If History Was Taught in Cookies (President's Day)
Posted by Anne Yorks on Monday, February 18, 2013
Thanks to some very sweet cookie friends of mine, history can now be taught in cookies. So pull up a chair and grab your kids and enjoy this brief, colorful and very sweet U.S. history lesson!
How many presidents can you name? A list of President's is below along with each cookie decorator's name and facebook or blog page. Check out each of their pages for some 'extra credit' bonus cookies!!
1) George Washington by Sarah of Sweet Surrender Cookie Co. 2) John Adams by Nicole of Life’s a Batch 3) Thomas Jefferson by Sarah of Songbird Sweets 4) James Madison by Georganne of LilaLoa 5) James Monroe by Anne of Flour Box Bakery 6) John Quincy Adams by Liz of Arty McGoo 7) Andrew Jackson by Tiffany of TheRedCooky 8) Martin Van Buren by Jill of Jill FCS – Funky Cookie Studio 9) William Henry Harrison by Christina of Sweet C’s Bake Shop 10) John Tyler by Kim of The Cookie Puzzle 11) James K. Polk by Debbie of D&T Designs 12) Zachery Taylor by Stephanie of Ellies Bites 13) Millard Fillmore by Melissa of Simply Sweets by Honeybee 14) Franklin Pierce by Kris of So Cute Cookies 15) James Buchanan by Lene of Not Your Everyday Cookie 16) Abraham Lincoln by Debbie of Sweet Creations by Debbie 17) Andrew Johnson by Liz of CookiesToGo 18) Ulysses S. Grant by Rebekah of Love at First Bite 19) Rutherford B. Hayes by Heather of Twins Plus One Goodies 20) James A. Garfield by Teresa of Sugar T's Cookies 21) Chester Arthur by Alyse of B.E. Sweet Treats 22) Grover Cleveland by Kimberly of Barefoot N Baking 23) Benjamin Harrison by Laurie of Cookie Bliss 24) Grover Cleveland by Kimberly of Barefoot N Baking 25) William McKinley by Susan of Sweet Williams Cookies 26) Theodore Roosevelt by Heather of SugarNosh Treats 27) William Howard Taft by Sarah of Sarah’s Sweet Shoppe 28) Woodrow Wilson by Cheryl of The Sugared Apron 29) Warren G. Harding by Shannon of Artfully Delicious Cookies 30) Calvin Coolidge by Stephanie of Ice My Biscuit 31) Herbert Hover by Fumie of A+Kake sweets 32) Franklin D. Roosevelt by Christine of Chris’ Creative Confections 33) Harry S Truman by Kim of Sugar Rush Custom Cookies 34) Dwight Eisenhower by Monica of Cookie Cowgirl 35) John F. Kennedy by CeCe of The Tactical Bakery 36) Lyndon B. Johnson by Jennifer of One Kookie Cookie 37) Richard Nixon by Jackie of iBakery 38) Gerald Ford by Georgeanne of LilaLoa 39) Jimmy Carter by Jennifer of One Kookie Cookie 40) Ronald Reagan by Melissa of The Baked Equation 41) George Bush Sr. by Penny of Lucky Penny Cookies 42) Bill Clinton by Laurie of Cookie Bliss 43) George W. Bush by Sarah of Sarah’s Sweet Shoppe 44) Barack Obama by Teresa of Sugar T's Cookies
DID YOU KNOW...
Now that you know who each of the presidents are, how about a few funny (and some serious) facts!!
1) George Washington by Sarah of Sweet Surrender Cookie Co. 2) John Adams by Nicole of Life’s a Batch 3) Thomas Jefferson by Sarah of Songbird Sweets 4) James Madison by Georganne of LilaLoa 5) James Monroe by Anne of Flour Box Bakery 6) John Quincy Adams by Liz of Arty McGoo 7) Andrew Jackson by Tiffany of TheRedCooky 8) Martin Van Buren by Jill of Jill FCS – Funky Cookie Studio
Did you know that...
1. George Washington's favorite food was ice cream! 2. John Adams was the first president to live in the White House.
3. It was Thomas Jefferson that oversaw the largest land purchase in U.S. history - the Louisiana Purchase. With this purchase, the size of the US doubled. The land was bought for $15 Million or .03/acre.
4. James Madison was the smallest president at 5' 4" and never weighing more than 100 pounds.
5. James Monroe died on the 4th of July, 1831, following both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, who died on July 4, 1826.
6. John Quincy Adams was the son of 2nd president John Adams.
7. Andrew Jackson was the first president to ride in a train.
8. Martin Van Buren is sometimes credited with creating the word "OK." Van Buren was from Kinderhook, New York. During his campaign, Old Kinderhook (O.K.) clubs formed to support the President. Later, "OK" or "okay," came to mean "all right."
9) William Henry Harrison by Christina of Sweet C’s Bake Shop 10) John Tyler by Kim of The Cookie Puzzle 11) James K. Polk by Debbie of D&T Designs 12) Zachery Taylor by Stephanie of Ellies Bites 13) Millard Fillmore by Melissa of Simply Sweets by Honeybee 14) Franklin Pierce by Kris of So Cute Cookies 15) James Buchanan by Lene of Not Your Everyday Cookie 16) Abraham Lincoln by Debbie of Sweet Creations by Debbie
9. William Henry Harrison was president for 31 days and died from pneumonia. Ironically, he was also the only President who studied to be a medical doctor.
10. John Tyler had the most children of any president - 15!
11. James Polk was the first president to have his photograph taken.
12. Zachary Taylor, old rough and ready, is the only true "Independent" president we have ever had, since the formation of the 2-party system in 1820. He was not a member of any political party during his life, and never held public office prior to becoming president.
13. Millard Fillmore was the First President to have a stove and running water in the White House.
14. Franklin Pierce memorized his entire inaugural speech - 3,319 words. George Washington had the shortest inaugural speech 133 words given in less than 2 minutes!
15. James Buchanan (1791-1868) quietly but consistently bought slaves in Washington, D.C., and then set them free in Pennsylvania.
16. At 6 feet, 4 inches, Abraham Lincoln was the tallest U.S. President. He was the first President to be assassinated.
17) Andrew Johnson by Liz of CookiesToGo 18) Ulysses S. Grant by Rebekah of Love at First Bite 19) Rutherford B. Hayes by Heather of Twins Plus One Goodies 20) James A. Garfield by Teresa of Sugar T's Cookies 21) Chester Arthur by Alyse of B.E. Sweet Treats 22) Grover Cleveland by Kimberly of Barefoot N Baking 23) Benjamin Harrison by Laurie of Cookie Bliss 24) Grover Cleveland by Kimberly of Barefoot N Baking
17. Andrew Johnson, the 17th President of the United States, was a tailor before he was President. He was considered the most unfit president. Unfit - ironic, no?
18. Ulysses S. Grant was one of only three presidents to graduate from a military academy. He graduated from West Point in 1843.
19. Rutherford B. Hayes was the first president to use a phone. His first call was to Alexander Graham Bell.
20. James Garfield didn't die from the gunshot wounds from his assassin’s gun; he died of blood poisoning after doctors and experts (including Alexander Graham Bell) tried to remove the bullet from his back with their dirty fingers and instruments, causing him to linger in pain for 80 days before dying. His assassin, Charles Guiteau, later claimed that he didn't kill the president, the doctors had.
21. Chester Arthur was Arthur was sometimes called “elegant Arthur” for his interest in fashion. It was said he had over eighty pairs of pants and often changed them several times a day.
22 and 24. Grover Cleveland was the first and only president to serve two non-consecutive terms.
23. Benjamin Harrison was the first President to have electric lights and a Christmas tree in the White House. He was the grandson of William H. Harrison
25) William McKinley by Susan of Sweet Williams Cookies 26) Theodore Roosevelt by Heather of SugarNosh Treats 27) William Howard Taft by Sarah of Sarah’s Sweet Shoppe 28) Woodrow Wilson by Cheryl of The Sugared Apron29) Warren G. Harding by Shannon of Artfully Delicious Cookies 30) Calvin Coolidge by Stephanie of Ice My Biscuit 31) Herbert Hover by Fumie of A+Kake sweets 32) Franklin D. Roosevelt by Christine of Chris’ Creative Confections
25. William McKinley, Grover Cleveland, and James Madison are on the $500, $1000, and $5000 bill, respectively. The bills are still used as legal tender but are no longer being printed.
26. Theodore Roosevelt is one of the four presidents carved into Mt. Rushmore. The other three are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln
27. William Taft was the first president to throw the first ball of baseball season, beginning a tradition that continues today. The game was a 1910 game between the Washington Senators and the Philadelphia Athletics. The Senators won 3-0.
28. Woodrow Wilson was the first president to receive a PhD which he got in Political Science from Johns Hopkins University.
29. Warren G. Harding gambled away a set of White House China.
30. Calvin Coolidge was on the only president born on July 4.
31. Herbert Hoover was an orphan whose first job was picking bugs off potato plants, for which he was paid a dollar per hundred bugs. He also was a mine worker. He spoke Chinese to his wife to keep their conversations private.
32. Franklin D. Roosevelt is the only president to serve more than 2 terms (he served 4 and died in office).
33) Harry S Truman by Kim of Sugar Rush Custom Cookies 34) Dwight Eisenhower by Monica of Cookie Cowgirl 35) John F. Kennedy by CeCe of The Tactical Bakery 36) Lyndon B. Johnson by Jennifer of One Kookie Cookie 37) Richard Nixon by Jackie of iBakery 38) Gerald Ford by Georgeanne of LilaLoa
33. The "S" in Harry S Truman does not represent anything. His middle name is simply "S". By age 14, he read every book in his hometown library, including the Bible 3 times.
34. Dwight D. Eisenhower was the Commander of the Allied Forces during World War II.
35. John F. Kennedy was the youngest president elected and also the first catholic.
36. During the 1964 election, Lyndon B. Johnson had lead with the most electoral votes(486) until Ronald Reagan (525).
37. Richard Nixon was the only president who resigned. (August 9, 1974) He resigned to avoid being impeached. He loved football and Elvis and was the only president to visit all 50 states. He was also the first president to visit China.
38. Gerald Ford was the first person to be both vice president and president without being elected by the people. He was appointed vice president when Spiro Agnew resigned and he succeeded to the presidency when Nixon resigned.
39) Jimmy Carter by Jennifer of One Kookie Cookie 40) Ronald Reagan by Melissa of The Baked Equation 41) George Bush Sr. by Penny of Lucky Penny Cookies 42) Bill Clinton by Laurie of Cookie Bliss 43) George W. Bush by Sarah of Sarah’s Sweet Shoppe 44) Barack Obama by Teresa of Sugar T's Cookies
39. Jimmy Carter was a wealthy peanut farmer in Plains, Georgia. He is the only president to report witnessing a UFO.
40. Ronald Reagan was the oldest president to be elected. He was a Hollywood actor and made 50 films. He also started out as a Democrat and later switched to the Republican party.
41. George Bush survived four plane crashes during WWII.
42. Bill Clinton was the first democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to be elected to a second term. He was the second president since Andrew Johnson to be impeached. He led a prosperous country amidst many personal scandals.
43. George W. Bush, the son of the 41st president, has a collection of more than 250 signed baseballs.
44. Barack Obama, the first African American to be elected, speaks Spanish. His Secret Service code name is Renegade. He was known as the O'bomber in high school for his skills in basketball.
Thank you to all the cookie decorators that made this project possible! I hope you enjoyed your history lesson in cookies!!
Have a sweet day,
Anne Yorks
A message from Anne
“My blog is a collection of tidbits about the things I love... sugar cookies, baking, great food, cute stuff, and life in Happy Valley. Check back often for updates!!”
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