Ronald Reagan started a tradition as he prepared to leave office after two terms as president: Write a note congratulating your successor and leave it in the Oval Office desk drawer.

Barack Obama and George Bush were seen joking together at the inauguration of the 47th President of the United States, Donald Trump - with a lip reader suggesting a sly dig

In 1265, Britain's House of Commons, which became a model for parliamentary bodies, met for the first time. In 1778, James Cook became the first European to step foot on the Hawaiian Islands. He called them the Sandwich Islands.

America made its history as the first Black person, Barack Obama, was sworn in as the 44th president of the country. In front of record-breaking crowds, the young senator became the commander-in-chief of the United States,

Washington, D.C., will experience a high of 21 degrees and a low of 11 degrees around noon when the inauguration is set to begin.

As Donald Trump returns to the White House, he has built the most formidable foundation of Republican electoral strength since the Ronald Reagan era in the 1980s.

The second Presential inauguration of Donald Trump averaged 24.3 million viewers, a audience lower than Biden in 2021 (33.8 million) and Trump in 2017 (30.6 million).

President-elect Donald Trump selected opera tenor Christopher Macchio to perform the national anthem at Monday’s inauguration, at which Carrie Underwood will also perform “America the Beautiful.” Here’s a list of some singers at previous presidential inaugurations,

The worst weather for an inaugural came in March 1909, when 10 inches of snow forced William H. Taft to move indoors to be sworn in.

It is unusual for five current and former presidents to gather at the same event, but when it happens, it is often at a funeral.

Originally published in Synapse on January 22, 2009.

As Donald Trump insists on reading Joe Biden's letter in private, here's a look at what previous United States presidents wrote in their letters to their successors.