Presidential Trivia or Trivial Presidents Quiz

Answer: Only one

First President of the United States from 1789 until 1797, Washington led America through its birth struggles as a nation during the Revolutionary War with England from 1775 to 1783. He lost his first adult tooth in his early twenties and the rest quickly followed.

He had several sets of false teeth made during his life, all of which caused him great discomfort. None were made from wood as commonly believed. Instead they were made, of all things, from a combination of elephant and hippopotamus ivory, and from (shudder) other human teeth, and bits of horse and donkey teeth - and that's no hee-haw.

Answer: "A silly and wicked game"

In fact, his party did all the campaigning for him, but, make no mistake, Adams was a good man and a fine President. No scandal was ever attached to him during his time as leader of the nation. However he wasn't one to suffer the life of politics in silence and had a rather stubborn and combative nature which he describes as follows: "I refused to suffer in silence. I sighed, I sobbed and groaned, and sometimes screeched and screamed. And I must confess, to my shame and sorrow, that I sometimes swore." I think that's highly amusing.

Answer: Thomas Jefferson

Wouldn't that go down well today! Jefferson, one of the Founding Fathers of the nation, was the third President of America and held office from 1801 to 1809. He was a man of amazing and fascinating contradictions. Just two of the many far reaching achievements during his Presidency included the brilliant Louisiana Purchase, and the Lewis and Clark expedition.

In addition to his skills as statesman and philosopher, Jefferson was also highly skilled as a horticulturist, architect, archaeologist, paleontologist, musician, inventor, gourmet, wine expert, and was the founder of the University of Virginia.

Some of his inventions include a rotating book stand, improvements to an early form of photocopier, automatic opening doors, the first swivel chair and a host of other devices for the everyday convenience of mankind.

Born in 1743, this giant of a man died in 1826.

Answer: James Monroe

Monroe (1758-1831) was the fifth President of the USA and served from 1817 to 1825 in that capacity. Even though he was raised in a Church of England family, and periodically attended the Episcopalian Church as an adult, there is no record showing he ever took communion or expressed an inclination for any particular established religion at all - which was somewhat unusual for those times.

The closest historians have come to placing him in any religious category is that of Deism, and, indeed, Monroe was known to occasionally use Deistic references in his speeches. Any letters that survive from family or friends fail to resolve this question and, before his death, Monroe himself burned any private correspondence he had held with close friends or family which may have provided an answer.

Therefore any knowledge remaining with any certainty is his occasional use of Deistic references in speeches - hence the somewhat indignant accusation made against him by the Presbyterian Church.

Answer: To emphasise the separation of church and state

Adams of course was the son of the second President of America, and (like his father) far-sighted and brilliant, but also stubborn and inclined to argue. He also refused to play the game of politics by drawing allies to his side. Sadly, it is the personality of this fine man that, more often than not, proved a talking point for his colleagues, rather than his sterling achievements and endeavours whilst in office.

As President he proposed very many far-sighted aims for the country, such as modernisation, educational advances, economic growth and strong government.

However, his personal nature was his greatest enemy, and even his allies failed to support him to bring most of his plans to fruition. He was also deeply troubled by, and a leading opponent of, slavery, predicting that the country would be brought to grief over the issue.

As Secretary of State, he helped bring about the Monroe Doctrine and, all in all, historians agree he was one of America's greatest diplomats. How sad that his worth would only be recognised long after his death.

Answer: She rapped him on the head with a piece of wood

Abraham Lincoln, who was born in 1809 and assassinated in 1865, was the sixteenth President of the United States from 1861 until his death. He safely steered the nation through some of the most tumultuous times in its history, that of the American Civil War, when the country threatened to rip itself asunder. Lincoln saw it safely through, ended the issue of slavery which had plagued the nation since its inception, and kept the country as one.

He was a great man and a great leader - even if he did occasionally forget to stoke the fire.

Answer: Andrew Jackson

Jackson was the seventh President of the United States from 1829 to 1837. He was given the nickname "Old Hickory" because he was noted for his toughness. Highlights of his Presidency included developing the frontier of the nation, particularly that of Tennessee.

At his inauguration, the crowds, many of them dressed in homespun clothing, poured into the grounds, and the White House guards couldn't hold them back from pouring right into the building as well. Dishes and other fine ornaments were smashed and broken, and people even stood on the fine furniture in muddy boots just to catch a glimpse of the popular President.

They eventually became so wild and excited at the day's events that the servants had to pour punch into large tubs to try to lure them back out onto the White House lawns. What a schmozzle, but how comical it is to read about all these years later! King Mob's inauguration could well and truly be said to have been a smash.

Answer: Because of his allegiance to the Confederacy

Tyler was President, from 1841 to 1845, but by the time he passed away in 1862, the American Civil War was well under way and the simmering resentment between the North and the South had boiled over into hatred and bloodshed. Because he also died in Virginia, which was part of the Confederate States, he is sometimes referred to as the only President to have died outside the United States. That's a bit sad, isn't it? However, back to the quiz and some more trivia: After Tyler's favourite horse, The General, died, it was buried on Tyler's plantation, with an epitaph written by Tyler himself to mark the location.

It reads, "Here lies the body of my good horse, The General. For twenty years he bore me around the circuit of my practice, and in all that time he never made a blunder. Would that his master could say the same".

Answer: Martin Van Buren

All previous Presidents had been born as British subjects before the Revolutionary War. Although Van Buren was born as a fully fledged American, he was born into a Dutch household and had grown up speaking that language. English, in fact, was his second language. Van Buren was the eighth President of the States from 1837 to 1841.

His Presidency was characterised by economic hardships for the country and the Panic of 1837 when the financial bubble burst. Those banks that survived would only accept gold and silver coinage. Five years of depression and high unemployment followed. Van Buren and Jefferson are the only two Presidents to have served in the three capacities of Secretary of State, Vice-President and President.

Answer: John Tyler

Tyler, who was in office from 1842 to 1845, turned out to be a particularly tough President, not only determined to show all and sundry he was the right man for the job, but also because he never once doubted that he himself did indeed have all the skills and leadership qualities to head the country. Once installed as President he quickly found himself in disagreement with many people, including his own supporters. Because he resisted much of his own party's platform, and rejected their proposals, the startling outcome was that the greater part of his cabinet resigned and he was expelled from the Whig party, effectively making Tyler a President without a party. On the poor man's last day in office, even Congress moved against him, making him the first President to have his own veto of a bill overturned. On retiring from office, Tyler renamed his plantation "Sherwood Forest" because he said, no doubt with tongue in cheek, that he had been outlawed by the Whigs.