Presidential Resources

 

 

 

 

• My Journey Through the Best Presidential Biographies.  Rather duplicating the good work being done by my friend Stephen Floyd, I am simply linking to his website for up-to-date information about upcoming Presidential biographies.  It also includes recently released Presidential biographies, going back to 2012.

• His Excellency: George Washington, by Joseph J. Ellis

• Washington’s Revolution: The Making of America’s First Leader, by Robert Middlekauff

• The Return of George Washington: 1783-1789, by Edward Larson (William Morrow, October 7, 2014)

• Powerful Mind: The Self-Education of George Washington, by Adrienne Harrison (Potomac Books, Inc., October 15, 2015)

• First in the Homes of His Countrymen: George Washington’s Mount Vernon in the American Imagination, by Lydia Mattice Brandt (Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2016)

• Washington: A Life, by Ron Chernow (Penguin Books, 2011)

John Adams

• John Adams, by David McCullough

• John Adams and the Fear of American Oligarchy, by Luke Mayville (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 2016)

Andrew Johnson

Ulysses S. Grant

• The Presidency of Ulysses S. Grant, by Charles W. Calhoun (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2017)

• Grant, by Ron Chernow (Penguin Press, 2017)

• American Ulysses: A Life of Ulysses S. Grant, by Ronald C. White (Random House, 2017)

• Ulysses S. Grant: Memoirs and Selected Letters, by Ulysses S. Grant, editor Mary D. McFeely (Library of America, 1990)

Rutherford B. Hayes

James Garfield

• Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine, and the Murder of a President, by Candice Millard

Chester Arthur

Grover Cleveland

Benjamin Harrison

William McKinley

Theodore Roosevelt

• The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt, by Edmund Morris

• Theodore Rex, by Edmund Morris

• Colonel Roosevelt, by Edmund Morris

• The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America, by Douglas Brinkley

• Mornings on Horseback, by David McCullough

• Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey: The River of Doubt, by Candice Millard

• Theodore Roosevelt: A Life, by Nathan Miller

• When Trumpets Call: Theodore Roosevelt After the White House, by Patricia O’Toole

• T.R.: The Last Romantic, by H.W. Brands (Basic Books, 1998)

William Howard Taft

Woodrow Wilson

• Woodrow Wilson, by August Heckscher

• Wilson, by A. Scott Berg

• Woodrow Wilson, the Great War, and the Fourth Estate, by James D. Startt (College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2017)

• A Peaceful Conquest: Woodrow Wilson, Religion, and the New World Order, by Cara Lea Burnidge (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2016)

Warren Harding

Calvin Coolidge

Herbert Hoover

• Hoover: An Extraordinary Life in Extraordinary Times, by Kenneth Whyte

• Herbert Hoover: A Life, by Glen Jeansonne (Berkley, 2016)

Franklin D. Roosevelt

• No Ordinary Time: Franklin & Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II, by Doris Kearns Goodwin

• FDR’s Funeral Train, by Robert Klara.  Click here for a review of this book on my Presidential History Blog.

• The Sphinx: Franklin Roosevelt, the Isolationists, and the Road to World War II, by Nicholas Wapshott (W.W. Norton & Company, November 10, 2014)

• Man of Destiny: FDR and the Making of the American Century, by Alonzo Hamby (Basic Books, September 22, 2015)

• A Third Term for FDR: The Election of 1940, by John W. Jeffries (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2017)

• The Roosevelt I Knew, by Frances Perkins (Penguin Classics, 2011)

• The Last 100 Days: FDR at War and at Peace, by David B. Woolner (Basic Books, 2017)

• His Final Battle: The Last Months of Franklin Roosevelt, by Joseph Lelyveld (New York: Vintage, 2017)

Harry S Truman

• The Hidden White House, Harry Truman and the Reconstruction of America’s Most Famous Residence, by Robert Klara, Published October 2013 by Thomas Dunne Books, St. Martin’s Press, New York.  Click here for a review of the book on my Presidential History Blog.

• Truman’s Grandview Farm, by Jon Taylor, Published by The History Press, 2011

• The Accidental President: Harry S. Truman and the Four Months That Changed the World, by A.J. Baime, Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, October 2017

Dwight D. Eisenhower

• Eisenhower: A Life, by Paul Johnson (Viking, September 4, 2014)

• The President and the Apprentice: Eisenhower and Nixon, 1952-1961, by Irwin F. Gellman (Yale University Press, July 28, 2015)

• The Age of Eisenhower: America and the World in the 1950s, by William I. Hitchcock (Simon & Schuster, March 20, 2018)

• Liking Ike: Eisenhower, Advertising, and the Rise of Celebrity Politics, by David Haven Blake (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016)

• I Like Ike: The Presidential Election of 1952, by John Robert Greene (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2017)

• Eisenhower: Becoming the Leader of the Free World, by Louis Galambos (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2017)

John F. Kennedy

• Case Closed: Lee Harvey Oswald and the Assassination of JFK, by Gerald Posner

• The Kennedy Half Century: The Presidency, Assassination, and Lasting Legacy of John F. Kennedy, by Larry J. Sabato

• The Afterlife of John Fitzgerald Kennedy: A Biography, by Michael J. Hogan (Cambridge University Press, March 3, 2017)

• Kick: The True Story of JFK’s Sister and the Heir to Chatsworth, by Paula Byrne (HarperCollins, 2016)

Lyndon B. Johnson

• The Years of Lyndon Johnson:  The Path to Power, by Robert A. Caro

• Building the Great Society: Inside Lyndon Johnson’s White House, by Joshua Zeitz (Viking, 2018)

Richard M. Nixon

• Pat and Dick – The Nixons, An Intimate Portrait of a Marriage, by Will Swift Published January 2014 by Threshold Editions, New York.

• One Man Against the World: The Tragedy of Richard Nixon, by Tim Weiner (Henry Holt and Co., June 16, 2015)

• Being Nixon: A Man Divided, by Evan Thomas (Random House, June 16, 2015)

Gerald R. Ford

• A Time to Heal, by Gerald R. Ford

• Jerry Ford Up Close: An Investigative Biography, by Bud Vestal

• Ambition, Pragmatism, and Party: A Political Biography of Gerald R. Ford, by Scott Kaufman (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2017)

Jimmy Carter

• Jimmy Carter in Plains: The Presidential Hometown, by Robert Buccellato (Arcadia Publishing, February 1, 2016)

Ronald Reagan

George H.W. Bush

• George H.W. Bush: Character at the Core, by Curt Smith, Published November 2014 by Potomac Books, Inc.

• 41: A Portrait of My Father, by George W. Bush, Published November 11, 2014 by Crown Publishers

• The Quiet Man: The Indispensable Presidency of George H.W. Bush, by John Sununu, Published June 9, 2015 by Broadside Books

• Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush, by Jon Meacham (Random House, November 10, 2015)

Bill Clinton

George W. Bush

Barack Obama

• The Presidency of Barack Obama, by Julian E. Zelizer (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 2018)

Donald J. Trump

Post-Presidencies

• The Post-Presidency from Washington to Clinton, by Burton I. Kaufman (published November 1, 2012)

• Second Acts, Presidential Lives and Legacies After the White House, by Mark K. Updegrove (published October 1, 2006)  Covers Truman through Clinton

• Citizen-in-Chief: The Second Lives of the American Presidents, by Leonard Bernardo and Jennifer Weiss (published February 10, 2009)  Thematic treatment of all former presidents

• Beyond the White House: Waging Peace, Fighting Disease, Building Hope, by Jimmy Carter (published October 2, 2007)  Carter’s description of his work at the Carter Center since leaving the Presidency.

• Farewell to the Chief: Former Presidents in American Public Life, edited by Richard Norton Smith and Timothy Walch

Multiple Presidents

• Ike and Dick: Portrait of a Strange Political Marriage, by Jeffrey Frank, Published February 5, 2013 by Simon & Schuster

• Kennedy & Reagan: Why Their Legacies Endure, by Scott Farris (Lyons Press, November 5, 2013)

• The President and the Apprentice: Eisenhower and Nixon, 1952 – 1961, by Irwin F. Gellman (Yale University Press, July 28, 2015)

• Friends Divided: John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, by Gordon S. Wood (Penguin Press, 2017)

The White House

• The Hidden White House: Harry Truman and the Reconstruction of America’s Most Famous Residence, by Robert Klara, Published October 2013 by Thomas Dunne Books, St. Martin’s Press, New York.  Click here for a review of the book on my Presidential History Blog

• A White House of Stone: Building America’s First Ideal in Architecture, by William Seale (White House Historical Association, 2017)

• The President’s House: A History, by William Seale (White House Historical Association, 2008)

• Music at the White House From the 18th to the 21st Centuries, by Elise Kirk (White House Historical Association, 2017)

• Official White House China From the 18th to the 21st Centuries, by William G. Allman (White House Historical Association, 2016)

• A Garden for the President: A History of the White House Grounds, by Jonathan Pliska (White House Historical Association, 2016)

• The White House: An Historic Guide (White House Historical Association, 2011)

• The Living White House, by Betty C. Monkman(White House Historical Association, 2007)

• The White House: Its Historic Furnishings and First Families, by Betty C. Monkman (Abbeville Press, 2000)

• The White House: The History of an American Idea, by William Seale (White House Historical Association, 2001)

The Presidency

• The End of Greatness: Why America Can’t Have (and Doesn’t Want) Another Great President, by Aaron David Miller, Published October 7, 2014, by Palgrave Macmillan Trade.

• Leadership in Turbulent Times, by Doris Kearns Goodwin (Simon & Schuster, September 18, 2018)

• The Impossible Presidency: The Rise and Fall of America’s Highest Office, by Jeremi Suri (Basic Books, 2017)

Campaigning

• Campaigning for President – Political Memorabilia From the Nation’s Finest Private Collection, by Jordan M. Wright, Published January 2, 2008 by Smithsonia

• Let the People Rule: Theodore Roosevelt and the Birth of the Presidential Primary (W.W. Norton & Company, January 11, 2016)

Health and Death

• Assassinations, Threats, and the American Presidency, From Andrew Jackson to Barack Obama, by Ronald L. Feinman (Rowman & Littlefield, August 6, 2015)

• When Life Strikes the President: Scandal, Death, and Illness in the White House, by Jeffrey A. Engel and Thomas J. Knock, editors (New York: Oxford University Press, 2017)

Other Books About the Presidents

• Under This Roof: The White House and the Presidency — 21 Presidents, 21 Rooms, 21 Inside Stories, by Paul Brandus (Lyons Press, September 29, 2015)

• Words from the White House:  Words and Phrases Coined or Popularized by America’s Presidents, by Paul Dickson, Published January 8, 2013 by Walker & Company

• Don’t Know Much About the American Presidents, by Kenneth G. Davis, Published September 18, 2012, by Hyperion

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• The Living Room Candidate, Presidential Campaign Commercials 1952-2012

• Franklin Roosevelt’s December 8, 1941 “day that will live in infamy” speech asking Congress to declare war on Japan

• John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address on January 20, 1961 

• Kennedy’s June 26, 1963 “Ich bin ein Berliner” speech. 9:36 minutes.

• Senator Richard M. Nixon’s “Checkers” Speech on September 23, 1952

• Kennedy-Nixon, First Presidential Debate, September 26, 1960. 58:34 minutes.

• Richard Nixon’s Farewell Address to his White House staff on August 9, 1974. 21.04 minutes.

• Gerald Ford’s August 9, 1974 inauguration and speech. “Our long national nightmare is over.” 9:47 minutes.

• Gerald Ford’s Pardon of Richard Nixon. September 8, 1974.  9:33 minutes.

• Reagan’s June 12, 1987 speech from the Brandenburg Gate (Berlin Wall). “Mr. Gorbachev, Tear down this wall.” 26.38 minutes.

 

 

• Presidential History Blog by Feather Schwartz Foster (Independent writer of Presidential and First Ladies history)

• The Best Presidential Biographies  by Stephen Floyd (Reading all Presidential biographies and reviewing them)

• The Executive Power by Mike Shaw (An Amateur Historian Examines the Presidency)

• At Times Dull by Janet (Presidential biography project)

• Following the Presidents by David Cross (author of book “Chasing History:  One Man’s Road Trip Through The Presidential Libraries”)

• Nerd Trips: Roads Less Traveled to Presidents, Poets & Other Historic Persons by Sharon Boston

• Presidential History Geeks

• Plodding Through The Presidents, by Howard Dorre (Reading Presidential biographies and more)

• James Madison’s Montpelier

• Ford’s Theatre

• The Garfield Observer – The Blog of the James A. Garfield National Historic Site

 

 

 

News and Analysis

• • Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire
  • The Hill
  • Real Clear Politics
  • Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball
  • Nate Silver’s Five Thirty Eight Politics
  • Politico
  • Salon
  • Election Central

  Electoral College

  • Taegan Goddard’s Electoral Vote Map
  • 270 To Win
  • U.S. Election Atlas
  • Smart Politics

  Resources

  • The Green Papers
  • Federal Election Commission – Presidential Campaign Finance
  • Frontloading Headquarters
  • Ballot Access News
  • A Guide to Presidential Elections (many helpful links)
  • BallotPedia – The Encyclopedia of American Politics
  • On The Issues – Every Political Leader on Every Issue

  Fact Checking

  • PoliticFact.com
  • FactCheck.org

  Books:

  • • The Electoral College Primer, by Lawrence D. Longley and Neal R. Peirce (Yale University Press, 2000)
    • When No Majority Rules: The Electoral College and Presidential Succession, by Michael J. Glennon ( Congressional Quarterly, Inc., 1992)
    • Presidential Campaigns, by Paul F. Boller, Jr. (Oxford University Press, 1984)
    • Let the People Rule: Theodore Roosevelt and the Birth of the Presidential Primary (W.W. Norton & Company, January 11, 2016)
    • Presidential Elections 1789 – 2008, (CQ Press, 2010)

   

   

   

 

 

• Grover Cleveland: Historical reenactment of 1893 presidential inaugural ball of Grover Cleveland. First Lady Frances Cleveland will be played by Miss New Jersey, Jaime Gialloreto, and Cleveland will be played by his grandson, George Cleveland. November 10, 2018 (6:30 pm) at the Women’s Club of Upper Montclair in Montclair NJ. For more details and tickets, visit https://presidentcleveland.org/grover-cleveland-inaugural-ball/

• Books: Collection of more than 2,700 books spans US presidency, by Holly Ramer, The Associated Press (Seattle Times), June 9, 2017

• Lyndon Johnson: All the Way, Play about LBJ at ZACH Theatre in Austin, Texas from April 8, 2015 to May 10, 2015.  Click here for more details.

• Warren Harding: 2015 Warren G. Harding Symposium, July 17-18, 2015, at the Harding Home in Marion Ohio.  The theme for this 6th annual symposium will be “The Modern First Ladies: Portraits in Contrast.”  Click here for more details.

• White House: Seminar: Barely Avoiding Disaster:  Lessons Learned from the White House Reconstruction During Harry Truman’s Presidency.  Speaker:  Mike Purdy.  April 21, 2015, 3:00 pm to 4:30 pm, Seattle, Washington (Bell Harbor International Conference Center).  Sponsored by Puget Sound Chapter of CSI.

• Lyndon Johnson: The Triumph and Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson.  Discussion with author Joseph A. Califano, Jr. of the new edition of his book.  Moderated by CBS News journalist and anchor Bob Schieffer. March 26, 2015 at 6:00 pm in the LBJ Auditorium at the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, Texas.  Click here for more information.

• Conference:  Hofstra University’s 12th Presidential Conference will be held March 24-26, 2015, this one focusing on the George W. Bush Presidency.

• Abraham Lincoln: Ford’s Theatre 150: Remembering the Lincoln Assassination.  A Virtual Experience online.  March 26, 2015 at 1:00 pm ET.

• Abraham Lincoln: Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War at the Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site.  Through March 6, 2015.

• Abraham Lincoln: World Premiere of The Widow Lincoln at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, DC.  January 24-February 22, 2015.

• Woodrow Wilson: Woodrow Wilson in War and Peace: 1917 – 1920. Miller Center’s Historical Presidency Series on January 15, 2015 from 3:30 to 5:00 pm ET.  Presented by Margaret Macmillan.  This event will be webcast live.

• Franklin D. Roosevelt: FDR Library adds more than 400,000 documents to digital collection, more than doubling digital collections with Franklin: Access to FDR Library’s Digital Collections, December 15, 2015.

• Memories of the Presidents:  On the Relativity of Being Remembered as a US President, by Bruno Van de Casteele, December 7, 2014.  An interesting study conducted over time shows that people remember the more recent presidents, George Washington, and Abraham Lincoln, but that in between, there are large gaps in the knowledge people have of the presidents and their order.

• Jimmy Carter: A Conversation with Jimmy Carter on November 20, 2014 at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum on his new book “A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power,” on politics, foreign policy, human rights, privacy, and a host of other issues.  Whether you agree or disagree with him, he is a very articulate 90 year old elder statesman.  1:06 hour video.

 

 

 

 

• Presidential Study and Research Centers
• The Miller Center at the University of Virginia

• The American Presidency Project at UC Santa Barbara

• Center for Presidential History at Southern Methodist University

• Hofstra University, Peter S. Kalikow Center for the Study of the American Presidency

• Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies, at American University, Washington, DC

• American Presidency Center, at University College London

• Theodore Roosevelt Center at Dickinson State University

• Periodicals

• Presidential Studies Quarterly

• The Former Presidents Quarterly

• Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association

• Archives

• The Papers of Abraham Lincoln

• Franklin: Access to the FDR Library’s Digital Collections

• National Archives – JFK Assassination Records

• Warren Harding-Carrie Phillips Correspondence at Library of Congress

• Miscellaneous

• The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden

• Chart with Length and Dates of all Inaugural Addresses

• Video of Presidents Morphing into One Another in Sequence

• Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies

• ipl2 (Internet Public Library) on the Presidents of the United States

• U.S. Presidents (trivia and resources especially for the classroom)

• Presidential Powers (National Paralegal College)

• Teaching American History (primary speeches and documents from the Presidents, plus more)

• American Political Biography, (APB Press issues a monthly catalog of various books as well as offering a number of out-of-print biographies of American politicians)

• Theodore Roosevelt Books (by and about)

• Associations
• White House Historical Association

• John Hanson Memorial Association (1st President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation)

• The Association of Lincoln Presenters

• Presidential Families of America

• Theodore Roosevelt Association

• Presidential Memorabilia

• Lori Ferber Presidential Memorabilia

• Museum of Democracy – Presidential Memorabilia

• Political Memorabilia Auction

• American Political Items Collectors

• PresidentialElection.com