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Home | Historical Event | Inauguration of Rutherford B Hayes
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Because March 4, 1877 was a Sunday, Hayes took the oath of office in the Red Room of the White House on March 3, becoming the first president to take the oath of office in the White House. This ceremony was held in secret, because the previous year's election had been so bitterly divisive that outgoing President Grant feared an insurrection by Samuel J. Tilden's supporters and wanted to ensure that any Democratic attempt to hijack the public inauguration ceremony would fail. Having been sworn in already in private, Hayes took the oath again publicly on March 5, 1877 on the East Portico of the United States Capitol, and served until March 4, 1881. Hayes' best known quotation, "He serves his party best who serves his country best," is from his 1877 Inaugural Address. |
