An image of the 1857 inauguration of President James Buchanan
On March 4, 1857, James Buchanan was sworn in as the 15th president of the United States, at the first presidential-inauguration ceremony to ever be photographed. John Wood, who worked as the photographer for the Architect of the Capitol, was present on that day to take the photo above. The image captured crowds of onlookers standing outside the East Portico of the U.S. Capitol—which was still under construction at the time. The foreground area was actually a stone yard that had been covered with boards and used as a platform for spectators. The photograph’s exposure time, about four seconds, meant that any people who were moving ended up looking a bit blurry.
Buchanan’s was the nation’s 18th inauguration ceremony, documented by this single photograph taken nearly 168 years ago. Contrast that with the many thousands of photographs that will be taken today of the 60th presidential-inauguration ceremony, the second swearing-in of Donald Trump.
