17 Strange Coincidences Among US Presidents
History tends to repeat itself in the strangest ways. When you look closely at the lives of American presidents, patterns emerge that seem too bizarre to be random.
Some of these coincidences make you wonder if there’s something more at play than just chance. From shared death dates to eerily similar life paths, these presidential overlaps have puzzled historians for generations.
The Lincoln-Kennedy Parallels
Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846. John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946—exactly one hundred years later.
Lincoln became president in 1860. Kennedy became president in 1960. Both were assassinated on a Friday, with their wives present.
Both were shot in the head from behind. The secretaries of the two presidents add another layer to this coincidence.
Lincoln’s secretary was named Kennedy and warned him not to go to the theater that night. Kennedy’s secretary was named Lincoln and warned him not to go to Dallas.
Their successors shared a name too—Andrew Johnson succeeded Lincoln, and Lyndon Johnson succeeded Kennedy.
The Twenty-Year Curse
Starting in 1840, every president elected in a year ending in zero died in office. William Henry Harrison (1840), Abraham Lincoln (1860), James Garfield (1880), William McKinley (1900), Warren Harding (1920), Franklin Roosevelt (1940), and John F. Kennedy (1960) all fit this pattern.
The streak finally broke with Ronald Reagan in 1980, though he survived an assassination attempt. Some people call this the Curse of Tippecanoe, named after Harrison’s famous battle.
Whether you believe in curses or not, the statistical odds of this pattern occurring by chance are remarkably low.
Three Presidents Died on July 4th
Thomas Jefferson and John Adams both died on July 4, 1826—exactly fifty years after the Declaration of Independence was signed. The two founding fathers had been rivals and friends throughout their lives.
They reconciled in their later years through letters, and somehow both passed away on the same historic date. James Monroe died on July 4, 1831, making it three of the first five presidents who died on Independence Day.
Calvin Coolidge was born on July 4, 1872, creating yet another connection to this date in presidential history.
The Adams Family Dynasty
John Adams and his son John Quincy Adams both served as president. They’re the only father-son presidential pair until George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush came along more than 180 years later.
Both Adams presidents served only one term. Both faced challenging reelections and left office feeling somewhat defeated by the political process.
The coincidences extend to their careers too. Both served as ambassadors before becoming president. Both had contentious relationships with Thomas Jefferson, though in different ways.
And both lived long lives, with John Adams reaching 90 and John Quincy Adams serving in Congress for nearly two decades after his presidency.
Left-Handed Leaders
James Garfield could write in Latin with one hand and Greek with the other simultaneously. He was ambidextrous, but this talent highlights something interesting about presidential handedness.
Starting with Herbert Hoover, a significant number of presidents have been left-handed—including Harry Truman, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama.
That’s roughly 40% of presidents since 1929, compared to about 10% of the general population. Nobody knows why this pattern exists, but it’s made some researchers wonder if there’s a connection between left-handedness and leadership traits.
The Harrison Connection
William Henry Harrison holds the record for the shortest presidency—just 31 days in office before dying of pneumonia. His grandson, Benjamin Harrison, became president 48 years later.
They’re the only grandfather-grandson presidential pair in American history. Both Harrisons won the presidency but lost the popular vote.
William Henry Harrison won in 1840, and Benjamin Harrison won in 1888. Both faced questions about the legitimacy of their elections, though for different reasons.
Heights and Patterns
The tallest president was Abraham Lincoln at 6’4″. The shortest was James Madison at 5’4″.
But here’s what’s strange—looking at presidents elected since 1900, the taller candidate won the popular vote in about 67% of elections. Height seems to matter to voters, even if nobody wants to admit it.
Franklin Roosevelt, despite being unable to walk due to polio, projected an image of strength and height through careful positioning and the cooperation of the press. He stands as an exception to many rules about presidential image.
Seven Presidents Named James
James Madison, James Monroe, James Polk, James Buchanan, James Garfield, and Jimmy Carter all share the first name James. That’s six presidents with the same first name, more than any other name in presidential history.
When you count James Earl Carter Jr., who went by Jimmy, the tradition spans from the fourth president to the 39th. John comes in second with four presidents—John Adams, John Quincy Adams, John Tyler, John F. Kennedy, and if you count Calvin Coolidge, whose first name was actually John.
William appears three times, as does George.
The Virginia Dynasty
Four of the first five presidents came from Virginia—George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe. Virginia dominated early American politics in a way no other state has managed since.
These presidents served for 32 of the first 36 years of the republic. The only break in this pattern was John Adams from Massachusetts, who served from 1797 to 1801.
After Monroe, Virginia wouldn’t produce another president until Woodrow Wilson in 1913, and Wilson had moved to New Jersey by then. The early dominance of this one state shaped American politics for generations.
Assassination Attempts on Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson survived the first assassination attempt on a sitting president. Richard Lawrence tried to shoot Jackson with two pistols in 1835, but both guns misfired.
Jackson then beat Lawrence with his cane. Later analysis showed both pistols were in working order and the odds of both misfiring were about one in 125,000.
Jackson believed his political enemies had hired Lawrence, though Lawrence was found to be mentally ill. The incident established a pattern of presidential assassination attempts that would continue throughout American history.
Jackson’s survival against such unlikely odds has puzzled historians and statisticians ever since.
Roosevelt Family Ties
Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin Roosevelt were fifth cousins. They also shared a niece-uncle relationship through marriage—Eleanor Roosevelt was Theodore’s niece and Franklin’s wife.
Both served as Assistant Secretary of the Navy before becoming president. Both became president before the age of 50. The two Roosevelts had different political philosophies, with Theodore representing the progressive wing of the Republican Party and Franklin leading the Democratic Party.
Yet their paths to power followed remarkably similar trajectories, and they transformed the presidency in comparable ways.
Presidents Who Never Had Children
George Washington, James Madison, Andrew Jackson, James Polk, James Buchanan, and Warren Harding never had biological children. Washington raised Martha’s children from her previous marriage. Madison raised Dolley’s son.
Jackson adopted his wife’s nephew. But none of these presidents left behind direct descendants. Buchanan never married at all, making him the only bachelor president.
The others were married but childless. This pattern has no clear explanation, though some historians have speculated about health issues or simply the randomness of human fertility.
Deaths on January 6th
Theodore Roosevelt died on January 6, 1919. His distant cousin Franklin Roosevelt delivered his “Four Freedoms” speech on January 6, 1941.
The date appears in presidential history more than you’d expect, with various inaugurations and congressional sessions tied to it as well. The coincidence took on new significance after the events of January 6, 2021, making this date even more embedded in American political consciousness.
Sometimes dates accumulate meaning through sheer repetition.
The Ohio Presidents
Between 1869 and 1923, seven presidents came from Ohio—Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James Garfield, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley, William Howard Taft, and Warren Harding. That’s seven presidents in just over 50 years from a single state. Ohio became known as the “Mother of Presidents.”
Virginia had its dynasty in the early republic, but Ohio dominated the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The state’s central location, mix of rural and urban areas, and swing-state status in elections made it a political powerhouse.
No state has matched this run since.
Presidential Beards
Five presidents wore full beards—Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James Garfield, and Benjamin Harrison. All served consecutively from 1861 to 1893, making this a 32-year stretch of bearded leadership.
Before Lincoln, no president had a beard. After Harrison, no president has worn a full beard. The trend coincided with Victorian fashion and changing attitudes about masculinity and leadership.
Clean-shaven faces came back into style, and no serious presidential candidate has worn a beard since. The window for bearded presidents opened and closed within a single generation.
Yale and the Presidency
George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush all attended Yale University. They graduated within a few years of each other, though they didn’t overlap as students.
Bush senior graduated in 1948, Clinton in 1973, and Bush junior in 1968. That’s three consecutive presidents from the same university.
Add in William Howard Taft and Gerald Ford, and Yale has produced five presidents total. Harvard beats that with eight, but no other school has produced three consecutive presidents.
The coincidence speaks to the continued influence of elite institutions in American politics.
The Teetotaler Tradition
Some presidents didn’t drink at all – like James Polk, Rutherford B. Hayes, or George W. Bush. Hayes stuck to this hard rule; his wife even got called “Lemonade Lucy” since no booze ever showed up at events hosted by them.
Polk stayed off alcohol due to health issues. As for Bush, he stopped drinking when he turned 40 – and just kept going without it.
Donald Trump stays off booze, says he saw how drinking messed up his brother. It’s not some random fluke – rather shows lots of high-achievers get ahead sober – yet links these figures in a surprising manner.
When History Echoes
You can brush off many odd matches using stats or chance. Throw in plenty of examples, then the similarities start showing up.
Yet a few president-related quirks still stop you mid-thought. Things like Lincoln and Kennedy mirroring each other, leaders dying on July 4th, that two-decade pattern – it clings to minds since it seems to mean something, though logic calls it noise.
Perhaps the odd similarities hint at how we pick presidents. They might suggest that some kinds of people are drawn to control.
Then again, it could simply be life poking fun now and then. No matter the reason, these weird parallels add a twist to U.S. leadership tales – something raw data misses entirely.
