Some Facts You May Not Know About Past American Presidents

Let’s take a break from serious politics and delve into fun facts about anyone or anything! This site, funfactoday is a good reference if you want some fun facts to cheer your day. But, here’s something you may not know about our past U.S. Presidents.

See the video below for more political fun facts.

Fascinating Facts You Probably Don’t Know About Every United States President

Andrew Jackson’s cursing parrot

Andrew Jackson’s parrot (seventh US President from 1829 to 1837) is said to have attracted attention at the funeral of its owner in 1845 through excessive swearing and uttering insults. Even the senior pastor mentioned this incident afterward.

The parrot presumably adopted the crude expression from Jackson himself. He was known for his preference for duels and is said to have not necessarily cultivated the finest English, especially in private dealings.

Alligators in the White House

An alligator was first sighted in the White House during the tenure of John Quincy Adams (sixth US President from 1825 to 1829). The animal was a gift from the French General Marquis de Lafayette and for a few months, it was one of the most popular attractions that the President was happy to show his guests at the White House. Eventually, however, a new home was found for the alligator.

When Herbert Hoover (31st US President from 1929 to 1933) moved into the White House 100 years after Adams, his son brought two alligators with him, who from then on crawled around happily in the President’s office.

Jimmy Carter and the UFO

Carter described the supposed UFO as a bright, unidentifiable light and contradicted voices that claimed it was merely the planet Venus, which was particularly visible on the evening in question. In the election campaign for the presidency he promised to publish all information that American authorities had about UFOs – which he never did in full with reference to the protection of national security.

James Earl “Jimmy” Carter (39th US President from 1977 to 1981) was governor of Georgia before his presidency and was quite controversial there. To this day, he claims to have seen a UFO while serving as governor in 1969. He even sent an official report to the International UFO Bureau in Oklahoma City.

Cheerleading President

George W. Bush (43rd US President from 2001 to 2009) was a cheerleader at his high school while studying. Bush always wanted to play baseball, but his talent just wasn’t enough. In order to still be close to the baseball field and to support his fellow students not on the field but by cheering them on on the sidelines, he became a male cheerleader instead.

You’d think that Bush’s activities weren’t particularly popular with his family, given that cheerleading was mostly a girl’s thing. However, Bush’s father (41st US President from 1989 to 1993) and his grandfather Prescott Sheldon Bush are said to have been cheerleaders when they were at Yale.