Let’s be honest: do you remember there have been 46 leaders of our great nation? With President’s Day around the corner on Monday, Feb. 19, we took a beat from Virginia sports betting and looked at who the most recognized to the most forgotten presidents are in the history of the United States.
Utilizing the quiz website, Sporcle.com, we used their quiz, “Can you name the presidents of the United States of America?” that has been taken by 13.9 million people. From that, BetVirginia.com determined the most forgotten presidents by quiz takers by the percentage of people who got each president right.
Here are the forgotten leaders of our proud nation.
Nicknamed “The Great Unknown,” President Rutherford B. Hayes tops the list with only 56.2% of quiz takers knowing who he was. Hayes was given that nickname because at the time he was not well known in the Republican Party, but was elected as the 19th President of the United States (1877-1881).
Immediately after his term, another unknown was named the 21st President of the United States after the assassination of our 20th President James Garfield (1881-1881). By the way, Garfield ranks No. 9 on the list with only 66.1% of the respondents answering correctly. Our 21st President, Chester A. Arthur (1881-1885), took over the Presidency after Garfield and lands in the second spot at 56.9%.
Rounding out the top five: No. 3 and 29th overall President Warren G. Harding (1921-1923) at 57.9%, No. 4 and 14th overall President Franklin Pierce (1853-1857) at 59.4% and No. 5 and 13th overall President Millard Fillmore (1850-1853) at exactly 60.0%.
Jumping to the No. 7 spot is the 45th President Donald Trump (2017-2021) with 63.2%. How this is possible is anyone’s guess, since he has been in the news cycle 24/7 for the past eight years. Maybe some are intentionally ignoring the Trump era....
Out of sight and out of mind, but never to be forgotten in the U.S. History books: No. 6 and 15th President James Buchanan (1857-1861) at 61.7%, No. 8 and 12th overall President Zachary Taylor (1849-1850) at 65.9% and No. 10 and 25th overall President William McKinley (1897-1901) at 66.3%.
By the way, Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 5. Let’s try and remember that. And unfortunately we can't place any bets on Virginia betting apps on the election here in the U.S.
According to data from Sporcle.com, the most forgotten United States President is Rutherford B. Hayes. Hayes was the 19th U.S. President elected and spent the years 1877-1887 in the White House. Prior to president, Hayes was the Governor of Ohio for three terms from 1867-1876
William Henry Harrison, the ninth President of the United States, only lasted 31 full days in the White House and in his tenure. In 1941, on his 32nd day in office, Harrison contracted a cold and ultimately passed away due to pneumonia.
Some of the most forgotten presidents in U.S. history, in no specific order, include Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-1881), Franklin Pierce (1853-1857), Zachary Taylor (1849-1850), William McKinley (1897-1901), Chester Arthur (1881-1885), and Donald Trump (2017-2021).
Author
Lou Monaco had been East Coast Scene columnist for Gaming Today in Las Vegas since June 2019, covering the East Coast sportsbook scene with emphasis on NJ and PA. He also currently is a part-time writer for the high school sports department for NJ Advanced Media (NJ.com) in Iselin, NJ. Lou has over 30 years sports experience with previous stints at ESPN SportsTicker, Daily Racing Form and Oddschecker.
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