John Adams was inaugurated as second president on March 4, 1797. Washington had preceded him to the hall and sat on the dais with Jefferson the Vice-President-elect, as Adams spoke. When the new President finished and left, Washington motioned to Jefferson to go next. The two Virginians had known each other since 1769, when Washington had been thirty-seven years old and Jefferson only twenty-six. From long habit and lingering respect, Jefferson now held back. But Washington gestured again, in a manner not to be ignored. The younger man was now Vice-President and must go first.
Ralph Earl (1751—1801)
Oil on canvas. Buckman Tavern, Lexington Historical Society, Lexington, MA.
Oil on canvas; 64 5/8 in. x 49 5/8 in. Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT.
Engraving on copper; colored. First advertised for sale in New Haven, Connecticut, on 13 December 1775.
Engraving on copper; colored. First advertised for sale in New Haven, Connecticut, on 13 December 1775.
Engraving on copper; colored. First advertised for sale in New Haven, Connecticut, on 13 December 1775.
Engraving on copper; colored. First advertised for sale in New Haven, Connecticut, on 13 December 1775.
Founding Father: Rediscovering George Washington (1996)