45 Weird Facts about U.S. Presidents

Last month we inaugurated our 46th President of the United States. While we know about Ice Cream Joe as a person and The Founding Fathers thanks to “Hamilton: An American Musical,” we don't really know the idiosyncrasies of the rest of our country's presidents.  This President’s Day, we are bringing you lesser-known stories about the men of the Oval Office. You'll be a trivia champion in no time with these 45 weird facts about U.S. presidents. If you don't know, now you know.

1. George Washington

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Everyone knows that George Washington had fake teeth, but many don't know he grew Cannabis sativa. He wasn't a weedologist, though.  He grew hemp, not Cannabis sativa indica, to make rope and canvas for his farm. 

2. John Adams

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John Adams and his fellow Founding Father Thomas Jefferson were our countries first famous frenemies.  But what most don't know is the two men died on the same day within hours of each other. Now that's resting in peace. 

3. Thomas Jefferson

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Thomas Jefferson is known for writing the famous words “All Men are Created Equal.”  During one of the many social events of his time, he visited Shakespeare’s home and broke off a piece of Shakespeare’s chairs as a souvenir. 

4. James Madison

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James Madison is often known as the smallest President at just 5 foot 4 inches tall and weighing around 100 pounds.  A strange fact about James Madison is that he once lost an election because he didn’t give alcohol to voters.  This custom  “swilling the planters with bumbo” meant providing free alcohol to voters on Election Day, which he felt violated his principles.

5. James Monroe

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James Monroe is most known for his precedent-setting foreign policy philosophy, The Monroe Doctrine.  Did you know about the time that James Monroe chased his Secretary of Treasury around the White House with fire tongs? Apparently, the two men got in an argument, and Monroe grabbed the tongs in self-defense.

6. John Quincy Adams

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John Quincy Adams is mostly known as the son of John Adams. Apparently, he was also known for skinny dipping in the Potomac River. He even had others join him and almost lost his clothing a time or two!

7. Andrew Jackson

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Andrew Jackson is known as a rough around the edges war hero and tough guy.  But he also taught a pet parrot to swear. Even weirder, the parrot evidently had to be removed from Jackson’s funeral because it wouldn’t stop cursing.

8. Martin Van Buren

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Aside from his mad scientist head of hair, Van Buren is known for being the first President born in the new nation, The United States of America.  What's not as well known is that his “OK” campaign slogan was inspired by one of his nicknames, “Old Kinderhook.”

9. William Henry Harrison

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William H. Harrison is mostly known for dying only 33 days into his presidency.  What most don't know is that he fell ill soon after his inauguration speech. Not only was it the longest speech in history, but it occurred on a cold and wet day.

10. John Tyler

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John Tyler is most known for being the first Vice President to ascend the Oval Office due to a sitting president's death. Did you know that John Tyler has a living grandchild today?  Harrison Ruffin Tyler was born in 1928 and is 93. His father was Lyon Gardiner Tyler, one of John Tyler’s later children, born in 1853.

11. James K. Polk

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Despite being the first dark horse candidate to win the presidency, James K. Polk got a lot done during his presidency. We have him to thank for the Naval Academy in Annapolis, the Washington Monument, and the much smaller postage stamp.

12. Zachary Taylor

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Zachary Taylor is mostly known for being the second sitting president to die in office. Taylor, however, refused to be sworn in on inauguration day because it fell on a Sunday. Instead, he had David Rice Atchison stand in for him for a day until he could be officially sworn in on Monday.

13. Millard Fillmore

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Millard Fillmore ascended to the presidency upon the death of Taylor. Most don't know that the Hawaiian Islands could have been part of Europe if it wasn't for his quick diplomatic thinking.  Mahalo, President Fillmore. 

14. Franklin Pierce

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Another largely forgotten president, Pierce, was unpopular while in office and outcast by his party. While the public widely misunderstood his efforts, he attempted to make Cuba a part of the United States by purchasing it from Spain. 

15. James Buchanan

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Generally regarded as an unpopular president, Buchanan was the only president who never married. Buchanan lived with his longtime friend Senator William Rufus King for a period of time even though both men were independently wealthy. This arrangement led to incessant gossip, with Andrew Jackson even referring to the pair as “Miss Nancy and Aunt Fancy.” After his presidency, he lived the rest of his life as a single man in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. 

16. Abraham Lincoln

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Honest Abe is one of the most well-known and revered presidents in American history. He was also a surprisingly good wrestler in his younger days. In fact, he was defeated only once out of roughly 300 matches and later given the honor of “Outstanding American” in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

17. Andrew Johnson

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After the assassination of Lincoln, Andrew Johnson became president and then the first president to be impeached.  Most don't know that he was a tailor's apprentice and applied what he learned to make his own suits while serving as president.

18. Ulysses S. Grant

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Ulysses S. Grant is known as the General of the Union Army during the Civil War. Grant also had a penchant for driving fast. In fact, while serving as president, he was pulled over twice in the span of 24 hours for driving his horse and buggy too fast through the streets of Washington D.C.

19. Rutherford B. Hayes

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Rutherford B. Hayes is mostly known for winning one of the most contested elections by a single electoral college vote. Did you know that Hayes is the first American to own a Siamese cat?  It was a gift to Hayes and his wife by the American consul in Bangkok in 1879.

20. James A. Garfield

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Garfield was the second president to be assassinated, although he held on for 11 weeks.  However, many didn't know that he was ambidextrous and could write in Greek with one hand and Latin with the other at the same time.

21. Chester A. Arthur

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Chester A. Arthur was a very fashionable president. “Elegant Arthur” was known for his impeccable attire. He wanted to redecorate The White House and raised the needed funds with a presidential yard sale. He sold 24 wagon loads of presidential items, including a pair of Lincoln’s pants and a hat belonging to John Quincy Adams.

22. Grover Cleveland

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Grover Cleveland was elected to non-consecutive terms, so he counts as the 22^nd and 24^th Presidents.  He was also the first sitting president to get married. But what may surprise you is that he married a woman 27 years younger who he was the legal guardian of.

23. Benjamin Harrison

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Benjamin Harrison was the grandson of President William H. Harrison. While Harrison was the first president to benefit from electricity in the White House, he was terrified of being electrocuted. He refused to touch the light switches, so he went to bed with the lights on.

24. William McKinley

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William McKinley considered red carnations a good luck charm and always wore one in his jacket's lapel.  Many people don't know that in 1901 he gave his flower to a little girl while greeting a line of people. A few moments later, he was shot and died 8 days later. 

25. Theodore Roosevelt

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Many people know “Teddy Bear” was a lifelong outdoor enthusiast. Thanks to his conservation efforts, our country has beautiful National Parks. Did you know about the time Roosevelt got shot in the chest while giving a speech and kept going? He declared to the crowd that he did “not care a rap about being shot” and finished his speech before seeking medical treatment. It was likely the manuscript in his chest pocket that saved his life.

26. William Howard Taft

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William H. Taft was a large man who knew the value of self-care. A huge fan of baths, he commissioned a 7-foot tub weighing a ton (literally) to be built on the ship carrying him to Panama, so he’d never skip one while traveling.

27. Woodrow Wilson

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Woodrow Wilson was able to finish his presidency despite post-stroke paralysis and vision loss thanks to his wife. Most don't know that his face is on a piece of currency we have never seen: the $100,000 bill. These bills were created for trade between Federal Reserve banks, but the wire transfer made them obsolete.

28. Warren G. Harding

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Some know that Warren G. Harding fathered a child with another woman during one of his affairs.  But did you know that he lost a set of White House china in a poker game? These antiques had been there since President Benjamin Harrison 6 terms earlier.

29. Calvin Coolidge

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For a relatively obscure president, Calvin Coolidge has a lot of strange stories. He rode a mechanical horse referred to as “Thunderbolt” for exercise, had two pet raccoons, and used to push all the buttons in the Oval Office and then hide so he could watch the staff run in. Coolidge's morning ritual was rubbing Vaseline on his head because it felt it good for his health.

30. Herbert Hoover

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President Herbert Hoover also had lots of unusual habits. His son had two pet alligators that often escaped their bathtub home, and Hoover and his wife often spoke in Mandarin when they wanted to have a private conversation. Hoover believed that the White House staff and the president should not see each other. This insistence led staff to hide in closets and behind bushes whenever the President came around.

31. Franklin D. Roosevelt

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FDR’s health battles and partial paralysis was hidden from the public and not well-known at the time of his presidency.  What most still don't know today is that he was terrified of the number 13. He even refused to participate in a dinner with 13 people or leave for a trip on the 13^th of the month.

32. Harry S. Truman

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Harry S. Truman became president after the death of FDR and had the difficult task of leading the country through the end of World War II and the post-war era.  One strange thing about him was that the “S” in his name didn’t stand for anything. Truman’s parents couldn’t decide on a middle name, so after about a month, they decided on the letter “S” to honor his grandfathers.

33. Dwight D. Eisenhower

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Eisenhower was a top general with nearly 35 years of military service. However, Dwight D. Eisenhower's strangest battle was with the squirrels that roamed the White House grounds. Eisenhower was an avid golfer and became frustrated by the squirrels ruining the putting green. He tried to order a squirrel assassination, but they were trapped and released elsewhere instead.

34. John F. Kennedy

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John F. Kennedy is one of our most well known American Presidents. He led the country through social movements, the launch of the space age, the Vietnam War, and the controversies surrounding his assassination have never been fully solved. Despite his infamy, one thing you may not know about JFK is that he was a huge James Bond fan. In fact, he had dinner with Bond series author Ian Fleming in 1960.

35. Lyndon B. Johnson

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LBJ took over after the assassination of Kennedy and almost immediately fought The War on Poverty. What most people don't know is that poverty was personal to him. LBJ and his family were feed by community casseroles. There was often no food in his house, and he ate covered dishes brought to their home by neighbors. 

36. Richard Nixon

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Everyone remembers Richard Nixon for the Watergate Scandal and his resignation from office.  A lesser-known fact about Nixon is that he was an avid bowler, and friends paid to have a one-lane alley built at the White House in 1973.

37. Gerald Ford

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Gerald Ford is the only president never to be elected by the people. He became President after Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned. Did you know that Ford worked as a fashion model while in college and was even on the cover of Cosmopolitan in 1942? 

38. Jimmy Carter

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Jimmy Carter is the oldest living president and still does charitable work at the age of 96. Since leaving office, he’s won a Nobel Peace Prize, written books, and helped build over 4,000 homes for Habitat for Humanity.  Did you hear the story of his UFO spotting while serving as the Governor of George, calling it “the darndest thing I’ve ever seen?”

39. Ronald Reagan

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Ronald Reagan is famous for his ascension from actor to President of the United States.  He was well known for his good looks, even given the “Most Nearly Perfect Male Figure Award.”  Putting his assets to work, he even posed for an art class while at the University of California. 

40. George H.W. Bush

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George H.W. Bush inspired a Japanese slang word while in office. He accidentally vomited on the Prime Minister of Japan at a state dinner in Tokyo. The term Bushuru, meaning “to pull a Bush,” was born as slang for throwing up.

41. Bill Clinton

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Bill Clinton is most known for the scandal with Monica Lewinsky, a White House intern. However, most don't know that Bill Clinton is a two-time Grammy-winning artist. He won Best Spoken Word Album for Children in 2004 and best Spoken Word Album in 2005 for his autobiography.

42. George W. Bush

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George W. Bush, son of George H.W. Bush, was known for his gaffes as president, often referred to as “Bushisms.” But “Cheer” fans, did you also know that Dubya was captain of the cheerleading team at his high school?

43. Barack Obama

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Barack Obama made history as the first president of color in the United States of America. Unlike his partner in crime, Biden, Barack doesn't like ice cream at all. After working at a Baskin-Robbins as a teen, he no longer eats the sweet treat.

44. Donald Trump

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Donald Trump is well known as a former real estate mogul turned reality star turned President of the United States. But did you know that SPY magazine once sent 13 cent checks to a group of the wealthiest people to see who would cash them? The only people who did were an arms dealer and Trump.

45. Joe Biden

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Most know that former Vice President Biden survived a family tragedy and overcame a stutter as a kid. But did you know he still uses a wedding gift from 1967? His father gave him a 1967 Corvette Stingray, and he still drives it today.