How Well Do You Know Your Vice Presidents?
Test yourself on our quiz of the famous, infamous and not-so-famous least powerful men in the country
- By K. Annabelle Smith
- Smithsonian.com, June 28, 2012
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(Library of Congress)
Elbridge Thomas Gerry, 5th Vice President of the United States (1813–1814)
At the United States Constitutional Convention in 1787, Gerry and two others—Edmund Randolph and George Mason—refused to sign the Constitution because it did not then include a Bill of Rights. Prior to his service as vice president to James Madison, Gerry was governor of Massachusetts and lost reelection in 1812 over his support for a redistricting bill that benefited his Democratic-Republican Party. Out of that debate, the term “gerrymander” was born. What animal inspired this term?
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Comments (5)
You post only 10 of the 11 VP quizes.
Posted by R.E. McCutcheon on August 16,2012 | 03:02 PM
I am disappointed that Smithsonian insists on portraying Calvin Coolidge as sleeping, "do-nothing", etc. What your comments do is dissuade people from learning more because they think there is nothing interesting to know, an outlook Smithsonian should not be promoting! I now doubt other "information" you portray about other vice-presidents. For those readers interested in learning more of our Thirtieth President, there are several biographies available, among them: William Allen White, A Puritan in Babylon: The Story of Calvin Coolidge; Claude M. Fuess’ Calvin Coolidge: The Man From Vermont; Donald R. McCoy’s Calvin Coolidge: The Quiet President; Robert H. Ferrell’s The Presidency of Calvin Coolidge; Robert Sobel’s Coolidge: An American Enigma; David Greenberg’s Calvin Coolidge; and Amity Shlaes’ Coolidge (due to come out soon). Some may wish to read Coolidge’s own story as found in the pages of his Autobiography.
Posted by DIane Kemble on July 23,2012 | 07:10 PM
There's an error in your veep quiz. Schuyler Colfax was Grant's veep, not Garfield's. (Garfield died after being in office just a few months, so he was never nominated for a second term.)
Posted by Rebecca Jones on July 5,2012 | 04:17 PM
As I noted a couple of days ago, the answer to the Colfax question has a grievous error. Colfax was Grant's first veep. Garfield died in office; therefore, he did not have a second term. In fact, Smithsonian recently published an article about Garfield's assassination. You need to read your own publication!
Posted by Bill Spaniel on July 5,2012 | 03:39 PM
Since Garfield was killed in office (whether by doctors or his shooter)and succeeded by Arthur, how could Colfax be on Garfield's re-election ticket? He was Grant's first veep was replaced by Wilson for Grant's re-election.
Posted by Bill Spaniel on July 3,2012 | 03:50 PM