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US Presidential Inaugurations: A Celebration of History, Heritage and...Odd Flags?

The stage is set for Monday’s festivities marking Donald Trump’s return to the White House. In honor of the occasion, here are some interesting, curious and downright weird facts about this well-worn US tradition.

From 1792-1937, inauguration day was held on March 4, not January 20. The change was congressionally mandated in 1933 to reduce the transition time between the old ‘lame duck’ president and the new administration.

The number of stars on flags on the Capitol building changes depending on what state the new president is from, representing the order in which the state joined the Union.

Since Trump ran from two different states in 2020 and 2024 (New York and Florida), the flags had/have 13 and 27 stars, respectively.

Interesting compilation of backdrops to US presidential inaugurations compiled by an inquisitive Reddit user. - Sputnik International, 1920, 19.01.2025

Interesting compilation of Capitol building backdrops to US presidential inaugurations compiled by an inquisitive Reddit user.

In 1825, John Quincy Adams became only president-elect not to have given the presidential oath with his hand on a Bible. In 1977, Jimmy Carter became the only one to be sworn in by his nickname “Jimmy,” rather than his full name, “James Earl Carter.”

Inaugurated in 1837, Martin Van Buren was the first president not to have been born under British rule.

Dead Bird Parade

Inauguration Day parades have been held every year since 1841. In 1973, during Richard Nixon’s second inauguration, organizers’ desire to pigeon-poop-proof the event went horribly wrong, with pigeons eating a chemical meant to repel them and reportedly littering Nixon’s parade route with dead birds.

© AP Photo / AnonymousOne thousand nine hundred and seventy six bandsmen from 20 schools in Fairfax Country, Virginia, march down Pennsylvania Avenue in the inaugural parade, Jan. 20, 1973. (Dead birds not visible)

One thousand nine hundred and seventy six bandsmen from 20 schools in Fairfax Country, Virginia, march down Pennsylvania Avenue in the inaugural parade, Jan. 20, 1973. (Dead birds not visible)

Some festivities associated with the inauguration, like the inaugural luncheon, didn’t exist before the 20th century. America’s first president, George Washington, dined alone in 1789 after his ceremony. Talk about sigma energy. Oh, and his 1793 inaugural address was just 135 words.

In 2009, Barack Obama became the first president to flub the oath of office by repeating Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts’ mistaken words. Obama retook the office shortly after. Roberts is expected to administer the oath again this year, hopefully correctly.

Jan. 20, 2009. President-elect Barack Obama was about to walk out to take the oath of office. Backstage at the U.S. Capitol, he took one last look at his appearance in the mirror - Sputnik International, 1920, 19.01.2025

Jan. 20, 2009. President-elect Barack Obama about to walk out to take the oath of office. Backstage at the U.S. Capitol, he took one last look at his appearance in the mirror

Inaugurations have also proven interesting time capsules of technological progress.

In 1857, James Buchanan became the first to be photographed during his inauguration.

In 1897, William McKinley’s ceremony was the first to be recorded on film.

In 1921, Warren G. Harding arrived at his inauguration in a car, rather than by horse and buggy.

Herbert Hoover’s 1929 inauguration was the first recorded on newsreel.

Harry Truman’s 1949 inaugural was the first one televised.

John F. Kennedy’s 1961 was the first broadcast in color, although color TV sets were quite rare back then.

Bill Clinton’s was the first broadcast live online in 1997.

Dangerous Cold Snaps

The coldest inauguration took place in 1873, when temperatures fell to -9 degrees Celsius during Ulysses S. Grant’s second ceremony.

At least Grant wasn’t snowed out, as William H. Taft almost was in 1909, when nearly a foot of snow was dumped on the capital.

Workmen in Washington clear snow in front of the White House reviewing stand on Inauguration Day, March 4, 1909.

Trump’s second inauguration is expected to become one of the chilliest in recent memory, with ceremonies moving indoors due to forecasts of ‘dangerous’ cold.

Accounting for weather is no trifling matter. In 1841, William Henry Harrison’s two-hour long inauguration speech on a cold, windy Inauguration Day in light dress may have killed him. Three weeks after the speech, he died of pneumonia, according to popular legend. Some historians believe however that it was actually typhoid fever that got him.

Joe Biden’s 2021 inauguration came and went with Washington on virtual lockdown, with the Capitol protests and Covid leading to the deployment of some 25,000 troops, the area around the building sealed off, and just a few thousand spectators attending, rather than the hundreds of thousands that normally gather.

© AFP 2023 / SAMUEL CORUM The U.S. Capitol is seen behind a fence with razor wire during sunrise on January 16, 2021 in Washington, DC. After last week's riots at the U.S. Capitol Building, the FBI has warned of additional threats in the nation's capital and in all 50 states. 25,000 National Guard soldiers guarded the city as it prepared for the inauguration of Joe Biden as the 46th U.S. President.

The U.S. Capitol is seen behind a fence with razor wire during sunrise on January 16, 2021 in Washington, DC. After last week's riots at the U.S. Capitol Building, the FBI has warned of additional threats in the nation's capital and in all 50 states. 25,000 National Guard soldiers guarded the city as it prepared for the inauguration of Joe Biden as the 46th U.S. President.

The modern tradition of friendly letters by outgoing presidents to their successors began in 1989, when Ronald Reagan wrote George H.W. Bush a note reading “Don’t let the turkeys get you down” on stationary featuring a cartoon of turkeys surrounding an elephant – the traditional Republican symbol.

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