Founding Father Fun Facts!
Yes, we know that the Founding Fathers didn’t have computers — or the internet — to share their voice on POPVOX. But why not have a little fun? Here are some interesting facts we pulled together about our Founding Fathers for this poll.
George Washington
Our 1st President (1789-1797). Commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War.
“The preservation of the sacred fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model of government are justly considered, perhaps as deeply, as finally, staked on the experiment intrusted to the hands of the American people.” (1789)
Stats: Born near present-day Colonial Beach in Westmoreland County, Virginia. on February 11, 1731. 6’3”
Politics: A Federalist, favoring a strong central government.
Six degrees of Aaron Burr: Burr served on General Washington’s staff, but for less than a year. Washington didn’t get along with Burr — and the feeling was mutual.
Interesting…. Washington lived an aristocratic lifestyle. Loved fox hunting and cockfights. Also enjoyed going to dances and parties. His teeth were made from elephant and walrus tusks, not wood.
Drink of choice: He made rye whiskey, apple brandy and peach brandy in his Mount Vernon distillery.
Thomas Jefferson
Our 3rd President (1801-1809). Principal author of the Declaration of Independence. Served as Minister to France.
“The people are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.” (1787) “The will of the people is the only legitimate foundation of government, and to protect its free expression should be our first object.” (1801)
Stats: Born on April 13, 1743 in now Albemarle County, Virginia. 6’ 2.5” with carrot-red hair. Nicknamed “Long Tom.”
Politics: Jefferson, attacking Federalist policies, opposed a strong centralized Government and championed the rights of states. Called for a wall of separation between church and state.
What happened on the Fourth of July? Died on July 4, 1826
Six degrees of Aaron Burr: Aaron Burr was Jefferson’s Vice President.
Interesting…. Jefferson wooed his wife with violin serenades. Avoided the look of nobility by choosing to dress himself in sometimes dirty and tattered clothing.
Drink of choice: Red wine. He’s considered as “the greatest patron of wine and wine growing that this country has yet had.”
James Monroe
Our 5th President (1817–1825) and the last president who was considered a Founding Father.
“Let us, by all wise and constitutional measures, promote intelligence among the People, as the best means of preserving our liberties.” (1817)
Stats: Born in 1758 in Westmoreland County, Virginia. 6’0″
Politics: As an anti-federalist delegate to the Virginia convention, Monroe opposed ratification of the Constitution, claiming it gave too much power to the central government. Went on to develop what was later known as the Monroe Doctrine: Interference with independent countries in the Americas would be considered a hostile act toward the US.
What happened on the Fourth of July? Monroe died on July 4, 1831.
Six Degrees of Aaron Burr: Monroe’s son-in-law was the District Attorney in Burr’s treason trial.
Interesting…. As president, he wore what was by then considered outdated Revolutionary War-era attire. He was the only President after Washington to run unopposed (in 1820) and the last president who was never photographed. Monrovia in Liberia, is named after Monroe, who supported efforts to create a home for freed slaves in Liberia.
Drink of choice: Sherry Cobbler, a cool long drink considered to be America’s first cocktail, popularized during the Revolution.
John Adams
Our 2nd President (1797-1801) and first vice-president. Helped draft the Declaration of Independence and negotiate the peace agreement with Great Britain to end the Revolutionary War. Served as Minister to Great Britain.
“Government is instituted for the common good; for the protection, safety, prosperity, and happiness of the people; and not for profit, honor, or private interest of any one man, family, or class of men; therefore, the people alone have an incontestable, unalienable, and indefeasible right to institute government; and to reform, alter, or totally change the same, when their protection, safety, prosperity, and happiness require it.“ (1776)
Stats: Born in 1735 in what is now Quincy, Massachusetts. 5’7” and “plump”. Nicknamed “His Rotundity.”
Politics: Adams was a Federalist, holding a more “elitist” view of government. In 1770, Adams represented the British soldiers on trial for the Boston Massacre because he believed that every person deserved a defense. As President, he was very defense-minded — building a strong US Navy.
Six Degrees of Aaron Burr: Turns out Adams didn’t really have an opinion on Burr. He wrote in a letter about Burr’s 1807 treason trial: “am anxious to see the Progress of Burr’s Tryal: not from any Love or hatred I bear the man, for I cannot say that I feel either…. But I think Something must come out of the Tryal, which will strengthen or weaken our Confidence in the General Union.”
What happened on the Fourth of July? Died on July 4, 1826. Adams and Thomas Jefferson were close friends. Adams’ dying words were, “Thomas Jefferson survives,” unaware that he had died hours earlier.
Interesting…. He didn’t shake hands with people — he bowed instead. (As did George Washington.) First President to live in the White House.
Drink of choice: John Adams drank a tankard of cider nearly every morning of his life.
Alexander Hamilton
Treasury Secretary. Along with Madison and John Jay, authored the Federalist Papers, rallying support for the new Constitution. Led the effort to convene the Constitutional Convention when the nation was verging on anarchy. (Okay, he wasn’t a President, but was an important Founding Father.)
“I have learned to hold popular opinion of no value.” (1794) “The first thing in all great operations of such a government as ours is to secure the opinion of the people.” (1799)
Stats: Born in 1755 in the West Indies. 5’7”
Politics: Most advocated an elitist political vision and supported a strong central government. Believed that the intellectual aristocracy should rule the nation. Hamilton’s political legacy is the Federal Bank.
Six degrees of Aaron Burr: Hamilton was instrumental in securing Jefferson’s victory over Aaron Burr in the presidential election of 1800. That and his subsequent opposition to Burr’s bid to become governor of New York led to his death at Burr’s hands in a duel in 1804.
Interesting…. When he was Treasury Secretary, Hamilton had a three-year affair with Maria Reynolds — while her husband James Reynolds blackmailed him. Hamilton was forced to admit the affair after Reynolds threatened to implicate him in another scheme related to unpaid wages for Revolutionary War veterans. The affair was one of the first sex scandals in American political history.
Drink of choice: Not whiskey! In Jan. 1791, Hamilton proposed a tax on whiskey to pay some of the debt from the Revolutionary War. When news of the tax spread to Western Pennsylvania, farmers — seeing it as another instance of unfair policies by the “eastern elite” — were outraged and refused to pay the tax. By 1794, the Whiskey Rebellion threatened the stability of the country and President Washington himself led the United States militia westward to stop the rebels.
James Madison
Our 4th President (1809-1817) Helped draft Virginia’s state constitution when he was 25. That document later became the model for the US Constitution. Served as Jefferson’s Secretary of State.
“The people are the only legitimate foundation of power, and it is from them that the constitutional character, under which the several branches of government hold their power, is derived.” (1788)
Stats: Born near the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. About 5’4″ and less than 100 pounds.
Politics: Madison and Jefferson led the “Republicans” in opposing Hamilton’s attempts to strengthen the national government.
Six degrees of Aaron Burr: Madison was introduced to his wife, Dolly, when he was in his 40s — by Aaron Burr.
Interesting… James Madison is on $5,000 bill. He’s considered to have ended up on the winning side of every important issue that faced the young nation from 1776 to 1816. Despite being very shy, he married Dolly, a beautiful woman who enjoyed a party — and had a reputation for gambling, wearing make-up and using tobacco.
Drink of choice: French champage
Sources: Mount Vernon Ladies Association, Celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the laying of the corner stone of the Capitol of the United States, Senate Historical Office, ConstitutionFacts.com, George Washington’s Teeth, Change Manifesto: Join the Block by Block Movement to Remake America, The Quotable Founding Fathers: A Treasury of 2,500 Wise and Witty Quotations, Pennsylvania Center for the Book, The U.S. Constitution and Fascinating Facts about it, The Constitution Society, Univ. of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, The Thomas Jefferson Encyclopedia, U.S. Presidency Inaugural Addresses, James Monroe on Biography.com, James Monroe on the History Channel, This Day in History: April 28, FoxNews.com, John Adams on Biography.com, Univ. of Houston – Digital History, Slate, Alexander Hamilton on Biography.com, Alexander Hamilton on the History Channel, Wikipedia, Hamilton-Reynolds Sex Scandal, Whiskey Rebellion on PBS American Experience, University of Virginia Miller Center, National First Ladies’ Library, Bureau of Engraving and Printing,
