Inauguration Day Fun Facts

Inauguration Day is the day when the president-elect and vice-president-elect are sworn in and take office for the United States of America. The ceremonies are typically held at the US Capitol. How well do you know the history of this event? Test your knowledge with our short quiz (answers immediately follow the questions), or pick up some trivia to entertain family and friends.

1. Which president delivered the shortest inaugural address, at just 135 words?
George Washington’s 1793 record for the shortest inaugural address still stands.

2. Who delivered the longest inaugural address ever?
William Henry Harrison gave the longest inaugural address at 8,445 words (ironically, he served the shortest term, dying of pneumonia a month after being sworn in).

3. Who was the first president inaugurated in January?
In 1933, the 20th amendment to the US Constitution shortened the length of lame-duck administrations by moving the inauguration date of a new president from March to January 20. Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first president to be inaugurated on Jan. 20, in 1937.

(During years when Jan. 20 has fallen on a weekend, presidents have been sworn in at private ceremonies, with public ceremonies on the following Monday.)

4. Whose inauguration was the coldest one on record?
That would be Ronald Reagan. During his public inauguration on Jan. 21, 1985, the temperature at noon was 7 degrees.

5. Who was the first First Lady to accompany the new president from the inauguration to the White House?
Helen Herron Taft made the trip with William Howard Taft in 1909.

6. Whose inauguration was the first to be broadcast by radio?
Calvin Coolidge, in 1925.

7. Who was the first president to cancel the inaugural ball?
Franklin Pierce, who was grieving the recent death of his son, canceled his inaugural ball in 1853.

He wasn’t the only one, though. Woodrow Wilson felt a ball was too extravagant for such a solemn occasion. Warren G. Harding  said “thanks but no thanks” to the inaugural committee, hoping to send a message of thrift and simplicity. The committee hosted a huge private party at his home instead. He started a trend: For Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt, charity balls replaced inaugural balls.

Learn more about the history of the US Presidential inauguration and details about the current event at the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies website.

Last updated: January 2025