Most Ex-Presidents Alive in the Same Year
Here is a list of the most ex-Presidents alive in the same year. Just a reminder, the day a new President is sworn into office, the previous President becomes an ex-President. These numbers would be through 2020.
This can be a little confusing on occasions. Grover Cleveland was defeated for the Presidency by Benjamin Harrison, so he became an ex-President. However, four years later he returned to the White House to become President again. So, on his return, he was both a President and an ex-President. So far that is the only case where that has happened.
This also is a list of the total number of ex-Presidents alive during any part of the year and not necessarily alive at the same time. For instance, on July 4, 1826, two Presidents, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, died on the same day. So, on July 5, 1826, the number of ex-Presidents dropped from four to two (with James Madison and James Monroe being the surviving two). Yet, both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were alive during 1826, so for this listing, we count 1826 as having four ex-Presidents alive.
So, here we go, the most ex-Presidents alive during the years:
5 (five) ex-Presidents alive during the same year
1861-1862 (Van Buren, Tyler, Fillmore, Pierce, Buchanan)
1993-1994 (Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, GWH Bush)
2001-2004 (Ford, Carter, Reagan, GHW Bush, Clinton)
2017-2018 (Carter, GHW Bush, Clinton, GW Bush, Obama)
Most years in a row with five ex-Presidents alive: 4 years – 2001-2004
4 (four) ex-Presidents alive during the same year
1825-1826 (John Adams, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe)
1845 (JQ Adams, Jackson, Van Buren, Tyler)
1857-1860 (Van Buren, Tyler, Fillmore, Pierce)
1989-1992 (Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan)
1995-2000 (Ford, Carter, Reagan, GHW Bush)
2005 (Ford, Carter, GHW Bush, Clinton)
2009-2016 (Carter, GHW Bush, Clinton, GW Bush)
2019-2020 (Carter, Clinton, GW Bush, Obama)
Most years in a row with four ex-Presidents alive: 8 years – 2009-2016
3 (three) ex-Presidents alive during the same year
1817-1824 (John Adams, Jefferson, Madison)
1829-1831 (Madison, Monroe, JQ Adams)
1841-1844 (JQ Adams, Jackson, Van Buren)
1846-1849 (JQ Adams, Van Buren, Tyler)
1853-1856 (Van Buren, Tyler, Fillmore)
1863-1868 (Fillmore, Pierce, Buchanan)
1869 (Fillmore, Pierce, Andrew Johnson)
1885 (Grant, Hayes, Arthur)
1893 (Hayes, Cleveland, B Harrison)
1961-1964 (Hoover, Truman, Eisenhower)
1969 (Truman, Eisenhower, LB Johnson)
1981-1988 (Nixon, Ford, Carter)
2006-2008 (Carter, GHW Bush, Clinton)
Most years in a row with three ex-Presidents alive: 8 years – twice – 1817-1824 and 1981-1988
2 (two) ex-Presidents alive during the same year
1809-1816 (John Adams, Jefferson)
1827-1828 (Madison, Monroe)
1832-1836 (Madison, JQ Adams)
1837-1840 (JQ Adams, Jackson)
1850-1852 (Van Buren, Tyler)
1870-1874 (Fillmore, Andrew Johnson)
1881-1884 (Grant, Hayes)
1886 (Hayes, Arthur)
1889-1892 (Hayes, Cleveland)
1894-1901 (Cleveland, B Harrison)
1908 (Cleveland, T Roosevelt)
1913-1919 (T Roosevelt, Taft)
1921-1924 (Taft, Wilson)
1929-1930 (Taft, Coolidge)
1953-1960 (Hoover, Truman)
1965-1968 (Truman, Eisenhower)
1970-1972 (Truman, LB Johnson)
1977-1980 (Nixon, Ford)
Most years in a row with two ex-Presidents alive: 9 years – 1832-1840
1 (one) ex-President alive during the same year
1797-1799 (Washington)
1801-1808 (John Adams)
1875 (Andrew Johnson)
1877-1880 (Grant)
1887-1888 (Hayes)
1902-1907 (Cleveland)
1909-1912 (T Roosevelt)
1920 (Taft)
1925-1928 (Taft)
1931-1932 (Coolidge)
1934-1952 (Hoover)
1973 (LB Johnson)
1974-1976 (Nixon)
Most years in a row with just one ex-President alive: 19 years – 1934-1952
No (zero) ex-Presidents alive during the same year
1789-1796 (Washington was President so there were no ex-Presidents)
1800 (none)
1876 (none)
Most years in a row with no ex-President alive: 8 year – 1789-1796
Side notes:
1. In our 232 years of Presidents (1789-2020), most of those years we have had two ex-Presidents alive (78 years). That is followed by one ex-President alive (58 years), three ex-Presidents alive (48 years), four ex-Presidents alive (28 years), and five ex-Presidents alive (10 years). We have also had no ex-Presidents alive in ten of those years, but in eight of those years, Washington, the first President, was the only President alive. Since he was serving as President, there was no one who would have been an ex-President. Otherwise, there have only been two years (1800 and 1876) in which we have had zero ex-Presidents alive.
2. Herbert Hoover has the longest straight streak as serving as ex-President in the same category. He was the only ex-President alive for nineteen years (1934-1952). The next closest same group of ex-Presidents is eight straight years and it has happened seven times: 1801-1808 (John Adams was the lone ex-President alive), 1809-1816 (John Adams and Jefferson were the only ex-Presidents alive), 1817-1824 (John Adams, Jefferson, and Madison we the only ex-Presidents alive), 1894-1901 (Cleveland and Benjamin Harrison were the only ex-Presidents alive), 1953-1960 (Hoover and Truman were the only ex-Presidents alive), 1981-1988 (Nixon, Ford, and Carter were the only ex-Presidents alive), and 2009-2016 (Carter, GHW Bush, Clinton, and GW Bush were the only ex-Presidents alive).
3. Jimmy Carter has appeared on the most different ex-President lists above. He is in ten of them. Ford and GHW Bush each appear in seven different ex-President lists above. Tyler, Hayes, Taft, and Clinton each appear in six different lists above. John Quincy Adams, Van Buren, Fillmore, Truman, and Nixon each appear in five different ex-President lists above.
4. William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, William McKinley, Warren Harding, Franklin Roosevelt, and John Kennedy do not appear on any list. They all died in office and they never had the opportunity to become an ex-Presidents. Donald Trump, who is the current President, is still serving and also has not had the opportunity to be an ex-President yet.
