INAUGURATION 2009

A BIBLE WITH SIGNIFICANCE

Barack Obama laid his hand on a Bible used in Abraham Lincoln’s 1861 inauguration. The chief justice in 1861 was Roger Brooke Taney, author of the Dred Scott decision barring blacks from citizenship.

ALWAYS A NUMBERS GAME

In his inaugural speech, Barack Obama said, “Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath.” There have been only 43 different men serve as president; Grover Cleveland served two non-consecutive terms.

YOUNG AND READY TO GO

At 47, Barack Obama is the nation’s fifth-youngest president. The youngest was Theodore Roosevelt (42), followed by John F. Kennedy (43), Bill Clinton (46) and Ulysses S. Grant (46).

TAKING A GUESS IS TRICKY BUSINESS

More than 1 million people crammed onto the inauguration parade route, according to Associated Press estimates based on crowd photographs and comparisons with past events. The National Park Service says Congress ordered it to stop doing crowd counts in 1997 after the agency was accused of underestimating numbers for the 1995 Million Man March.

EVERYBODY BUNDLED UP

Morning temperatures in Washington were in the low 20s with overcast skies. But readings climbed to 28 by noon. The normal high for Jan. 20 in Washington is 42 degrees with a low of 26.

THEY MEET UNDER DIFFERENT TERMS

Barack Obama was one of 22 Senate Democrats to vote against Chief Justice John Roberts’ confirmation in 2005, so this was the first time a justice has sworn in a president who voted against him.

HONORING THEIR PAST

The parade included contingents from the Punahou School, Barack Obama’s high school in Honolulu, and Whitney M. Young Magnet High School, first lady Michelle Obama’s high school in Chicago.

TIME TO GET STARTED

At 12:01 p.m., the White House Web site reflected Barack Obama’s assumption of office, even before he took the oath. According to the Constitution, the transition of power occurs at noon.

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“In today’s sharp sparkle, this winter air, anything can be made, any sentence begun. On the brink, on the brim, on the cusp, praise song for walking forward in that light.”

A verse from “Praise Song for the Day: A Poem for Barack Obama’s Presidential Inauguration,” read by Elizabeth Alexander, the fourth inaugural poet.