Who became the first U.S. president at the 1789 inauguration in New York City?

George Washington became the first U.S. president at the 1789 inauguration in New York City.

Washington took the oath of office on April 30, 1789, at Federal Hall on Wall Street. Robert Livingston, the chancellor of New York, administered the oath, and Washington then delivered his inaugural address to Congress.

The election was conducted under the original constitutional system. Washington received every electoral vote cast, while John Adams became vice president after receiving the second-highest total. The first inauguration took place in New York because the city was the temporary national capital.

Washington had previously commanded the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War and had presided over the 1787 Constitutional Convention. His first inauguration therefore connected the military struggle for independence with the creation of the new federal government.