Inauguration of Zachary Taylor

Inauguration of Zachary Taylor

The inauguration of Zachary Taylor as the 12th president of the United States took place on Monday, March 5, 1849, at the East Portico of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.. This event was special because it was the second time an inauguration was moved because March 4 fell on a Sunday, the Christian sabbath. It was the 16th regular inauguration and began the only four-year term for both Zachary Taylor as president and Millard Fillmore as vice president.

Zachary Taylor passed away about a year and four months after becoming president, and Millard Fillmore then became the new president. The presidential oath of office was given by Chief Justice Roger B. Taney. On the day of the inauguration, the weather started off cloudy with a few snowflakes, but it turned into heavy snow during the celebration balls later that evening.

Inaugural festivities

There were three celebration dances that day. A temporary wooden building was built in the Judiciary Square plaza so more guests could attend one of the dances. Tickets for the event cost $10 in cash. The food served included terrapins, Charlotte Russe, oysters, and Roman punch.

The "presidency" of David Rice Atchison

Zachary Taylor's time as president officially started on Sunday, March 4, 1849. But his ceremony to begin the job was on Monday, March 5. Some thought it was not right to have the ceremony on Sunday.

Because of this wait, some friends of Senator David Atchison said that from March 4 to March 5, Atchison was the acting president of the United States. They felt that since President James K. Polk and Vice President George Dallas had left their jobs at noon on March 4, and Taylor and Fillmore had not yet promised to do their jobs, the jobs were empty. They thought Atchison, as the president pro tempore of the United States Senate, should be acting president during this time because of an old rule. But historians and experts do not think this idea is right.