Outgoing president Selina Meyer and outgoing vice president Andrew Doyle at the inauguration of Laura Montez, 2017.
The inauguration of the president of the United States is a ceremony to mark the commencement of a new four-year term of the president of the United States. This ceremony takes place for each new presidential term, even if the president is continuing in office for a second term. Since 1937, it has taken place at noon EST on January 20, the first day of the new term, some 72 to 78 days after the presidential election, except for several occasions when January 20 fell on a Sunday. In those years, the presidential oath of office was administered on that day privately and then again in a public ceremony the next day, on Monday, January 21.
List of inauguration ceremonies[]
The 65 inauguration ceremonies marking the start of a new four-year presidential term of office and also the ten marking the start of a partial presidential term following the intra-term death or resignation of an incumbent president are listed in the table below.
| No. | Date | Event | Location | Oath Administered by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | April 30, 1789 (Thursday) |
First inauguration of George Washington | Front balcony, Federal Hall |
Robert Livingston, Chancellor of New York |
| 2nd | March 4, 1793 (Monday) |
Second inauguration of George Washington | Senate Chamber, Congress Hall |
William Cushing, Associate Justice, U.S. Supreme Court |
| 3rd | March 4, 1797 (Saturday) |
Inauguration of John Adams | House Chamber, Congress Hall |
Oliver Ellsworth, Chief Justice of the United States |
| 4th | March 4, 1801 (Wednesday) |
First inauguration of Thomas Jefferson | Senate Chamber, U.S. Capitol |
John Marshall, Chief Justice of the United States |
| 5th | March 4, 1805 (Monday) |
Second inauguration of Thomas Jefferson | Senate Chamber, U.S. Capitol | |
| 6th | March 4, 1809 (Saturday) |
First inauguration of James Madison | House Chamber, U.S. Capitol | |
| 7th | March 4, 1813 (Thursday) |
Second inauguration of James Madison | House Chamber, U.S. Capitol | |
| 8th | March 4, 1817 (Tuesday) |
First inauguration of James Monroe | Front steps, Old Brick Capitol | |
| 9th | March 5, 1821 (Monday) |
Second inauguration of James Monroe | House Chamber, U.S. Capitol | |
| 10th | March 4, 1825 (Friday) |
Inauguration of John Quincy Adams | House Chamber, U.S. Capitol | |
| 11th | March 4, 1829 (Wednesday) |
First inauguration of Andrew Jackson | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 12th | March 4, 1833 (Monday) |
Second inauguration of Andrew Jackson | House Chamber, U.S. Capitol | |
| 13th | March 4, 1837 (Saturday) |
Inauguration of Martin Van Buren | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Roger B. Taney, Chief Justice of the United States |
| 14th | March 4, 1841 (Thursday) |
Inauguration of William Henry Harrison | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| April 6, 1841 (Tuesday) |
Inauguration of John Tyler | Brown’s Indian Queen Hotel, Washington, D.C. |
William Cranch Chief Judge, U.S. Circuit Court of the District of Columbia | |
| 15th | March 4, 1845 (Tuesday) |
Inauguration of James K. Polk | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Roger B. Taney, Chief Justice |
| 16th | March 5, 1849 (Monday) |
Inauguration of Zachary Taylor | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| July 10, 1850 (Wednesday) |
Inauguration of Millard Fillmore | House Chamber, U.S. Capitol |
William Cranch Circuit Court Judge | |
| 17th | March 4, 1853 (Friday) |
Inauguration of Franklin Pierce | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Roger B. Taney, Chief Justice |
| 18th | March 4, 1857 (Wednesday) |
Inauguration of James Buchanan | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 19th | March 4, 1861 (Monday) |
First inauguration of Abraham Lincoln | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 20th | March 4, 1865 (Saturday) |
Second inauguration of Abraham Lincoln | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Salmon P. Chase, Chief Justice of the United States |
| April 15, 1865 (Saturday) |
Inauguration of Andrew Johnson | Kirkwood House Hotel, Washington, D.C. | ||
| 21st | March 4, 1869 (Thursday) |
First inauguration of Ulysses S. Grant | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 22nd | March 4, 1873 (Tuesday) |
Second inauguration of Ulysses S. Grant | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 23rd | March 5, 1877 (Monday) |
Inauguration of Rutherford B. Hayes | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Morrison Waite, Chief Justice of the United States |
| 24th | March 4, 1881 (Friday) |
Inauguration of James A. Garfield | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| September 20, 1881 (Tuesday) |
Inauguration of Chester A. Arthur | Chester A. Arthur Home, New York, New York |
John R. Brady, Justice of the New York Supreme Court | |
| 25th | March 4, 1885 (Wednesday) |
First inauguration of Grover Cleveland | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Morrison Waite, Chief Justice |
| 26th | March 4, 1889 (Monday) |
Inauguration of Benjamin Harrison | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Melville Fuller, Chief Justice of the United States |
| 27th | March 4, 1893 (Saturday) |
Second inauguration of Grover Cleveland | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 28th | March 4, 1897 (Thursday) |
First inauguration of William McKinley | Front of original Senate Wing U.S. Capitol | |
| 29th | March 4, 1901 (Monday) |
Second inauguration of William McKinley | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| September 14, 1901 (Saturday) |
First inauguration of Theodore Roosevelt | Ansley Wilcox Home, Buffalo, New York |
John R. Hazel, Judge, U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York | |
| 30th | March 4, 1905 (Saturday) |
Second inauguration of Theodore Roosevelt | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Melville Fuller, Chief Justice |
| 31st | March 4, 1909 (Thursday) |
Inauguration of William Howard Taft | Senate Chamber, U.S. Capitol | |
| 32nd | March 4, 1913 (Tuesday) |
First inauguration of Woodrow Wilson | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Edward D. White, Chief Justice of the United States |
| 33rd | March 5, 1917 (Monday) |
Second inauguration of Woodrow Wilson | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 34th | March 4, 1921 (Friday) |
Inauguration of Warren G. Harding | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| August 3, 1923 (Friday) |
First inauguration of Calvin Coolidge | Coolidge Homestead, Plymouth Notch, Vermont |
John Calvin Coolidge Notary public | |
| 35th | March 4, 1925 (Wednesday) |
Second inauguration of Calvin Coolidge | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
William Howard Taft Chief Justice of the United States |
| 36th | March 4, 1929 (Monday) |
Inauguration of Herbert Hoover | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 37th | March 4, 1933 (Saturday) |
First inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Charles E. Hughes Chief Justice of the United States |
| 38th | January 20, 1937 (Wednesday) |
Second inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 39th | January 20, 1941 (Monday) |
Third inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 40th | January 20, 1945 (Saturday) |
Fourth inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt | South Portico, White House |
Harlan F. Stone Chief Justice of the United States |
| April 12, 1945 (Thursday) |
First inauguration of Harry S. Truman | Cabinet Room, White House | ||
| 41st | January 20, 1949 (Thursday) |
Second inauguration of Harry S. Truman | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Fred M. Vinson Chief Justice of the United States |
| 42nd | January 20, 1953 (Tuesday) |
First inauguration of Dwight D. Eisenhower | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 43rd | January 21, 1957 (Monday) |
Second inauguration of Dwight D. Eisenhower | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Earl Warren Chief Justice of the United States |
| 44th | January 20, 1961 (Friday) |
Inauguration of John F. Kennedy | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| November 22, 1963 (Friday) |
First inauguration of Lyndon B. Johnson | Air Force One, Dallas Love Field, |
Sarah T. Hughes Judge, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas | |
| 45th | January 20, 1965 (Wednesday) |
Second inauguration of Lyndon B. Johnson | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Earl Warren Chief Justice |
| 46th | January 20, 1969 (Monday) |
First inauguration of Richard Nixon | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 47th | January 20, 1973 (Saturday) |
Second inauguration of Richard Nixon | East Portico, U.S. Capitol |
Warren Burger Chief Justice of the United States |
| August 9, 1974 (Friday) |
Inauguration of Gerald Ford | East Room, White House | ||
| 48th | January 20, 1977 (Thursday) |
Inauguration of Jimmy Carter | East Portico, U.S. Capitol | |
| 49th | January 20, 1981 (Tuesday) |
First inauguration of Ronald Reagan | West Front, U.S. Capitol | |
| 50th | January 21, 1985 (Monday) |
Second inauguration of Ronald Reagan | Rotunda, U.S. Capitol | |
| 51st | January 20, 1989 (Friday) |
First inauguration of President Stevenson | West Front, U.S. Capitol |
???
Chief Justice of the United States |
| 52nd | January 20, 1993 (Wednesday) |
Second inauguration of President Stevenson | West Front, U.S. Capitol | |
| 53rd | January 20, 1997 (Monday) |
First inauguration of the 42nd president | West Front, U.S. Capitol | |
| 54th | January 20, 2001 (Saturday) |
Second inauguration of the 42nd president | West Front, U.S. Capitol | |
| 55th | January 20, 2005 (Thursday) |
First inauguration of the the 43rd president | West Front, U.S. Capitol | |
| 56th | January 20, 2009 (Tuesday) |
Second inauguration of the 43rd president | West Front, U.S. Capitol | |
| 57th | January 21, 2013
|
Inauguration of Stuart Hughes | West Front, U.S. Capitol | |
| January 24, 2016
(Sunday) |
First inauguration of Selina Meyer | White House | Former Chief Justice | |
| 58th | January 20, 2017 (Friday) |
Inauguration of Laura Montez | West Front, U.S. Capitol |
Chief Justice
Chief Justice of the United States |
| 59th | January 20, 2021
(Wednesday) |
Second inauguration of Selina Meyer | West Front, U.S. Capitol |
|
| 60th | January 20, 2025
(Monday) |
Inauguration of the 48th president | ||
| 61st | January 20, 2029
(Saturday) |
Inauguration of the 48th or 49th president | ||
| 62nd | January 20, 2033
(Thursday) |
Inauguration of the 49th or 50th president | ||
| 63rd | January 20, 2037
(Tuesday) |
Inauguration of the 49th or 50th president | ||
| 64th | January 21, 2041
(Monday) |
First inauguration of Richard Splett | ||
| 65th | January 20, 2045
(Friday) |
Second inauguration of Richard Splett |