Weather Kinder During Past Ceremonies
President Reagan’s cancellation of today’s public inaugural ceremonies is the first time that weather has ruined such a presidential celebration since they were moved outdoors.
The first three inaugurations were held indoors in New York and Philadelphia. Thomas Jefferson was the first inaugurated in Washington in 1801, and through John Quincy Adams in 1825 the ceremonies were indoors.
Andrew Jackson moved the oath-taking to the Capitol steps in 1829, though poor health forced him back indoors four years later.
Starting with Martin Van Buren in 1837, every elected President was sworn in on the Capitol steps until a blizzard forced William Howard Taft into the Senate chamber in 1909. But his inaugural parade went on through the slush, although many marching units never made it to Washington.
The only other exception in this century was in 1945, when Franklin D. Roosevelt was sworn in for a fourth term. He wanted a simple ceremony in the White House, with no parade, inaugural balls or other public ceremonies because of World War II.
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