On this day in 1789, our first President was inaugurated for his first term in office. George Washington’s term as our first President actually began on March 4, 1789 as proscribed by the new constitution – but sadly logistical delays with ballot counting caused the inauguration to be delayed by nearly 2 months. Poor George didn’t even get official notification that he had been elected until April 14, 1789. He set out for New York City, which was serving as the nation’s capital two days later.
The inauguration was held at Federal Hall with Washington being sworn in by the Chancellor of New York, Robert Livingston rather than the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court as is the norm today. Here are some more fun facts about that first inauguration:
- Washington actually had to borrow cash to make the trip from Mount Vernon to New York City! He borrowed 600 pounds (dollars weren’t a thing yet) at 6% interest from merchant Richard Conway. Despite owning a plantation – and slaves – Washington was cash poor at the time of his election to the Presidency. In fact, he joked with family that part of the reason he accepted the job was for the salary.
- There were no inaugural balls. But a week later there was a ball honoring Washington so maybe that counts?
- By Congressional resolution, Washington and members of the inaugural party processed straight from the ceremony at Federal Hall to St. Paul’s Chapel for Divine Service.
- Washington’s inaugural speech was only 1,419 words long – taking about 10 minutes to deliver. George apparently believed in brevity – his second inaugural address was only 135 words! (not a typo – really 135 words!)
Want to know more about George Washington? I can tell you he was a complex character – not at all like the one dimensional saint we learned about in school! I suggest these resources:
- https://www.mountvernon.org/
- https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/17261.Best_George_Washington_Biographies
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington — lots of links in here for deeper reading!
Learn Or Do 