Objective
SPI 8.60.1
Identify the impact of individual and group decisions on
historical events.
Essential Question
Who were the first 5 presidents, what years were each
of them in office, and what was one major
accomplishment for each of the five men?
*George Washington was born on February 22, 1732 in Virginia.
*Through the course of his life, Washington was a surveyor, a planter, and a
member of both the British and American military.
*Washington married Martha Dandridge Custis, and had two children.
*The home where Washington lived was called Mount Vernon.
*When tensions with the British grew, Washington was a Virginia delegate
to the Second Continental Congress.
*The wedding of George Washington and
Martha Dandridge Custis.
*George Washington, the first president, was the only U.S.
president to be elected unanimously.
*George Washington was an American general during the American Revolution.
*When George Washington was elected, there were only 7 states in the Union.
*In 1782, George Washington was the first to award a purple heart to soldiers who
Displayed bravery and courage; this award is still given to soldiers who prove to have
these characteristics.
*After serving as president from 1789- 1797, Washington died on December 14, 1799.
A quote by Washington:
"As the sword was the last resort for the preservation of our liberties, so it
ought to be the first to be laid aside when those liberties are firmly
established."
*John Adams was born October 30, 1735 in the Massachusetts
Bay Colony.
*Adams attended Harvard, where he became a lawyer.
*He married Abigail Smith, and they had five children.
*He was a delegate to the First Continental Congress, as well as the Second
Continental Congress.
*During the Revolutionary War, he was a diplomat to both Holland and France.
*He served two terms as vice president to George Washington.
*The house where John Adams was born.
*The third president, John Adams, was the first president to have a
son who also became president.
*John Adams was also the first president to live in the White House.
*He helped to create the Declaration of Independence, as well as the
Constitutional government.
*Adams was president from 1797-1801.
*John Adams died on July 4, 1826- the same day as his rival, Thomas Jefferson.
A Quote by Adams:
"By my physical constitution, I am but an ordinary man. The times
alone have destined me to fame - and even these have not been
able to give me much."
*Thomas Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743 in Albemarle
County, Virginia
*Jefferson attended the College of William and Mary, and became a lawyer
*He married Martha Wayles Skelton, and had five children
*The home in which Jefferson lived was called Monticello
*Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence
*Besides president, he also served as minister to France, as well as on the
cabinet of George Washington
*Monticello
*Thomas Jefferson, the third president, authorized the Lewis and
Clarke expedition, which led to the Louisiana Purchase.
*He was the first president to be elected by the House of Representatives.
*While he was president, the U.S. population was 5.5 million.
*Because his wife died 19 years before he became president, his daughter,
Martha, took on the role of First Lady.
*Thomas Jefferson served as president from 1801- 1809, and died the
same day as John Adams, on July 4, 1826.
A quote by Jefferson:
“All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain
silent.”
*James Madison was born March 16, 1751, and was brought up
in Orange County, Virginia.
*Madison attended Princeton University, and studied history and government.
*Throughout his life, Madison worked as: a farmer, a planter, and a Colonel in the
military.
*He married Dolly Payne Todd.
*Madison was part of the Continental Congress, as well as the Virginia Assembly.
*Madison helped the frame the Virginia Constitution, as well as the Bill of Rights,
as well as help to write the Federalist Papers, along with John Jay and Alexander
Hamilton.
*The men who wrote the
Federalist Papers: (l-r) John
Jay, James Madison, and
Alexander Hamilton.
*James Madison, the fourth president, was president during the
War of 1812- the was even referred to as “Mr. Madison’s War”.
*Madison kept the most complete notes on the Constitutional Convention.
*He was a central person in the development of the Constitution of the United States.
*He served two terms as president, from 1809- 1817, but both of his vice
presidents died while in office.
*James Madison died on June 28, 1836.
A quote by Madison:
"A popular Government without popular information, or the means of
acquiring it, is but a prologue to a farce or a tragedy; or, perhaps both."
*James Monroe was born on April 28, 1758 in Westmoreland
County, Virginia.
*Monroe attended the College of William and Mary, and became a lawyer in
Fredericksburg, Virginia.
*He also served in the Continental Army as a Lieutenant and Colonel.
*James Monroe married Elizabeth Kortright, and they had three children.
*Before becoming president, Monroe was a senator for the state of Virginia, and
also a Minister to France.
*As the Presidents before him, Monroe also served on the Continental Congress.
*The home of James Monroe.
*The fifth president, James Monroe received all but one vote
from the electoral college in the election of 1820.
*Monroe bought Florida from Spain in 1819.
*He issued The Monroe Doctrine, which protected Latin America, as well as the
Northwest Territories from Europe.
*Monroe’s presidency was known as “The Era of Good Feelings”.
*He served two terms as president, from 1817-1825.
*James Monroe died on July 4, 1831.
A quote by Monroe:
"The earth was given to mankind to support the greatest number of which it is
capable, and no tribe or people have a right to withhold from the wants of others
more than is necessary for their own support and comfort."