Presidential Trivia Questions (May 2 & 3)

Thanks for playing!

(1) QUESTION: One President’s body was exhumed in order to determine whether his death was really a murder. Which President?

ANSWER: Zachary Taylor. Our 12th President died very suddenly after Fourth of July festivities in 1850. Apparently, Taylor got very hot that day, drank many chilled beverages, and consumed quite a lot of cherries and other fruit. He began suffering severe stomach pains soon afterwards and died on July 9. Taylor’s body was exhumed in 1991 by researchers who wanted to know if his death was really a murder. Lab tests showed trace amounts of arsenic in his tissue, but these amounts were probably not enough to kill him and may have been naturally occurring. I don’t doubt some controversy will remain.

(2) QUESTION: Multiple Presidents were buried, but their bodies were later exhumed and moved to new locations. Which Presidents? NOTE: My original question yesterday said four Presidents. That was not nearly enough! I discovered my mistake while factchecking my answer this morning. My bad. I was overly focused on some of the more famous cases, I guess.

ANSWER: George Washington, James Monroe, William Henry Harrison, James Polk, Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, James Garfield, William McKinley, Woodrow Wilson, Warren Harding, FDR, JFK. Washington’s will dictated that a new family tomb was to be built at Mount Vernon. Thus, while he was originally interred in the “old tomb” at Mount Vernon, he was moved to the “new tomb” in 1831. Lincoln’s body was moved multiple times for security reasons, including once in 1867 when criminals planned to steal his body. (This week’s story on that here.) Monroe was moved from New York to Virginia. Harrison was moved from D.C. to his family’s land in Ohio. Polk was moved twice and is currently buried at the Tennessee State Capitol. Grant was buried in a temporary tomb before being moved to the well-known one later. Likewise, Garfield, McKinley, Harding, FDR, and JFK were buried but moved after memorials were built. Wilson’s body was originally buried in Virginia, but it was later moved to the National Cathedral. Whew! I think I got it all this time?!?

(3) QUESTION: Which President is the only one not formally mourned by the U.S. government?

ANSWER: John Tyler. He joined the Confederacy after his term in office. He died while Abraham Lincoln was in office. No formal notice was taken of his passing.