Watching Andrew Jackson’s Inauguration

John Quincy Adams was at home, a mile and a half north of the White House, when he ceased to be the President of the United States. It was customary for a departing President to attend the Inauguration of his successor, but it was not unprecedented to miss it; Adams’s own father, John, had skipped the Inauguration of Thomas Jefferson, after an acrimonious campaign. After consulting with his Cabinet, John Quincy did the same.