Since 1789, the United States has voted in 45 different individuals (and counting) into the office of the President of the United States (while there have been 46 presidencies, Grover Cleveland served as both the 22nd and 24th President). Currently, there are six living Presidents and the other 39 are buried in various places around the country. Here, we highlight the gravesites of our first six Presidents: George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, and John Quincy Adams.
Presidents Gravesites
Out of the first six Presidents of the United States, four were from Virginia (all slave owners) and two from Massachusetts (non-slave owners and the only 2 of the first 12 Presidents to not be). The first five Presidents are all considered founding fathers and of the Revolutionary Era. While John Quincy Adams was alive during the American Revolution, he was but a young boy (at seven-years-old, he and his mother, Abigail Adams, watched the Battle of Bunker Hill from Quincy, MA). Additionally, John Adams (2nd President) was the father of John Quincy Adams (6th President), an interesting dynamic that some Americans felt was too close to hereditary monarchy.
In 1799, George Washington was the first of these men to die, while John Quincy Adams was the last of our first six Presidents to die, in 1848. Remarkably, three of these men died on July 4th- John Adams and Thomas Jefferson in 1826 and James Monroe in 1831. Today, all six Presidents are buried in various locations around the country. Washington, Jefferson, and Madison on their plantations in Virginia; Adams and his son in their church in Massachusetts; and Monroe in Richmond, Virginia.
1st President of the United States – George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799)
- Two Terms: April 30, 1789 – March 4, 1797 (not officially affiliated with a political party, though he leaned Federalist)
- Unanimously elected as the 1st President of the United States and after two terms, he willingly stepped down
- Washington died in his home (Mount Vernon) on December 14, 1799, possibly due to a combination of epiglottitis and the excessive bleeding that his doctors performed (although some historians and medical experts have offered other possible causes)
- While the intention was for George Washington to be buried in a chamber beneath the rotunda of the U.S Capitol building, it was still under construction at the time of his death. Additionally, Washington’s last Will and Testament provided that he be buried at Mount Vernon and called for a new brick tomb to be constructed. The current tomb at Mount Vernon was completed in 1831 and that same year, Washington’s body was moved into it from an old family vault
- Buried at Mount Vernon, Virginia
2nd President of the United States – John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826)
- One Term: March 4, 1797 – March 4, 1801 (Federalist Party)
- Signer of the Declaration of Independence
- Served as the 1st Vice President of the United States and 1st U.S. Minister to the United Kingdom
- John Adams was originally buried in the Hancock Cemetery, which is located in front of the United First Parish Church; however, his son (President John Quincy Adams) desired that his father and mother be laid to rest in a crypt within the church itself. On April 1, 1828, the remains of John and Abigail Adams were moved from Hancock Cemetery and placed in the crypt beneath United First Parish Church
- Entombed in a crypt beneath the United First Parish Church in Quincy, Massachusetts
3rd President of the United States – Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826)
- Two Terms: March 4, 1801 – March 4, 1809 (Democratic-Republican Party)
- Signer of the Declaration of Independence and often considered the author of the historic document
- Served as the Governor of Virginia during the American Revolution (from 1779 – 1781), the ambassador to France in 1785, the 1st Secretary of State under President Washington and the 2nd Vice President of the United States under John Adams
- Established the University of Virginia- perhaps his proudest accomplishment
- Buried at Monticello, Virginia
4th President of the United States – James Madison (March 16, 1751 – June 28, 1836)
- Two Terms: March 4, 1809 – March 4, 1817 (Democratic-Republican Party)
- Served as the 5th Secretary of State and a member of the U.S. House of Representatives
- Considered the “Father of the United States Constitution,” largely due to his efforts during the Constitutional Convention
- An author of the Federalist Papers, which is a compilation of newspaper articles defending the U.S. Constitution (Alexander Hamilton and John Jay were the other two authors)
- Served as President during the War of 1812. His wife and First Lady, Dolley Madison, famously saved a portrait of George Washington just before British troops burned down the White House
- Buried at Montpelier, Virginia
5th President of the United States – James Monroe (April 28, 1758 – July 4, 1831)
- Two Terms: March 4, 1817 – March 4, 1825 (Democratic-Republican Party)
- Fought in the American Revolution under General George Washington. Monroe crossed the icy Delaware River on Christmas night 1776 and was wounded during the Battle of Trenton
- Served as the 7th Secretary of State and 8th Secretary of War
- Best known for the “Monroe Doctrine,” which was a policy opposing any European interference/colonialism in North America
- When James Monroe died on July 4, 1831, he was in New York. Thus, he was originally buried in New York City’s Marble Cemetery. It wasn’t until July 1858 when the state of Virginia (thanks to efforts by Governor Henry Wise) gathered the funds to have the remains of James Monroe moved from New York City to Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia (the current tomb was erected in 1859)
- Buried at Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia (buried in Presidents Circle, along with President John Tyler)
6th President of the United States – John Quincy Adams (July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848)
- One Term: March 4, 1825 – March 4, 1829 (Democratic-Republican/National Republican Party)
- Served as the 8th Secretary of State under President James Monroe, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, and a U.S. Senator
- First U.S. President to have his picture taken
- In 1841, the 72-year-old former President John Quincy Adams successfully argued a case in favor of captives onboard the ship Amistad
- On February 23, 1848, President John Quincy Adams passed away. He was initially buried in the Hancock Cemetery. Just over four years later on May 15, 1852, his wife Louisa Catherine (Johnson) Adams died and was buried alongside her husband in the cemetery. Then on December 10, 1852, the two were moved to the crypt alongside John Quincy’s parents, John and Abigail Adams
- Entombed in a crypt beneath the United First Parish Church in Quincy, Massachusetts
