ON APRIL 30, 1789, George Washington, age fifty-seven, climbed out of a cream-colored coach and strode up the steps of Federal Hall in New York City, the temporary capital of the infant United States. He had become a national hero by leading the rebellious colonial forces in the American Revolutionary War. Now, as massive crowds cheered, he took the oath of office to become the first president of the United States. Afterward, Washington kissed the Bible and, as cannons fired a thirteen-gun salute, he walked to the Senate chamber to deliver his inaugural address.

This marked the beginning of the office of the U.S. presidency. It would, in time, become the best-known and most powerful political office in the world. Each succeeding president would alter and shape the office according to the dictates of his...