Plenty of Washingtonians will spend inaugural weekend re-learning how to tie a bow tie or remembering to stash comfortable shoes for late-night post-Ball hijinks. What to wear? It’s always a question — for those shelling out big bucks for balls and for the junior staffers whose hard work on the campaign trail will be rewarded with the expense of tuxedo rentals and ... Read More »
Going to an Inaugural Ball this weekend? The austerity of Obama’s second mirrors the desires articulated by newly elected President Woodrow Wilson. Take a look at the front page of the Washington Herald on Friday, January 17th, 1913, exactly 100 years ago today. Totally fascinating for GoDC history nerds. Read More »
James Brown performed ”Say It Loud – I’m Black And I’m Proud“ at Richard Nixon’s 1969 inauguration. Wait. What? Believe it. The Godfather of Soul chose that particular song to celebrate the Republican president’s transition to power. Confusingly, James Brown actually backed Democrat Hubert H. Humphrey during the 1968 campaign. But when the victorious Nixon team called and offered him the inauguration gig, ... Read More »
Chalk this up to our incredible Library of Congress. A silent film by Thomas Edison, shot on March 4th, 1901 at the Capitol. This one is quite blurry, but this is over a hundred years ago. It’s pretty amazing and even older than the last one I posted of Teddy Roosevelt. Thank you Library of Congress. Read More »
One of the most powerful and important inaugural addresses of all time, this is something worth watching in its entirety. The whole speech is below if you’d like to read it. This is a truly amazing and powerful speech. If you want to skip to the famous quote, start watching at 13:45. The full text of the speech is below ... Read More »
Here is video (partly in color) of FDR being inaugurated for the fourth time. This being the fourth time is impressive enough, but also, this happened on the South Portico of the White House due to ongoing privations due to the Second World War. It was a rather muted event compared to all other inaugurations. That doesn’t mean this video ... Read More »
Ghosts of DC The lost and untold history of Washington