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The U.S. Presidency

America’s three-branch system of government was established by the United States Constitution in 1788. The nation has since had 44 different presidents. Read the facts below to learn more about the presidency, the White House, and the people who have held the nation’s highest office. 

November 2020
By Elizabeth Carney

iStockPhoto/Getty Images

570: Gallons of white paint needed to paint the outside of the White House.

6,000

Approximate number of visitors to the White House each day. It’s the only private residence of a head of state that is open to the public free of charge.

$400,000

Shutterstock.com 

The president’s current annual salary; it was last raised in 2001 under Bill Clinton (1993–2001). 

1789

Granger, NYC/The Granger Collection

Year in which George Washington (1789–97) took the oath of office to become the first president of the United States.

1.93

Granger, NYC/The Granger Collection

Height, in meters, of our tallest president, Abraham Lincoln (1861–65). His famous stovepipe hat added about 7 inches to his towering 6-foot-4-inch height.

42 

Bettmann/Getty Images

Age at which Theodore Roosevelt (1901–09) took office, becoming the youngest president. You must be at least 35 to run for president.

30

iStockPhoto/Getty Images (Birds); Shutterstock.com

Number of pets kept at the White House by Calvin Coolidge (1923–29). His “zoo” included canaries, a donkey, a pygmy hippo, and a kangaroo.

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