Inauguration day traditions
Step through a typical day for the president-elect:
MORNING SERVICE
The tradition of a morning worship service on Inauguration Day began with Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933. John F. Kennedy greets the Rev. Richard J. Casey after Mass. A prayer service for Obama is on Wednesday.
SWEARING-IN
Tradition dictates that the chief justice of the United States administer the oath of office to the president-elect. Before Obama, 55 presidential inaugurations, including one for George H.W. Bush, below, were conducted.
INAUGURAL ADDRESS
Since George Washington in 1789, every president has delivered an inaugural address, ranging from a terse 135 words to a long-winded 8,445. William McKinley, below, delivered his inaugural address on March 4, 1897.
INAUGURAL PARADE
Ronald Reagan, below, as he traveled from the Capitol to the White House. Early parades were mostly military escorts. The first organized parade was in 1809, at the inauguration of James Madison.
INAUGURAL BALL
First lady Dolley Madison hosted the first inaugural ball in 1809 in Washington for her husband, James Madison. Bill Clinton had 14 official inaugural balls.
