The Presidents Fact Book: The Achievements, Campaigns, Events, Triumphs, and Legacies of Every President

by Roger Matuz, Bill Harris, J Craughwell

Overview

This in-depth history of our nation’s 46 presidents is now fully revised and updated to include Donald Trump’s eventful term in office, Joe Biden’s path to the presidency, and the election of Kamala Harris, the nation’s first female, black vice president.

The Presidents Fact Book is the complete compendium of all things presidential and a sweeping survey of American history through the biography of every president from George Washington to Joe Biden.

Organized chronologically by president, each entry covers the major accomplishments and events of the presidential term; cabinet members, election results, groundbreaking legislation, and Supreme Court appointments; personality and personal habits including hobbies, odd behaviors, and outlandish penchants; a behindthescenes look at the wives, families, friends, and foes; and much more. Major moments from administrations – from the Bill of Rights and the Emancipation proclamation to the Civil Rights Era and the coronavirus pandemic – provide a glimpse into the crucial moments of America's storied past.
 
Perfect for students, history buffs, and political junkies, The Presidents Fact Book is at once an expansive collage of the American presidency and a comprehensive view of American history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780762478446
Publisher:	Running Press Book Publishers
Publication date:	09/07/2021
Pages:	848
Sales rank:	85,782
Product dimensions:	9.10(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.90(d)

About the Author

Roger Matuz writes about American history and culture and develops electronic resources in conjunction with school, academic, and trade publishers. His areas of specialty include popular culture and media. He lives in Michigan.

Bill Harris is a freelance editor and the author who worked at the New York Times for twenty-five years. He currently lives in Texas.

Thomas J. Craughwell is the author of several nonfiction books, including Failures of the Presidents and Stealing Lincoln's Body, which was adapted into a documentary by the History Channel. He lives in Bethel, Connecticut. Thomas passed away in 2018.

Table of Contents

George Washington 1

Martha Washington 16

The Articles of Confederation 19

President Washington's Farewell Address 21

John Adams 23

Abigail Adams 35

Adams's Inaugural Address 38

Adams's "Thoughts on Government" 40

Thomas Jefferson 43

Martha Jefferson 59

The Declaration of Independence 60

Jefferson's Second Inaugural Address 63

James Madison 66

Dolley Madison 75

Madison's Bill of Rights Proposal 78

Madison's First Inaugural Address 81

Federalist No. 46 83

James Monroe 85

Elizabeth Monroe 96

Monroe's First Inaugural Address 99

The Monroe Doctrine 103

John Quincy Adams 105

Louisa Adams 115

Adams's Inaugural Address 118

Adams's Closing Argument in the Amistad Case 120

Andrew Jackson 123

Rachel Jackson 136

Jackson's Veto Message Regarding the Bank of the United States 138

Jackson's Proclamation Warning 140

Martin Van Buren 142

Hannah Van Buren 152

Van Buren's Inaugural Address 153

William Henry Harrison 156

Anna Harrison 165

Harrison's Inaugural Address 167

A Report from the Field 170

John Tyler 171

Letitia Tyler 179

Julia Tyler 181

Tyler's Address to Congress 182

James K. Polk 185

Sarah Polk 195

Polk's Inaugural Address 197

Zachary Taylor 199

Margaret Taylor 207

Taylor's Only Annual Address to Congress 209

Millard Fillmore 211

Abigail Fillmore 219

Fillmore's First Annual Address to Congress 221

Franklin Pierce 223

Jane Pierce 232

Pierce's Inaugural Address 234

James Buchanan 236

Harriet Lane 245

Buchanan's Final Annual Address to Congress 247

Abraham Lincoln 250

Mary Todd Lincoln 265

Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation 268

Lincoln's Gettysburg Address 270

Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address 270

Andrew Johnson 272

Eliza Johnson 282

Johnson's Final Annual Address to Congress 284

Ulysses S. Grant 286

Julia Grant 302

Grant's Recollection of the Confederate Surrender 305

Rutherford B. Hayes 307

Lucy Hayes 317

Hayes's Speech an the End of Reconstruction 320

James A. Garfield 322

Lucreria Garfield 331

Garfield's "Revolution Against the Constitution" Speech 334

Chester A. Arthur 337

Ellen Arthur 346

Arthur's First Annual Address to Congress 348

Grover Cleveland 350

Frances Cleveland 361

Cleveland's Message to Congress Opposing the Annexation of Hawaii 364

Benjamin Harrison 366

Caroline Harrison 374

Harrison's Message to the Senate Supporting the Annexation of Hawaii 375

William McKinley 377

Ida McKinley 391

McKinley's First Inaugural Address 393

Theodore Roosevelt 396

Edith Roosevelt 411

Roosevelt's First Annual Address to Congress 413

Roosevelt's "The Man with the Muck Rake" Speech 416

William Howard Toft 419

Helen Toft 428

Taft's Final Annual Address to Congress 431

Woodrow Wilson 434

Ellen Wilson 449

Edith Wilson 451

Wilson's War Message to Congress 453

Wilson's Fourteen Points 455

Warren G. Harding 458

Florence Harding 468

Harding's Speech to a Special Session of Congress 470

Calvin Coolidge 473

Grace Coolidge 485

Coolidge's Speech on Government and Business 489

Herbert Hoover 491

Louise Hoover 502

Hoover's "Rugged Individualism" Campaign Speech 505

Franklin D. Roosevelt 507

Eleanor Roosevelt 525

Roosevelt's First Inaugural Address 528

Roosevelt's First Fireside Chat 530

Roosevelt's War Message to the American People 531

Harry S. Truman 533

Bess Truman 548

Truman's Address to the Nation about the Bombing of Japan 551

Truman's Executive Order Banning Segregation in the Military 553

Dwight D. Eisenhower 554

Mamie Eisenhower 568

Eisenhower's Farewell Address to the Nation 570

John F. Kennedy 573

Jacqueline Kennedy 587

Kennedy's Inaugural Address 592

Lyndon B. Johnson 595

Johnson's Speech about the Gulf of Tonkin Incident 604

Lady Bird Johnson 610

Johnson's "Great Society" Speech 613

Richard M. Nixon 616

Pat Nixon 630

Nixon's "Silent Majority" Speech 633

Gerald R. Ford 636

Betty Ford 649

Ford's Comments Regarding the Pardon of Richard Nixon 652

Jimmy Carter 654

Rosalynn Carter 667

Carter's "Human Rights and Foreign Policy" Speech 669

Ronald Reagan 672

Nancy Reagan 685

Reagan's First Inaugural Address 689

George H. W. Bush 692

Barbara Bush 705

Bush's Address to Congress on the Crisis in Kuwait 707

Bill Clinton 710

Hillary Rodham Clinton 731

Clinton's Final State of the Union Address 735

George W. Bush 737

Laura Bush 759

Bush's Presidential Nomination Acceptance Speech 762

Barack Obama 764

Michelle Obama 782

Obama's "A More Perfect Union" Speech 785

Donald Trump 787

Melania Trump 800

Ivanka Trump 801

Trump's Presidential Victory Speech 802

Joe Biden 803

Index 815