Weird, Strange, and True
And the Award Goes To…
Created by Christy Nelson
Strangest Teeth
George Washington
Myth: Washington’s false teeth were
made of wood.
Fact: America’s First President wore
dentures constructed of carved hippo
ivory and human teeth.
Best Laundry Room
John and Abigail Adams
1
President John Adams was the first
president to live in the White House. His
wife Abigail thought their new home was
uncomfortable because it was so cold and
drafty. She once used the main conference
room to hang the family’s laundry.
2
John Adams (F)
(1797-1801)
Smallest Stature
James Madison
Many people believe the president is one of the most
powerful men in the world. When people imagine what
a president should look like, they may think of a
tall large men. This was not the case with James
Madison. He was only 5 feet 4 inches tall, and
weighed less then a hundred pounds.
3
James Madison (D-R)
(1809-1817)
Aaron Burr
Thomas Jefferson hated formality and often met
foreign Diplomats in his nightgown and slippers. In
contrast, his Vice President Aaron Burr was a true
gentleman and defended his honor in America’s most
famous duel. It ended his political career
when it resulted in the death of his opponent,
Alexander Hamilton.
Thomas Jefferson (D-R)
(1801-1809)
Worst Dressed and Best Aim
Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr
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5
James Monroe (D-R)
(1817-1825)
6
Strangest House Guest
John Quincy Adams
In the summer of 1826, the strangest White House
guest arrived and spent two months in the East
Room. It was the companion of John Quincy Adams’
good friend, the Marquis de Lafayette. He was quite
an inhospitable guest and snapped at anyone who
entered his room. He was rather green and scaly, but
the president and his wife were very fond of him and
were sad when he left the White House. Having an
alligator as a house guest maybe strange, but so is
skinny-dipping in the Potomac River, and John
Quincy enjoyed both.
Andrew Jackson
Presidents have always thrown lavish parties after
their inauguration, but none of them compare to the
one Andrew Jackson threw. He was a man of the
people and thought that anybody should be allowed
in the White House. After his inauguration, he invited
the public to his party at the White House, and
20,000 people showed up. They made a huge mess
that cost thousands of dollars in damage, and ate
1,400 pounds of cheese that left the White House
stinking for months.
9
Martin
Van Buren (D)
Best Party
(1837-1841)
Lets Party
When: March
4, 1829
Where: 1600
Pennsylvania
Ave.
Why:
Andrew’s
Inauguration
Who’s
Invited:
Everyone
Cheese will
be Provided
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8
Best Marble Game
John Tyler
President John Tyler had fifteen children, the most of
any president. He was playing marbles with his
children when he learned the that President Harrison
had died, and he would become the next president.
10
James K.
Polk (D)
(1845-1849)
11
Hottest Dresser
(1849-1850)
On the Fourth of July 1850 Zachary Taylor wore his
black high-collar suit to the dedication of the
Washington Monument. He was so hot he became
over heated and was suffering form heat stroke. He
made a big mistake when he drank ice cold milk and
ate ice cold cherries. This shocked his body and
ultimately led to his death.
Zachary Taylor (W)
Zachary Taylor
12
Most Eligible Bachelor
James Buchanan
Franklin Pierce (D)
Best Beard
13
(1853-1857)
President James Buchanan was the only president
who never married. His friends were worried he
would be lonely in the White House so they sent him
many pets to keep him company. He was sent a herd
of elephants and two bald eagles. Both gifts found
new homes more suited to their needs. His greatest
companion was his dog Lara who weighed 170
pounds (almost twice the weight of James Madison).
14
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the tallest
president and stood 6 feet 4 inches
tall. He was also very thin, and his
face was sunken in and had
pockmarks. A twelve year-old girl
wrote him a letter that said he should
“cultivate his whiskers” to make his
thin face look better. She believed it
would help him win the election
because women like beards, and they
would tease their husbands to vote
for Lincoln. He was the first
president with a beard.
James Buchanan (D)
(1857-1861)
15
Abraham
Lincoln (R)
(1861-1865)
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Rutherford B.
Hayes (R)
(1877-1881)
Rutherford Hayes was not a very popular president.
In 1976, many people did not think he had won the
election, and Congress had to recount the votes. He
was nicknamed Rutherfraud. His wife Lucy made up
for her husband’s faults by hosting the first Easter
Egg Roll on the White House Lawn. This is one of
the most famous events held at the White House each
year.
Andrew Johnson (D)
Rutherford B. Hayes
(1865-1869)
Most Famous White House Event
Most Unique Presidency
(1881-1885)
Grover Cleveland was the only president to serve two
nonconsecutive terms in office. He worked very hard
as president but still had time to get married to the
youngest first lady (Frances was only 21). He was the
only president to get married in the White House. In
his second term his daughter Ruth became the only
presidential child to be born in the White House. She
had a candy bar named after her. Can you guess what
it was called? (answer at bottom)
Chester A. Arthur (R)
Grover Cleveland
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Cutest Children’s Toy
Benjamin Harrison (R)
(1889-1893)
Teddy Roosevelt
William McKinley (R)
William Howard
Taft
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(1897-1901)
Largest Bathroom
Remodel
While in Mississippi
attempting to settle a border
dispute between MS and
Louisiana, Theodore Roosevelt
happened upon a wounded
bear cub. He ordered that the
bear be spared further pain and
be killed. This event was later
depicted by a cartoonist and
the bear in the cartoon became
a stuffed toy called a teddy
bear.
23
Grover Cleveland (D)
(1893-1897)
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William Howard Taft
was the largest president
and weighed over 300
pounds. He once got
stuck in the White
House bathtub and had
to be rescued. After that
he installed a bathtub
large enough to fit four
grown men.
Theodore Roosevelt (R)
26
(1901-1909)
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William
Howard
Taft (R)
(1909-1913)
Most Creative Solution
28
Woodrow Wilson
Warren Harding (R)
(1921-1923)
Woodrow Wilson was president during World War I.
During this time, most of America’s young men were
fighting in the war, and there was no one to mow the
White House Lawn. Wilson decided to bring in sheep
to keep the lawn trimmed, but it worked a little too
well. The sheep liked to eat the White House grass
and flowers too. A ram named Old Ike was quite an
attraction, and people loved to come and watch him.
He always had a wad of tobacco in his mouth, which
made a mess of the white wool on his chin.
29
Herbert Hoover was not very popular when he was
president. He was in office at the start of the Great
Depression, and people were upset he was not able to
end it. However, after he was president he became an
active humanitarian helping people around the world.
He even earned 50 honorary college degrees. He
lived for thirty-one years after his presidency.
(1929-1933)
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover (R)
Longest Life After Presidency
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31
Longest Presidency
Franklin D. Roosevelt
32
FDR was one of the most popular presidents and was
the only president to be elected to four terms. Before
this time presidents took the advice that George Anti- Roosevelt pin
Washington gave in his farewell address. He believed
that presidents should only serve two terms. After
FDR’s time in office the law was changed, and now
presidents can only serve a maximum of two terms.
Heaviest Decision
33
Harry Truman
Only days after becoming president Harry Truman
faced one of the hardest decisions any president has
ever had to make. He had to decide how he would
end World War II. He decided to end it by dropping
an atomic bomb on the Japanese cities Hiroshima and
Nagasaki. Many innocent people lost their lives, but
Truman believed that many American lives were
saved because of his decision. Today people still
question if he did the right thing.
34
Most Famous White House Family
John F. Kennedy
President John Kennedy was one of America’s most
beloved Presidents. He was young and handsome and
Americans loved him, his young children and his
beautiful wife. His wife Jacqueline Kennedy gave the
first televised tour of the White House. The first
family was so majestic that people compared them to
King Arthur's Camelot, a place full of happily ever
afters. The Kennedy’s happily ever after ended in
1963 when JFK was assassinated.
35
Most Paranoid
Richard Nixon
President Nixon won two terms in office. When he
ran for his second term, he was worried he would not
win so he had his campaign workers break into the
Watergate Hotel where the Democratic Party kept
many important papers. He won the election in a
landside and really did not need to be involved in
such illegal behavior. When word got around about
what he did, people were not too happy. Nixon lied
and tried to cover up his mistake. He was caught redhanded when taped conversations were discovered.
He became the first and only president to resign.
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37
Most Likely Not to Run For Office
Gerald Ford
Gerald Ford was the only president who became both
Vice President and President without ever being
elected. He was selected by Nixon to become Vice
President after VP Spiro Agnew was forced to resign.
He then became President after Nixon resigned. He
did run for president in 1976 but lost to Jimmy
Carter.
38
Jimmy
Carter (D)
(1977-1981)
Best Actor
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan was
an actor before he
became president. In
his most famous
movie Bedtime For
Bonzo, his costar was
a chimpanzee. In
1981 Reagan was
shot and injured by a
man who was trying
to impress actress
Jody Foster.
39
Ronald Reagan (R)
(1981-1989)
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41
George H.W.
Bush (R)
(1989-1993)
William Jefferson Clinton (D)(1993-2001)
Most Powerful Presidential Couple
Bill and Hillary Clinton
President Bill Clinton was one of the most popular
presidents, but behind every great man there is a
great woman; Bill’s woman was Hillary. She
followed in the footsteps of first ladies like Edith
Wilson and Eleanor Roosevelt who took an active
role as first lady. Hillary helped her husband work on
healthcare reform, but it did not pass congress. She
also stood by her husband through a very public
affair. She continued her political career after she left
the White House and became a US senator. She
sought the Democratic ticket for president in 2008,
and in 2009 President Barack Obama made her
Secretary of State.
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First President of Color
Barack Obama
In 2009 President Barack Obama made history when
he became the first African-American president. It
took 220 years and 42 presidents, but change finally
made its way to the White House. Who knows what’s
next? Maybe a woman president.
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Barack Obama (D) (2009-present )
Works Cited
Books:
Buller, J., Schade, &., Regan, D. & Weber, J. (2009). A smart book about the first ladies . New York: Grosset & Dunlap.
Buller, J., Schade, &., Cocca-Leffler, M., Regan, D. & Weber, J. (2009). A smart book about the presidents. New York:
Grosset & Dunlap.
Chandra, D., & Comora, M. (2003). George Washington’s teeth. United States: Farrar Straus Giroux.
Davis, G. (2004). Wackiest White House pets. New York: Scholastic Press.
Fradin, D. (2008). Duel!: Burr and Hamilton’s deadly war of words. United States: Walker Publishing Company.
O’Connor. (2004). If these walls could talk: Family life in the White House. New York: Simon and Schuster Books for Young
Readers.
Piven, H. (2004). What presidents are made of . New York: Athenaeum Books for Young Readers.
Sandler, M. (1995). Presidents. New York: Eagle Productions Inc.
St. George, J. (2004). So you want to be president? New York: Philomel Books.
Wallner, A. (2001). Abigail Adams. United States: Holiday House.
Web Pages:
http://us-civil-war.suite101.com/article.cfm/girl_makes_lincoln_grow_a_beard
http://inventors.about.com/od/tstartinventions/a/Teddy_Bear.htm
http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/presidents-day/political-parties.html