(828) 526-0173 | [email protected] | Copyright 2024 – All Rights Reserved.
Presidential Firsts
Written By: Donna Rhodes | Issue: 2018/09 - September
Donald Trump was the first to use tweeting as a running presidential commentary. But what are some other firsts performed by residents of the Oval Office? Uncle John’s Fourth Bathroom Reader, one of my favorite reference books (what does that tell ya?), lists other presidential instigations.
Teddy Roosevelt was the first to create a slogan while in office. While visiting Andrew Jackson’s home in Tennessee, someone brought him a cup of coffee from the nearby Maxwell House Hotel. When offered a second cup, Roosevelt exclaimed, “Will I have another cup? Delighted! It’s good to the last drop.” Later Maxwell House used his quote in their advertising campaign. That earworm’s been a steady drip-drip-drip in my brain ever since.
Speaking of Andrew Jackson…he was the first President to be born in more than one place. The following areas insist he was their native son: Union County, North Carolina; Berkeley County, West Virginia; Augusta County, West Virginia; York County, Pennsylvania; England; Ireland; and the Atlantic Ocean (he may have been born at sea). His official birthplace, however, is listed as Waxhaw, South Carolina. All you Waxhawnians …Saah-lute!
Perhaps the most interesting presidential first is a nude interview done with John Quincy Adams by a woman reporter. President J.Q. loved to go skinny-dipping. In the Capitol’s summer heat he’d sneak out for a morning dip in the Potomac. Reporter Anne Royall had been trying to interview him for months. A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do, so she sneaked up on the starkers Prez and held his clothes hostage by sitting on them. He got them back after he agreed to give her an interview.
And finally, President Warren Harding was the first to pardon a dog. He’d read an article in the newspaper about a dog that was to be destroyed in Pennsylvania because he’d been brought into the country illegally. Animal-lover Harding applied some presidential pressure to Pennsylvania’s governor who then released him.
Every president has his firsts. Every dog has his day.
