George Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States on April 30, 1789. The ceremony took place on the balcony of Federal Hall in New York City, then the nation’s capital.
Washington’s inauguration followed the ratification of the Constitution and the first presidential election. Although his four-year term technically began on March 4, Congress had not yet organized the new federal government, so the ceremony occurred nearly two months later. Chancellor of New York Robert Livingston administered the presidential oath.
John Adams had already become vice president on April 21, 1789, by taking his seat as president of the Senate. After Washington’s oath, the new president delivered his inaugural address to Congress. The event marked the formal beginning of the executive branch under the constitutional government.
A common mix-up is confusing Washington’s inauguration with later inauguration dates. Regular inaugurations were generally held on March 4 until 1933, when the Twentieth Amendment moved the date to January 20.