PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATIONS: DEVIATIONS FROM TRADITION, PART I
Presidential inaugurations proceed according to well-established traditions and customs. The President had the oath administered to him by the Chief Justice on the east portico of the Capital at noon (or as close to noon as possible) on January 20th. Inauguration day was March 4th until 1936, when it was changed to the current date by the 20th Amendment to the Constitution, often called the Lame Duck Amendment. But there have been a number of occasions when tradition and custom were not followed. Many inaugurations were held at other places, on other days and often someone other than the Chief Justice administered the oath of office.
Different Locations
Since 1981, the traditional location for the inauguration has been the west front of the Capitol, which has more room for visitors than the east front which had been the traditional location prior to that date. Prior to that time, fourteen inaugurations took place at locations other than the east portico of the Capital. Most of these were because the Capitol had not been built yet. Also, the capital was in places other than the District of Columbia.
The first inauguration (1789) was held in Federal Hall, on Wall Street in New York City. This building served as the seat of the Congress. By Washington’s second inauguration, the capital had moved to Philadelphia. He was inaugurated for the second time (1793) in Congress Hall, located at Sixth and Chestnut Street in Philadelphia. John Adams was also inaugurated there in 1797.
By the time of Thomas Jefferson’s first inauguration in 1801, the capital had moved to Washington, D.C. Thomas Jefferson was inaugurated in the new capital city in the Senate chamber of the new Capitol building in both 1801 and 1805.
James Madison was inaugurated twice, in 1809 and 1813, in the chamber of the House of Representatives of the Capitol. James Monroe’s first inauguration (1817) was on the east portico of the Capitol, which would become the traditional location in the future. His second inauguration (1821) was again held in the House of Representatives chamber, as was John Quincy Adams (1825) and Andrew Jackson’s second inauguration (1833).
The other regularly planned inaugurations of elected Presidents took place at the traditional site on the east portico of the Capitol until 1909. In that year, William Howard Taft returned the inauguration to the Senate chamber of the Capitol due to the weather. His ambitious wife and Teddy Roosevelt had talked Taft, who had wanted to be Chief Justice instead of President, into running. He was heard to comment before the ceremony that he had always said it would be a cold day when he was inaugurated as President.
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