.jpg) Engraving of the inauguration of Zachary Taylor by Wm. Croome | |
| Date | March 5, 1849; 176 years ago (1849-03-05) |
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| Location | United States Capitol, Washington, D.C. |
| Participants | Zachary Taylor 12th president of the United States — Assuming office Roger B. Taney Chief Justice of the United States — Administering oath Millard Fillmore 12th vice president of the United States — Assuming office David Rice Atchison President pro tempore of the United States Senate — Administering oath |
Theinauguration ofZachary Taylor as the 12thpresident of the United States was held on Monday, March 5, 1849, at the East Portico of theUnited States Capitol inWashington, D.C., and was the second instance of an inauguration being rescheduled due to March 4 falling on a Sunday, theChristian sabbath. This was the 16th regularinauguration and marked the commencement of the only four-year term of bothZachary Taylor as president andMillard Fillmore asvice president. Taylor died 1 year, 126 days into this term, and Fillmore succeeded to the presidency. Thepresidential oath of office was administered byChief JusticeRoger B. Taney. Inauguration Day started off being cloudy with snow flurries, but turned to heavy snow during the inaugural balls.[1]
Three inaugural balls were held later that day. To accommodate the large numbers of guests anticipated to be at one of them, a temporary wooden building was built in theJudiciary Square plaza.[2] The ticket price for the event was $10 cash; the menu included:terrapins,Charlotte Russe, oysters andRoman punch.[3]
Taylor's term as president began on Sunday, March 4, but his inauguration was not held until the next day out of religious concerns. Due to the postponement of the swearing-in ceremony until March 5, various friends and colleagues ofSenatorDavid Atchison asserted that on March 4–5, 1849, he wasacting president of the United States.[4] They argued that, since both PresidentJames K. Polk and Vice PresidentGeorge Dallas ceased to hold their offices at noon on March 4, and since neither Taylor nor Fillmore had yet sworn their prescribed oath of office, both offices were vacant. As a result, they claimed, in accordance with thePresidential Succession Act of 1792, Atchison, by virtue of being thepresident pro tempore of the United States Senate, was the nation's acting chief executive during theinterregnum. Historians, constitutional scholars and biographers dismiss the claim.[5][6]
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