Who Are The Presidents On The U.S. Coins? Presentation by Cindi Ramseur

ABRAHAM LINCOLN 16 th President of United States Born on February 12, 1809 near Hodgenville, Kentucky. Lincoln became a successful Lawyer, Member of the House of Representatives and Senator while living in Springfield, Illinois. Married Mary Todd on November 4, 1842 and had four sons. Lincoln’s Log Cabin Home

Lincoln was elected President of the United States on November 6, Issued the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862 making slaves “forever free” in states that rebelled against the Union. Civil War between the Northern states and the Southern states began on April 12, Lincoln gave a famous speech, “The Gettysburg Address” on November 19, 1863 to dedicate the battlefield of Gettysburg as a national cemetery for the soldiers who were killed in that battle.

Lincoln was re-elected to a 2 nd term on November 8, On April 14, 1865, President Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth at Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C. He died on the morning of April 15, The Lincoln Memorial, seen on back of the penny, was built in 1914 to honor his memory. The inscription (writing) above his head reads: “In This Temple As In The Hearts Of The People For Whom He Saved The Union The Memory Of Abraham Lincoln is Enshrined Forever.”

THOMAS JEFFERSON 3 rd President of the United States Born April 13, 1743 in Albemarle County, Virginia. Jefferson became a successful planter, lawyer, architect, scientist, educator, author, member of the Virginia House of Burgesses and spokesman for human liberty. On January 1, 1772 he married Martha Wayles Skelton and they had 6 children, only 2 lived to be adults.

Jefferson wrote The Declaration of Independence in 1776, which lead to the colonies declaring their independence from England and the Revolutionary War. Jefferson served as the first Secretary of State of the United States from 1789 until He was the second Vice President under John Adams from 1797 until Jefferson was elected the 3 rd President of the United States on February 17, 1801 after an electoral tie was resolved. He served two full terms in the office.

Jefferson was responsible for buying much of middle section of the United States from France in 1803, known as the Louisiana Purchase. He sent Lewis and Clark on an expedition to explore the Louisiana territory and find a route to the Pacific Ocean. (line in purple on map) Jefferson designed and built his famous home Monticello in Virginia, an engraving is found on the back of a nickel. Thomas Jefferson died on July 4, The Jefferson Memorial in Washington D.C. was dedicated in 1943.

FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT 32 nd President of the United States Franklin Delano Roosevelt was born January 30, 1882 in Hyde Park, New York. On March 17, 1905 he married Anna Eleanor Roosevelt, a distant cousin. They had six children. Roosevelt was a successful Attorney, State Senator of New York, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and Governor of New York.

In the summer of 1921, at the age of 39, FDR contracted polio, which left him with severe difficulty in walking and moving. He fought with courage to regain limited use of his legs. Roosevelt was elected President in 1932 during the Great Depression, a time when the United States was very poor. He coined the term “The New Deal” to help the nation out of its economic problems by using the “Three R’s – relief, recovery and reform.” FDR said “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”

Franklin Roosevelt was the only President to be elected to 4 terms in office. During his 3 rd term, he sent the United States into WWII after the Japanese attacked American forces at Pearl Harbor. “December 7, 1941 – a date which will live in infamy.” FDR died on April 12, 1945 at “The Little White House” in Warm Springs, Georgia. Since 1946 Roosevelt’s portrait has appeared on the dime.

GEORGE WASHINGTON 1 st President of the United States Born on February 22,1732 in Wakefield, Virginia. Washington was a successful surveyor, plantation owner, general, member of the House of Burgesses. Washington married Martha Dandridge Custis on January 6, 1759, a widow with 2 children. He had no children of his own, but later in life, he adopted 2 of his wife’s grandchildren.

From Washington was Commander of the American Army during the Revolutionary War. On February 4, 1789, Washington was unanimously elected president. He served 2 terms as the nation’s first president. Washington spent the remainder of his years at his plantation home, Mt. Vernon. He died there on December 14, 1799.

The Washington Monument, a marble pillar or obelisk, was erected in Washington, D.C. in 1884 to honor our country’s first president. Equestrian statue erected to the memory of George Washington on the capital grounds in Richmond, Virginia. The USS George Washington is one of the most capable aircraft carriers in the world and was dedicated to the memory of our 1 st President on July 4, 1992.

JOHN F. KENNEDY 35 th President of the United States John F. Kennedy was born in Brookline, Massachusetts, on May 29, in He was a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy during WWII, an author, and a Senator. He married Jacqueline Lee Bouvier on September 12, They had 2 children, Caroline and John, Jr.

On November 8, 1960, Kennedy became the youngest man to be elected President. His inaugural address is remembered for the famous quote: “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” JFK was a strong supporter of civil rights. He worked with activists like Martin Luther King to end state- sanctioned racial discrimination.

Kennedy was a huge supporter of the Space Program and was determined to help lead the United States into space exploration. He said, “We choose to go to the moon and to do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.” President Kennedy’s first term of office was ended on November 22, 1963, when he was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.

DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER 34 th President of the United States Eisenhower was born in Denison, Texas on October 14, He was a career U.S. Army officer, general, and President of Columbia University. Eisenhower married Mamie Geneva Doud on July 1, They had 2 sons, one died as an infant.

In December of 1943, during WWII, General Eisenhower was appointed by Franklin D. Roosevelt as commander of the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Forces in Europe. He lead the Allied Forces to victory with the invasion and liberation of France and then Germany. In November of 1952 Eisenhower was elected President. He served 2 terms in office. Eisenhower retired to his farm on the border of the Gettysburg battlefield in He died on March 28, 1969.