Presidential inaugural ceremonies are perhaps the most widely known of the numerous ceremonies held at the U.S. Capitol. The Architect of the Capitol (AOC) erects the inaugural platform on the Capitol's West Front, sets up the necessary seating and fencing on the grounds, and coordinates other activities with the Joint Congressional Committee on the Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC) regarding all of the physical arrangements that are necessary to accommodate this event.
The 20th amendment to the Constitution specifies that the term of each elected President of the United States begins at noon on January 20 of the year following the election. Each president must take the oath of office before assuming the duties of the position.
With the 2017 inauguration of Donald J. Trump, the oath has been taken 72 different times by the 45 Presidents of the United States. This numerical discrepancy results chiefly from two factors: a president must take the oath at the beginning of each term of office, and, because Inauguration Day has sometimes fallen on a Sunday, four Presidents (Hayes [1877], Wilson [1917], Eisenhower [1957], and Reagan [1985]) have taken the oath privately before the public inaugural ceremonies. In addition, President Arthur took the oath privately following the death of President Garfield and again two days later in the Capitol. Grover Cleveland is considered the 22nd and 24th presidents, having served two nonconsecutive terms (1885-1889 and 1893-1897).
The oaths administered to date have been taken place in the following locations:
- U.S. Capitol (54 occasions)
- East Portico -- 34
- Hall of the House of Representatives -- 6
- Senate Chamber -- 3
- West Front -- 8
- East Front of Original Senate Wing -- 1
- President's Room -- 1
- Rotunda -- 1
- Vice President's Room -- 1
- White House -- 6
- Old Brick Capitol (1st & A Sts., N.E.; site of present Supreme Court Building) -- 1
- Washington, D.C. (not in Capitol or White House) -- 2
- Outside Washington, D.C. – 7
Key Historic Dates and Details — Presidential Inaugurals
Read about Vice Presidential Inaugurations here.
2000s
President Barack Obama takes the oath in 2009.
Date | President | Notes |
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January 20, 2017 | Donald J. Trump | |
January 21, 2013 | Barack Obama | |
January 20, 2009 | Barack Obama | |
January 20, 2005 | George W. Bush | |
January 20, 2001 | George W. Bush |
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1900s
President Ronald Reagan's inauguration at the U.S. Capitol 1981.
Date | President | Notes |
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January 20, 1997 | William J. Clinton |
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January 20, 1993 | William J. Clinton | |
January 20, 1989 | George H.W. Bush | |
January 20, 1985 & January 21, 1985 | Ronald Reagan |
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January 20, 1981 | Ronald Reagan |
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January 20, 1977 | Jimmy Carter |
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August 4, 1974 | Gerald R. Ford |
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January 20, 1973 | Richard M. Nixon | |
January 20, 1969 | Richard M. Nixon |
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January 20, 1965 | Lyndon B. Johnson |
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November 22, 1963 | Lyndon B. Johnson |
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January 20, 1961 | John F. Kennedy |
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January 20, 1957 & January 21, 1957 | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
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January 20, 1953 | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
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January 20, 1949 | Harry S. Truman |
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April 12, 1945 | Harry S. Truman | |
January 10, 1945 | Franklin D. Roosevelt |
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January 20, 1941 | Franklin D. Roosevelt |
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January 20, 1937 | Franklin D. Roosevelt |
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March 4, 1933 | Franklin D. Roosevelt | |
March 4, 1929 | Herbert Hoover |
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March 4, 1925 | Calvin Coolidge |
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August 3, 1923 | Calvin Coolidge |
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March 4, 1921 | Warren G. Harding |
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March 4, 1917 & March 5, 1917 | Woodrow Wilson |
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March 4, 1913 | Woodrow Wilson |
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March 4, 1909 | William H. Taft |
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March 4, 1905 | Theodore Roosevelt |
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September 4, 1901 | Theodore Roosevelt |
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March 4, 1901 | William McKinley |
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1800s
President Abraham Lincoln's inauguration at the U.S. Capitol 1865.
Date | President | Notes |
---|---|---|
March 4, 1897 | William McKinley |
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March 4, 1893 | Grover Cleveland | |
March 4, 1889 | Benjamin Harrison | |
March 4, 1885 | Grover Cleveland | |
September 20, 1881 & September 22, 1881 | Chester A. Arthur |
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March 4, 1881 | James Garfield |
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March 3, 1877 & March 5, 1877 | Rutherford B. Hayes |
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March 4, 1873 | Ulysses S. Grant |
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March 4, 1869 | Ulysses S. Grant | |
April 15, 1865 | Andrew Johnson |
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March 4, 1865 | Abraham Lincoln |
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March 4, 1861 | Abraham Lincoln | |
March 4, 1857 | James Buchanan |
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March 4, 1853 | Franklin Pierce |
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July 10, 1850 | Millard Filmore | |
March 5, 1849 | Zachary Taylor | |
March 4, 1845 | James Polk |
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April 6, 1841 | John Tyler |
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March 4, 1841 | William H. Harrison |
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March 4, 1837 | Martin Van Buren |
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March 4, 1833 | Andrew Jackson | |
March 4, 1829 | Andrew Jackson |
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March 4, 1825 | John Q. Adams |
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March 4, 1821 | James Monroe | |
March 5, 1817 | James Monroe |
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March 4, 1813 | James Madison | |
March 4, 1809 | James Madison |
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March 5, 1805 | Thomas Jefferson | |
March 4, 1801 | Thomas Jefferson |
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1700s
Cox Corridors mural in the U.S. Capitol depicting Washington's Inauguration, 1789.
Date | President | Notes |
---|---|---|
March 4, 1797 | John Adams |
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March 4, 1793 | George Washington |
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April 30, 1789 | George Washington |
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