The American presidency is known as a difficult job. Men who hold the highest office in America often come out of it with more wrinkles and gray hairs than they had before. They are able to live longer, thanks to the high-pressure job.
In fact, history has shown that 23 out of 34 presidents who died from natural causes have outlived their peers in their age group. This makes perfect sense, as presidents have access top-notch medical care.
So you can decide which president is your favorite, we have combined two images taken at the beginning and the end of their terms. Here are the ages of each president while serving as commander-in-chief.
On April 30, 1789, America’s first president was inaugurated. A few months later, Edward Savage, a painter and engraving artist, captured Washington’s face during the winter 1789-90.
The image to the right may look familiar. This is because you likely have a few in your wallet. This likeness was created in 1798 after Washington’s second term ended.
John Adams was president from 1797-1801.
These portraits were made three years apart in 1797, 1800 and 1800.
Thomas Jefferson had served as vice president and secretary of state in two previous administrations before he was elected to the office. Jefferson served two terms as president. He was president from 1801-1809.
From 1809 to 1817, Jefferson’s Virginian compatriot James Madison was commander in chief. These portraits depict Madison’s first and last years in office.
Monroe signed the Missouri Compromise during his second term. The bill made Missouri a slave state, and outlawed slavery beyond the Mason-Dixon Line.
From 1817 to 1825, Monroe was the White House’s Secretary of State.
This Adams served only one term as president, just like his father, President John Adams. He was the chief executive between 1825 and 1829, but he lost the 1828 election against Andrew Jackson.
Adams was unable to attend Jackson’s Inauguration.
Famously pro-slavery and anti-aristocracy, this soldier-turned-politician served as commander in chief from 1829 to 1837.
Van Buren was elected president for one term. Van Buren was in office between 1837 and 1841.
These portraits of William Henry Harrison were made one year apart in 1840, and 1841.
Harrison fell ill and died 31 days after he began his term. He was the first president who died in office.
When Harrison assumed office, Tyler was Tyler’s vice president. After Harrison’s death, Tyler was elected to the presidency. Tyler ran a short election campaign at the end of his term but withdrew.
This Tennessee stateman is considered to be President Andrew Jackson’s protege. Polk, unlike Jackson, served only one term from 1845-1849.
Taylor was the second American president who died in office. Taylor died shortly after suffering severe gastroenteritis 16 months into his term.
There is still much speculation about Taylor’s death. Another popular theory states that Taylor was assassinated by Southerners who support slavery. Another possibility is that Taylor died from contamination of his food.
Millard Fillmore was Taylor’s vice-president after Taylor’s passing. Taylor’s term was completed and he did not seek another term.
Franklin Pierce, a New Hampshire senator, served one term in office. Historians consider him to be one of America’s worst presidents. His support for pro-slavery legislation earned him low marks.
Buchanan was president for one term, 1857-1861.
Lincoln was twice elected, but he served less than four years. Lincoln led the nation in the Civil War, and signed the Emancipation Proclamation. He was then assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, a Confederate sympathizer.
The photo to the right was taken less that a week before his death.
Johnson was elected to the presidency in 1865 after Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. He served the remainder of Lincoln’s second term.
Johnson was not nominated for the Democratic nomination in 1868. Johnson resigned in 1869.
Grant served as the commander-general of the Union Army during Civil War before he was elected president.
From 1869 to 1877, he served two terms in office as president.
Hayes served only one term. He ended Reconstruction and permitted the imposition Jim Crow laws to be imposed in the South. He didn’t seek reelection.
Just a few months into Garfield’s term, he was assassinated. The photograph (right) and the inaugural cameo (left), were both created in 1881.
After James A. Garfield’s passing, Arthur was elected to the presidency. He only served one term from 1881-1885. It was a period of poor health.
Although he ran for office as a Democrat in the election, Cleveland was a strong advocate of fiscal conservatism.
He was a bachelor when he entered his first term (1885-1889), but he married Frances Folsom, a college student in 1886.
Harrison was elected to one term from 1889-1893. Harrison is best known for his landmark economic legislation, which included the Sherman Antitrust Act (1890).
After four years of private life, Cleveland returned to politics to win the Democratic nomination. From 1893-1897, he served his second term in office.
He is the only American president to have served two consecutive terms.
McKinley was assassinated just a few months after he had completed his second term. He was in office from 1897 to 1901.
Unknown photographer took a photograph of William McKinley’s inaugural address in 1897.
McKinley was photographed at the 1901 Pan-American Exposition, Buffalo, New York. This photo is taken just one day before McKinley was mortally shot during a public appearance at fair.
After McKinley’s assassination, Roosevelt assumed the presidency. In 1904, he was elected to his own term.
Roosevelt, who was only 42 years old when he took office, is the youngest American president.
Taft was close to Theodore Roosevelt. He easily won the Republican nomination in 1908. After serving one term, he lost his reelection bid against Woodrow Wilson.
He was 56 years old when he was inaugurated at Princeton University in 1913. He was elected to two terms at the White House.
Wilson was paralysed on his left side from a stroke that occurred during his second term. He is also partially blind. Three years after leaving the White House, Wilson died in 1924.
Two years into his presidency, Warren G. Harding died from a heart attack. He served in office from 1921-1923.
Harding was a popular figure during his time in the White House. However, scandals such as the Teapot Dome bribery scheme erupted after his death and severely damaged his reputation.
Coolidge assumed the presidency after Warren G. Harding died. At the time he was sworn in, he was 51 years old. In 1924, he was easily elected to his term.
Coolidge was a popular figure during his tenure, but historians consider him a poor performer who failed to make the most of America’s strong economy.
Hoover was elected to one term from 1929-1933, just before the Great Depression began.
Roosevelt won four unprecedented presidential elections. The U.S. Constitution added a limit of two terms to the highest office in the country only later.
In 1933, he was 51 years old when he was inaugurated. FDR was in charge of the New Deal during his 12 year tenure and led the nation through the most part of the second World War.
Roosevelt died at the age of 63 shortly after his fourth term ended and just months before World War II’s end.
Truman was elected president upon the death of Roosevelt. He presided over V-E Day which marked the victory of the Allies in Europe shortly after he had taken the oath. He also gave the command to drop two nuclear bombs on Japan in August 1945.
Truman was elected to his term in 1948. In 1953, he was 68 years old when he resigned from office.
The former supreme commander of Allied forces Europe in Cold War era, he oversaw the creation of NASA. He was elected to two terms from 1953 to 1961.
Kennedy was only a little shy of his third consecutive year in office when he was assassinated. Kennedy was 46 years old when he was assassinated in Dallas.
The photo to the right was taken on the morning of his passing.
Johnson was sworn in as president on Air Force One just hours after John F. Kennedy’s assassination. Johnson was elected to his term in 1964.
Johnson didn’t run for reelection in 1968. Johnson was 60 years old when he resigned in 1969.
Nixon was 56 years old when he was inaugurated on January 1, 1969. Nixon was reelected by a huge margin in 1972.
After the Watergate scandal exposed in 1974, he resigned and it was clear that an impeachment was inevitable.
After Nixon’s resignation, Gerald Ford assumed control. After losing his bid for a full term, Nixon resigned and Gerald Ford took over.
Carter’s one-term presidency was marred by economic stagnation, and the Iran hostage crises. From 1977 to 1981, he was president.
Reagan was elected president for two terms and left with high approval ratings.
Reagan was only a few weeks away from his 70th birthday when the first time he took the oath to office. He was 77 when Reagan left.
George H.W. Bush was elected to one term in office. Bush was Reagan’s vice-president for eight years before becoming president.
Clinton served two terms as president. His second term was marred by scandals, impeachment, and other problems. Clinton still left office with the highest approval rating for any president since the Second World War.
Clinton was 46 years old when he took office.
George W. Bush is the 41st President George H.W. Bush defeated Al Gore during the close 2000 presidential election. At his inauguration, he was 54 years old.
Bush’s presidency is often defined by his response to September 11 attacks and how he handled the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Obama served eight years as the president of the United States. At his first inauguration, he was 47 years old. He left the White House at 55.
Donald Trump was elected to the presidency in 2016. Four years later, he lost his bid to reelect Joe Biden.
At his inauguration, he was 70 years of age. He is 74 years old when he took part in a Washington rally on January 6, 2021. His supporters stormed Washington after the speech by the president, where he falsely claimed he won the election. They smashed windows and smashed the Senate and House chambers.
