William Henry Harrison delivered the longest inauguration address, at 8,460 words, in one hour and 45 minutes. This was 3,000 words longer than Taft's, who came in second. He died eight months later, before he could serve his full term.
Harrison served nine days before he died of pneumonia. His death prevented him from serving a second term as well.
The first presidential inauguration took place on March 4, 1797. The inauguration is held on the third day of January. It is traditionally a day dedicated to peace and prayer. The oath of office is administered during this ceremony. In 1845, after many complaints about the size of the audience, Congress passed a law limiting attendance at inaugural events to "the most distinguished persons of the country." This allowed them to charge admission for tickets to these events.
The biggest crowds ever seen at an inauguration were for Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933 with over 70,000 people or John F. Kennedy in 1961 with over 200,000 people.
In 2005, President George W. Bush gave the shortest inaugural address in history, just seven sentences long. He also made no mention of politics or policy during his speech. Instead, he focused on religion and morality. He said: "Above all, we must keep faith with those who fight for us.
Harrison's inauguration address was the longest to date, clocking in at 8,445 words. It still ranks as the longest speech ever delivered from a presidential office. The previous record holder was Barack Obama, who broke his own record with an inaugural address that was 1,788 words long.
Obama's second inauguration in 2013 remained close behind with a length of 1,579 words - but it should be noted that he delivered this speech before a more attentive audience than those who attended Harrison's inauguration in 1889. With a crowd estimated at between 100,000 and 200,000 people, this makes Obama's first inauguration the largest single-day turnout in U.S. history.
In fact, the entire week leading up to Obama's second inauguration saw larger crowds attend any one event than did all of Harrison's inauguration week in 1889. This includes the inaugural parade on Monday, which received over a million spectators according to some estimates.
The largest audience to ever witness an inauguration was just under 200,000 people who came out to watch Obama's second inauguration in 2013. This made Obama's second inauguration the most watched inauguration in history. According to Nielsen Media Research, approximately 7 million people watched Obama's second inauguration live streaming online.
He was replaced by President John Tyler. Who delivered the second-longest inaugural address in American history? According to The American Presidency Project, President William Howard Taft delivered an inauguration address with approximately 5,000 words. President James K. Polk made a lengthy speech of 4,800 words as well.
President William Henry Harrison gave the longest inaugural address, according to the American Presidency Project. The speech lasted approximately 8,500 words. In comparison, President Barack Obama's first inaugural address was around 2,400 words long, whereas President Bill Clinton's inaugural address was only 1,600 words long.
Lengths of Inaugural Addresses William Henry Harrison delivered the longest inauguration address, at 8,460 words, in one hour and 45 minutes. This was 3,000 words longer than Taft's, who came in second. At 135 words, George Washington's second inaugural address was the shortest.
He was replaced by President John Tyler. Who delivered the second-longest inaugural address in American history? According to The American Presidency Project, President William Howard Taft delivered an inauguration address with approximately 5,000 words. President James K. Polk made a lengthy speech of 4,800 words as well.
The most unexpected occurrence at an inauguration ceremony occurred on January 20, 1953, when Texas-born Dwight Eisenhower was lassoed by a cowboy riding up to him on a horse in the reviewing stand. The most rowdy inaugural celebration: at Abraham Lincoln's inauguration, the crowd became so raucous that the police were brought in.
On March 4, 1801, Thomas Jefferson was inaugurated as the first President of the United States. His speech is available here. After a contentious campaign, Adams did not attend Jefferson's inauguration on March 4, 1801, when he had served as vice president.
President William Henry Harrison gave the longest inaugural address, according to the American Presidency Project. The speech lasted approximately 8,500 words. In comparison, President Barack Obama's first inaugural address was around 2,400 words long, whereas President Bill Clinton's inaugural address was only 1,600 words long.
Lengths of Inaugural Addresses William Henry Harrison delivered the longest inauguration address, at 8,460 words, in one hour and 45 minutes. This was 3,000 words longer than Taft's, who came in second. At 135 words, George Washington's second inaugural address was the shortest.
The longest sentence of John Adams' inaugural address, which totaled 2,308 words, was 727 words long, according to the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. The second-longest sentence, also by Adams, was 652 words.
The longest inaugural address delivered by a president that we know about is that of James Buchanan in 1857, when he delivered an eloquent speech outlining his views on the nation's crisis at the time of his inauguration. His address contained 9,039 words.
Buchanan's address was only five minutes long. The shortest inaugural address ever given was that of George Washington in 1789, when he delivered his speech from the balcony of the Capitol using a written text. It consisted of only 22 words: "Mr. President, and Fellow Citizens."
The first inaugural address given by a president was that of George Washington on April 30, 1789. He wanted to introduce himself to the new Congress then in session and set the agenda for their discussions during its first session.
In modern times, the longest inaugural address has been that of Barack Obama in 2009, when he spoke for approximately eight minutes. The most common length of speeches is about three to four minutes.
According to UCSB's American Presidency Project, Clinton's 2000 address was the longest since 1966, lasting about an hour and a half. With nearly 33,000 words, Jimmy Carter holds the record for the longest written address. This post was first published in 2010 and again in 2015. It has been updated with more recent data.
He delivered the speech on January 29, 2000. At the time it was reported as being the longest speech ever given by a U.S. president. But now that has been surpassed by Barack Obama's 2008 acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention.
The original source for this information is the book "The American President: A Reference Guide" by The American Presidency Project. You can find this book at most public libraries or download a free copy online.
Also see page 89 of this associated article for more information on presidential speeches.
Clinton's speech was given at a ceremony commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. He talked about how blacks had been denied their rights during the era of slavery and described his own involvement with the civil rights movement while he was a young lawyer.
Obama's speech came at a time when many people were questioning his identity as a black man after he became the first black president of the United States.
Copyright © 2020 - 2023 Authors Cast Inc.
