PRESIDENTIAL TALES

From skinny-dipping to modeling: 10 little-known Presidential facts

Image: National Archives and Records Administration

Presidents of the United States are often expected to be larger-than-life—sort of superhuman—personalities, leading the nation with gravity and responsibility. However, just like anyone, they have normal lives, peculiar interests, and sometimes even intriguing personal backstories.

From unconventional hobbies to surprising personal struggles, here are 10 U.S. Presidents with untold tales that might just reshape the way you perceive these historical figures.

Image: Provincial Archives of Alberta

Abraham Lincoln, the 16th U.S. President, wasn't just known for his eloquent speeches and great leadership during the Civil War. Surprisingly, "Honest Abe" was also a very skilled wrestler in his younger days. With over 300 matches under his belt, Lincoln only ever lost one, earning him a reputation as a formidable opponent in the ring.

Image: Nikolay Tchaouchev

While Calvin Coolidge may be mostly remembered for his quiet demeanor, his private life revealed a different side. Coolidge had a penchant for unusual pets, and during his stay at the White House, he turned it into a mini zoo. Besides many other more conventional pets, he owned two raccoons, a donkey, a bobcat, several lion cubs, a Pygmy hippopotamus, a wallaby, a duiker, an antelope, a black bear, and 13 Pekin ducks. Quite the exotic collection!

Image: Albert Antony

In 1969, years before becoming the 39th President, Jimmy Carter reported a UFO sighting in Georgia. He described seeing a bright light in the night sky that changed colors before disappearing. A few years later, Carter even filed an official report with the International UFO Bureau, making him the only U.S. President to document a personal encounter with unidentified flying objects.

Image: Dylan de Jonge

Known as the "Father of His Country", George Washington had a side hustle that might surprise many. In 1799, he became one of the largest whiskey producers in the United States, operating a distillery on his Mount Vernon estate. Washington's distillery produced nearly 11,000 gallons of whiskey in 1799 alone. Despite this, Washington was a strong proponent of moderation, knowing well the dangers of drinking alcohol in excess.

Image: Austrian National Library

Beyond his many political achievements, Teddy Roosevelt was an avid boxer throughout his life. He kept a boxing gym in the White House and sparred with various aides and diplomats.

While he embraced vigorous physical activities as a means of fighting various health issues, he was occasionally injured. He reportedly lost sight in one eye due to a detached retina from a particularly intense boxing match with a military aide, proving that he truly embodied his maxim: Speak softly and carry a big stick.

Image: Tyler Palmer

John Quincy Adams, the 6th President, had an unconventional daily routine. He was known for skinny-dipping in the cold waters of the Potomac River every morning, believing it invigorated both his body and mind. At the time, it wasn’t odd to bathe naked in a river, but his doctor wasn’t fully convinced of the health benefits of his peculiar practice. However, Adams staunchly defended his right to do so, and sometimes even invited family members or political acquaintances to join him in the Potomac.

Image: Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library

Before entering politics, Gerald Ford left his mark in the fashion industry. In his late twenties, he worked as a model, even appearing on the cover of Cosmopolitan in 1942. Ford's modeling career was short-lived, as a few years later he would start campaigning in local Republican politics, but it adds an unexpected layer to the image of the 38th President.

Image: Dolo Iglesias

Often remembered for his shortcomings—like the Watergate scandal—Richard Nixon had a hidden musical talent: playing the piano. Reportedly, he was an accomplished pianist, even performing with the likes of Pearl Bailey and Jack Benny. Behind his political mask, he was an intelligent and sensitive man, and while his musical abilities were overshadowed by his political career, it shows that there’s always more to a person than meets the eye.

Image: Alicia Razuri

Thomas Jefferson, 3rd U.S. President and one of the most influential political figures in the history of our country, was known for being proficient in several languages, including French, Italian, Spanish, and German. He was interested in linguistics and studied ancient languages like Latin, Greek, and even Old English. Documents found posthumously in his library suggest that he was also interested in Arabic, Irish, and Welsh, but it is unknown how proficient he was in those languages.

Image: Camille Brodard

Before Ronald Reagan entered politics, he worked as a lifeguard, saving 77 lives during his seven summers on duty. He even saved a little girl from drowning while serving as Governor of California! Reagan's transition from lifeguard to Hollywood actor eventually paved the way for his political career, proving that even the most unexpected career paths can lead to the highest office.

Where exactly are you from?

London, Argentina? 10 cities that were named after a city

Some would say that naming a city is as important as naming a child, or even more, considering that cities tend to have a longer lifespan. Like with a child, the name is a declaration of intentions, of what is expected or wished for them.

But sometimes children are named after someone else, like a loved one, a relative, or a favorite celebrity. Does this happen to cities as well? In this article, we will explore some cities around the world that have a namesake.

In Spanish, Londres is the name given to the city of London, England, and also to a town in the Argentinian province of Catamarca. This town, the second oldest in the country, owes its name to the marriage of Mary Tudor with Philip of Spain in 1553. The founders of the city, at that time part of the Spanish empire, decided to honor the royal marriage by naming it Londres de la Nueva Inglaterra (London of the New England), though nowadays the name has been shortened to just Londres.

Located over the Mississippi River, the city of Memphis has been the setting of important historical and political events. But, where did it get its name from? In 1818, the U.S. gained the territory of Western Tennessee after signing the Treaty of Tuscaloosa. The founders of the city, among them future president John Adams, recognized the importance of the river and decided to name the place after another famous city on a river, the Egyptian Memphis.

Back in the day, many people believed that China and the U.S. were on opposite sides of the world. One of these people, Mrs. Ann Eliza Cromwell, was tasked with naming the new town her husband had helped to found near the Illinois River. Convinced they were on the antipodes of Peking (what we now call Beijing), she chose the name Pekin.

The origin of this name is interesting because we don’t really know the reason behind it. During the 1820s, a man called Edward Hughes bought land in the state of Maryland and divided it for sale. He received Congressional approval for a postal route in a document where the flourishing town was named as The Pleasant Plains of Damascus. While he named it after the Syrian city of Damascus, we don’t know if he had any connections to it or if it was just a biblical reference.

In the early 19th century, Scottish landowner William Fullarton wanted to give coal workers on his estate somewhere to live, and he founded a village for this purpose. The son of an East India Company officer, Fullarton was born in India, in the city of Patna, Bihar, and decided to name the new mining town after his birthplace.

Many people hear ‘Cartagena’ and think about the Colombian city, named after its Spanish namesake. But Spanish Cartagena is also named after a city. This Mediterranean town was founded by Carthaginian general Hasdrubal with the name of Carthago (after the North African city of the same name). Conquered by the Roman Empire, it was renamed Carthago Nova, or ‘New Carthage’, and, after the Visigoth and Arab rule, its name evolved to Cartagena.

One would think that a city named Kansas in a state named Kansas would be the first of its name. But the Kansas of Kansas is named after Kansas City, Missouri. Founded in the 1830s, the Missourian Kansas quickly grew thanks to commerce and industry. Over the state line, the people of Kansas state decided to also have a Kansas City, to benefit from the economic growth associated with the name. Now you know: if you have a feeling that you are not in Kansas anymore, you might just be in Missouri.

Capital of the state of Jalisco, Guadalajara is one of the most important cities in Mexico. Its name is of Arab origin, and it means ‘valley of the stones’. Established by Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century, it was named by Cristobal de Oñate after his birthplace, Guadalajara City in Spain, a place once under Arab rule.

There are at least 16 places in the U.S. named Boston, but only one of them is named after a foreign city. The capital of the state of Massachusetts was established in the 17th Century by Puritan settlers, who took the name from an English port in Lincolnshire. The new Boston was the scene of several key episodes in the American Revolutionary War, and all other Bostons in the U.S. are named after it.

Ithaca is a college town, home to Cornell University. It was founded after the Revolutionary War, on territory gained from the Iroquois, who had helped the British Army during the conflict. The American government granted plots of land as payment to soldiers in the Continental Army, one of them being Moses De Whitt. First settled in the Town of Ulysses, he later relocated to what is now Ithaca and named it after the Greek island that was Ulysses’ home.