Five Misconceptions About American History

5.) John F. Kennedy Wasn’t the Youngest President .

It’s true, Kennedy was the youngest elected president. However, Theodore Roosevelt was the youngest president ever. He ascended to the office shortly after McKinley was assassinated by an anarchist. Kennedy was 43 when elected; Roosevelt was just shy of his 43 rd birthday when he took the Oath of Office, giving him a slight edge in the “youngest president” competition.

4.) Washington Wasn’t the First President

Okay, so he was the first president under the United States Constitution. However, let’s not forget about the Articles of Confederation. The title then was “President of the Continental Congress,” and the position held very little power. It was held by people such as famous politician John Hancock, future Supreme Court Chief Justice John Jay, and Speaker of the House of Burgesses Peyton Randolph. Okay, so the last one you may not know, but he held the position twice. The position was abolished when the Constitution came into effect in 1789 and George Washing assumed the title of “President of the United States.”

3.) Teddy Roosevelt Wasn’t Leader of the Rough Riders

Roosevelt was offered command of the legendary Spanish-American War unit, but turned it down due to his own lack of direct military experience. Roosevelt left his position as Assistant Secretary of the Navy to join the unit, but was never its commanding officer. That position was held Colonel Leonard Wood, a Medal of Honor recipient. In fact, the Rough Riders were known in their day as “Wood’s Weary Walkers,” as they lacked horses despite being a cavalry unit. Roosevelt did accept a Lieutenant Colonel position, and served as the unit’s second-in-command.

2.) America Won the War of 1812

This one is an extreme misconception. This war was, at best, a draw for America. In fact, the only real reason for the end of this war was the bigger concern of finishing off Napoleon in France. America had few victories, with its biggest, the Battle of New Orleans, occurring after the war had ended with the Treaty of Ghent. Not only did we lose our capital city (which, prior to this, was generally considered losing the war), we also suffered a terrible blockade throughout the war. While we fought valiantly, it was neither victory nor total defeat. We succeeded in proving we could defend ourselves against a greater power, a victory in and of itself.

1.) Thomas Edison Invented the Light Bulb

This one is the mother of all misconceptions. You probably already know this one, but it still merits placement on this list. Various people contributed to the development of the light bulb, but Edison is the most well known, and made one of the greatest single leaps in it’s modern use. The first incandescent was made by Humphry Davy in 1802. Of course, it was terribly inefficient and could never have been marketed, but the point is, he did it. Edison did it better.