Inauguration of Chester A. Arthur

rdf:langString Inauguration of Chester A. Arthur

rdf:langString Chester A. Arthur

rdf:langString Presidential inauguration of

rdf:langString Arthur being administered the oath of office

rdf:langString CAArthur-oathofoffice.jpg

rdf:langString Morrison Waite

rdf:langString — Administering oath

rdf:langString — Assuming office

rdf:langString John R. Brady

rdf:langString Justice of the Supreme Court of the State of New York

rdf:langString At 2:15 a.m. Eastern Time on September 20, 1881, Chester A. Arthur was inaugurated the 21st president of the United States. The inauguration marked the commencement of Chester A. Arthur's only term (a partial term of 3 years, 165 days) as president. The presidential oath of office was administered by New York Supreme Court Justice John R. Brady at Arthur's private residence in New York City. Two days later, Arthur underwent a second inauguration ceremony in Washington, D.C., with the oath administered by Morrison Waite, the Chief Justice of the United States. Arthur became president following the death of his predecessor James A. Garfield, who had been assassinated by a troubled office seeker, Charles J. Guiteau. Arthur was the fourth vice president to ascend to the presidency after his president's death, but he was the first to do so after a long period of presidential incapacitation. Garfield's long recovery period created an "80-day crisis" during which his cabinet was unsure of how to delegate the responsibilities of the presidency. With Congress in recess and Arthur generally disliked by the public, the cabinet decided not to disperse Garfield's responsibilities. When Garfield succumbed to his wound in September, Arthur assumed his office under the precedent established by John Tyler in 1841. The question of presidential incapacitation remained into the 20th century, particularly after Woodrow Wilson suffered a non-fatal stroke, until the Twenty-fifth Amendment was ratified in 1967.