents, it’s clear that the men who’ve held the highest office in the land are far more complex and human than their carefully crafted public images suggest.
From quirky habits and hidden talents to scandalous affairs and bizarre coincidences, these fascinating facts paint a picture of presidents as flawed, fascinating individuals who shaped history in ways both grand and peculiar.
The next time you see a president’s face on a coin or dollar bill, remember: behind that stoic visage lies a wealth of surprising stories that continue to captivate and astonish us, even centuries later. Our leaders, it seems, are just as wonderfully weird and imperfectly human as the rest of us.
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