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Picture Prose
Swearing-In Through the Lens: Lessons from Inaugural Photos
A lot has changed, but some things remain the same
The first Presidential Inauguration happened well before the advent of photography. In 1789, George Washington got the word that he’d won more than a week after the votes were counted.¹ He saddled up the horse, and headed for the capitol — New York City — where he took the oath in April of that year which is still used today:
“I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”
The first actual Inauguration photo (below), was taken in 1857 by Capitol architect assistant John Wood.² It depicts President James Buchanan being sworn in at the nation’s new capital, Washington, D.C. Because the zoom lens did not exist in the 1850s, we can’t see the pale face of the president himself, who was very ill — probably with cholera.³
John Wood is also credited for the shot below, taken in 1861, of Abraham Lincoln’s First Inauguration.⁴…
