1st to Present Congress

Footnotes

¹The oath of office was administered to George Washington outside on the gallery in front of the Senate Chamber, after which the Congress and the President returned to the chamber to hear the inaugural address. They then proceeded to St. Paul's Chapel for the "divine service" performed by the Chaplain of the Congress. Adjournment of the ceremony did not occur until the Congress returned to Federal Hall.

²The House convened in its chamber in Congress Hall in Philadelphia. Once assembled, the Representatives somberly proceeded to the city’s German Lutheran Church to attend a memorial Joint Session for former President George Washington.

³Because of a tie in the electoral vote between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr, the House of Representatives had to decide the election. Thirty-six ballots were required to break the deadlock, with Jefferson's election as President and Burr's as Vice President on February 17. The Twelfth Amendment was added to the Constitution to prevent the 1800 problem from recurring.

⁴During most of the period while the Capitol was being reconstructed following the fire of 1814, the Congress met in the "Brick Capitol," constructed on the site of the present Supreme Court building. This Joint Session took place in the Representatives' chamber on the 2d floor of the building.

⁵The Joint Session to count electoral votes was dissolved because the House and Senate disagreed on Missouri's status regarding statehood. The Joint Session was reconvened the same day and Missouri's votes were counted.

⁶While this occasion has historically been referred to as the first joint meeting of Congress, the Journals of the House and of the Senate indicate that Lafayette actually addressed the House of Representatives, with some of the Senators present as guests of the House. Similar occasions, when members of the one body were invited as guests of the other, include the Senate address by Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands on Aug. 6, 1942, and the House address by General H. Norman Schwarzkopf on May 8, 1991.

⁷Although Andrew Jackson won the popular vote by a substantial amount and had the highest number of electoral votes from among the several candidates, he did not receive the required majority of the electoral votes. The responsibility for choosing the new President therefore devolved upon the House of Representatives. As soon as the Senators left the chamber, the balloting proceeded, and John Quincy Adams was elected on the first ballot.

⁸The ceremony was moved outside to accommodate the extraordinarily large crowd of people who had come to Washington to see the inauguration.

⁹The ceremony was moved inside because of cold weather.

¹⁰Following the death of President Zachary Taylor, Vice President Millard Fillmore took the presidential oath of office in a special Joint Session in the Hall of the House.

¹¹The Joint Session to count electoral votes was dissolved three times so that the House and Senate could resolve several electoral disputes.

¹²Because of a severe cold and hoarseness, the King could not deliver his speech, which was read by former Representative Elisha Hunt Allen, then serving as Chancellor and Chief Justice of the Hawaiian Islands.

¹³The contested election between Rutherford B. Hayes and Samuel J. Tilden created a constitutional crisis. Tilden won the popular vote by a close margin, but disputes concerning the electoral vote returns from four states deadlocked the proceedings of the Joint Session. Anticipating this development, the Congress had created a special commission of five Senators, five Representatives, and five Supreme Court Justices to resolve such disputes. The Commission met in the Supreme Court Chamber (the present Old Senate Chamber) as each problem arose. In each case, the Commission accepted the Hayes' electors, securing his election by one electoral vote. The Joint Session was convened on 15 occasions, with the last on March 2, just three days before the inauguration.

¹⁴The speech was written by former Speaker and Senator Robert C. Winthrop, who could not attend the ceremony because of ill health.

¹⁵Because of a blizzard, the ceremony was moved inside, where it was held as part of the Senate's special session. President William Howard Taft took the oath of office and gave his inaugural address after Vice President James S. Sherman's inaugural address and the swearing-in of the new senators.

¹⁶Held in the Senate Chamber.

¹⁷This was the first Annual Message broadcast live on radio.

¹⁸This was the first inauguration held pursuant to the Twentieth Amendment, which changed the date from March 4th to January 20th. The Vice Presidential oath, which previously had been given earlier on the same day in the Senate Chamber, was added to the inaugural ceremony as well, but the Vice Presidential inaugural address was discontinued.

¹⁹Delivered in the Senate Chamber.

²⁰The oaths of office were taken in simple ceremonies at the White House because the expense and festivity of a Capitol ceremony were thought inappropriate because of the war. The Joint Committee on Arrangements of the Congress was in charge, however, and both the Senate and the House of Representatives were present.

²¹This was the first time the term "State of the Union Address" was used for the President's Annual Message. Also, it was the first time the address was shown live on television.

²²An informal meeting in the Coolidge Auditorium of the Library of Congress.

²³An informal meeting in the Coolidge Auditorium of the Library of Congress.

²⁴According to the Congressional Record, the Senate adjourned prior to the inaugural ceremonies, even though the previously adopted resolution had stated the adjournment would come immediately following the inauguration. The Senate Journal records the adjournment as called for in the resolution, hence this listing as a Joint Session.

²⁵The Joint Session to count electoral votes was dissolved so that the House and Senate could resolve the dispute regarding a ballot from North Carolina. The joint session was reconvened the same day and the North Carolina vote was counted.

²⁶According to the Congressional Record, the Senate adjourned prior to the inaugural ceremonies, even though the previously adopted resolution had stated the adjournment would come immediately following the inauguration. The Senate Journal records the adjournment as called for in the resolution, hence this listing as a joint session.

²⁷According to the Congressional Record, the Senate adjourned prior to the inaugural ceremonies, even though the previously adopted resolution had stated the adjournment would come immediately following the inauguration. The Senate Journal records the adjournment as called for in the resolution, hence this listing as a Joint Session.

²⁸Because the Governor had laryngitis, his speech was read by his wife, Pamela.

²⁹The ceremony was moved inside because of extremely cold weather.

³⁰This speech was mislabeled in many sources as a State of the Union Address.

³¹President Kim Yong-sam was in Washington for the dedication of the Korean Veterans' Memorial, held the day after this Joint Meeting.

³²This was the first State of the Union Address carried live on the Internet.

³³This speech was mislabeled in many sources as a State of the Union Address.