• Donate
  • Join Now
  • Sign Up for eNews
USS Constitution MuseumUSS Constitution MuseumUSS Constitution MuseumUSS Constitution Museum
  • Visit
    • Plan Your Visit
    • Directions & Parking
    • Groups & Field Trips
    • Calendar of Events
    • Museum Map
    • Host an Event
    • In Our Neighborhood
    • Library Pass Program
  • Exhibits
    • Past Exhibits
    • Ship Model Show
    • The Model Shipwright Guild
    • Hands-On Areas
  • Discover + Learn
  • Educators
  • Shop
    • Shop Now
    • Buy a Membership
  • Support
    • Donate
    • Membership
    • USS Constitution Museum Gala
    • Memorial Bricks
    • Support Our Collections
    • Legacy Giving
    • Foundation Support
    • Amazon Smile
    • Host an Event
      • Approved Caterers
      • Guide to Hosting Functions and Special Events at the Museum
    • Donor Privacy Policy
  • About
    • Mission & History
      • Founders
      • National Awards
    • Board of Trustees
    • Publications
    • Family Learning Project
    • National Outreach
    • For Press & Media
    • Jobs & Volunteering
    • Contact Us

Presidential Visits

    Home Blog Log Lines History Presidential Visits
    NextPrevious

    Presidential Visits

    By USS Constitution Museum | History, Log Lines | Comments are Closed | 31 October, 2016 | 8

    USS Constitution is no stranger to a presidential visit. Over the past 219 years, several sitting and future United States presidents have paid a visit to the famed warship, beginning with the first launch attempt in 1797 and most recently in the 1990s.

     

    *             *             *

    John Adams

    Much to the chagrin of Naval Constructor George Claghorn, USS Constitution‘s first presidential visit came during the first, failed, launch attempt on September 20, 1797. President John Adams witnessed the attempted launch, during which the ship skidded a mere 27 feet.

     

    James Madison

    In 1811, President James Madison visited Constitution in Annapolis, Maryland, while Captain Isaac Hull was busy preparing the ship and her crew for foreign service. Madison declared war against Great Britain the following year on June 18, 1812.

     

    Martin Van Buren

    On June 24, 1833, Vice President (and future president) Martin Van Buren was in attendance when Constitution entered Dry Dock 1 in the Charlestown Navy Yard for repairs. President Andrew Jackson was also in Boston, but was too unwell to attend the event.

     

    Ulysses S. Grant

    Following the end of the American Civil War, President Ulysses S. Grant visited Constitution in September 1869. “Old Ironsides” was functioning as school ship for the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.

     

    Rutherford B. Hayes

    President Rutherford B. Hayes and his cabinet visited the ship on November 11, 1880 while she was at the Philadelphia Navy Yard for overhaul. At the time, Constitution was one of four ships assigned to the Apprentice Training Squadron.

     

    Calvin Coolidge

    President Calvin Coolidge, accompanied by the First Lady and Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover, sailed into Boston Harbor from Marblehead, Massachusetts, aboard the presidential yacht Mayflower to visit Constitution on August 8, 1925. Congress had authorized a major restoration for the ship in March 1925.

    President Calvin Coolidge and Secretary of the Navy Wilbur hold a mounted lithograph of Gordan Grant's painting of USS Constitution, 1920s. [USS Constitution Museum Collection.]

    In this later photograph, President Calvin Coolidge (left) and Secretary of the Navy Curtis D. Wilbur hold a lithograph of Gordan Grant’s painting of USS Constitution. [USS Constitution Museum Collection.]

    Herbert Hoover

    During Constitution‘s three-coast National Cruise, following the extensive 1927-1931 restoration, Herbert Hoover visited the ship again, this time as president. He, along with the First Lady and Secretary of the Navy Charles Francis Adams, toured the ship on Armistice Day, November 11, 1931, while “Old Ironsides” was docked at the Washington Navy Yard. Hoover visited a third time in 1932.

    U.S. Navy Photo via The Captain's Clerk (http://www.captainsclerk.info/)

    President and Mrs. Herbert Hoover visit USS Constitution in Washington on Armistice Day, 1931. The man at left with his back to the camera is Secretary of the Navy Charles Francis Adams. [U.S. Navy Photo via http://www.captainsclerk.info/]

    Franklin D. Roosevelt

    President Franklin D. Roosevelt, a former Assistant Secretary of the Navy, toured USS Constitution during his first visit to the Boston Navy Yard on August 10, 1940. Later that month, on August 24, 1940, the president requested that both Constitution and USS Constellation be recommissioned as symbolic flagships for the Atlantic and Pacific fleets.

     

    Ronald Reagan

    Ronald Reagan toured the Charlestown Navy Yard and Constitution while campaigning for the United States presidency on August 20, 1980. As president, he presented the World Ship Trust Maritime Heritage Award to USS Constitution in 1987.

    President Ronald Reagan presents the World Ship Trust Award to USS Constitution. Commander David Cashman. [USS Constitution Museum Collection.]

    President Ronald Reagan presents the World Ship Trust Maritime Heritage Award to USS Constitution and Commander David Cashman (far right) in 1987. [USS Constitution Museum Collection.]

    Bill Clinton

    While President Bill Clinton never boarded Constitution, Clinton was saluted by her crew in 1997 during a trip to Boston.

     

    *             *             *

    Nearly two decades have passed since the last time a United States president visited “Old Ironsides.” Since then, USS Constitution has been designated America’s Ship of State as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010. This designation allows the sitting president, vice president, executive branch officials, and members of Congress to use the ship as a venue to host visiting heads of state, sign legislation relating to the Armed Forces, and sign maritime-related treaties. Perhaps a future president will make use of “Old Ironsides'” new designation during the ship’s first presidential visit of the 21st century.

     

    – K. Monea

    History, President
    USS Constitution Museum

    USS Constitution Museum

    The USS Constitution Museum serves as the memory and educational voice of USS CONSTITUTION, by collecting, preserving, and interpreting the stories of "Old Ironsides" and the people associated with her. We seek to create a positive, memorable experience for both children and adults by inspiring within them a love for the freedom that CONSTITUTION symbolizes. We will share CONSTITUTION's contributions with a global audience, and we will strive to be the best museum possible based on scholarship and innovative ways of sharing CONSTITUTION's stories.

    More posts by USS Constitution Museum

    Related Post

    • World War I and the Legacy of the War of 1812

      By USS Constitution Museum | Comments are Closed

      John Quincy Adams was in Ghent, New Netherlands (present-day Belgium) on Christmas Eve, 1814. He was the leader of the United States delegation, negotiating an end to America’s second war with Great Britain. On thatRead more

    • The Whole 13 Yards

      By USS Constitution Museum | 1 comment

      Happy Anniversary, “Old Ironsides”! July is a multiple-anniversary month for USS Constitution: The 44-gun frigate began her first cruise the evening of July 22, 1798, under ideal sailing conditions: Steady Breezes fine & Pleasant Weather.Read more

    • Rebuilt, Preserved, Restored – USS Constitution Across the Centuries

      By USS Constitution Museum | 1 comment

      Preservation Philosophies SHIP OF THESEUS Readers may be familiar with the thought experiment known as the “Ship of Theseus.” It is a philosophical conundrum from antiquity and first appeared in Plutarch’s Life of Theseus: The ship whereinRead more

    • One Mystery Leads to Another

      By USS Constitution Museum | 5 comments

      Join USS Constitution‘s Commanding Officer and Crew on February 20, 2018, at 10:00 a.m. on the decks of “Old Ironsides” to commemorate the 203rd anniversary of the battle with HMS Cyane and HMS Levant.  TheRead more

    • Autumn Updates with “Old Ironsides”

      By USS Constitution Museum | 2 comments

      What a busy time the past six months have been for USS Constitution! As readers of “Restoring an Icon” know, the ship’s 26 months in dry dock came to an end in a dramatically lit,Read more

    NextPrevious

    Log Lines Email Subscription

    Get new Log Lines posts delivered straight to your inbox.

    Log Lines Search


    USS CONSTITUTION MUSEUM | Charlestown Navy Yard, Building 22, Charlestown, MA 02129 | 6174261812

    Mass Cultural Council
    Copyright © 2015 USS Constitution Museum. All Rights Reserved.
    • Visit
      • Plan Your Visit
      • Directions & Parking
      • Groups & Field Trips
      • Calendar of Events
      • Museum Map
      • Host an Event
      • In Our Neighborhood
      • Library Pass Program
    • Exhibits
      • Past Exhibits
      • Ship Model Show
      • The Model Shipwright Guild
      • Hands-On Areas
    • Discover + Learn
    • Educators
    • Shop
      • Shop Now
      • Buy a Membership
    • Support
      • Donate
      • Membership
      • USS Constitution Museum Gala
      • Memorial Bricks
      • Support Our Collections
      • Legacy Giving
      • Foundation Support
      • Amazon Smile
      • Host an Event
        • Approved Caterers
        • Guide to Hosting Functions and Special Events at the Museum
      • Donor Privacy Policy
    • About
      • Mission & History
        • Founders
        • National Awards
      • Board of Trustees
      • Publications
      • Family Learning Project
      • National Outreach
      • For Press & Media
      • Jobs & Volunteering
      • Contact Us
    USS Constitution Museum