Dwight D. Eisenhower: the record and the legends

Ike. The 34th president, 1953-1961, from Kansas. Every story here is tagged Record, meaning it’s documented, or Legend, meaning it gets told a lot and doesn’t hold up. Each one links to its source.

President: 34th
In office: 1953-1961
Home state: Kansas
Party: Republican
Height: 5'10"

The record

RecordBefore D-Day in June 1944, Eisenhower wrote a short note to use if the invasion failed. It took all the blame himself. He never had to send it.Source: National Archives, General Eisenhower's Order of the Day
RecordIn 1957, Arkansas used its National Guard to keep nine Black students out of Central High School in Little Rock. Eisenhower sent the 101st Airborne to walk them in.Source: National Archives, Eisenhower and the Little Rock Nine
RecordHe'd promised to go to Korea if he won, and he went in December 1952, before he was even sworn in. The fighting ended with an armistice the next July.Source: National Park Service, Eisenhower and the Korean War Armistice
RecordEisenhower's West Point class of 1915 turned out so many generals that it's known as the class the stars fell on.Source: Eisenhower Foundation, Eisenhower's Time at West Point

The legends

LegendYou'll hear that tackling Jim Thorpe in a 1912 game is what ended Eisenhower's football career. He did play against Thorpe that year. But the knee injury that finished him came later, in a game against Tufts.Source: National Archives, 10 Football Facts Featuring U.S. Presidents

What he cared about

Ending the Korean War. The armistice was signed in July 1953.
Building the Interstate Highway System, the biggest public works program the country had ever seen.
Warning Americans, on his way out, about the growing power of the military-industrial complex.

The full record

In 1954 his administration ran a mass deportation campaign that removed large numbers of Mexican immigrants and some U.S. citizens, and in 1953 he signed an order that barred gay and lesbian Americans from federal jobs.

How he fights in POTUS KO

West Point cadet boxing

Eisenhower ran the biggest invasion in history by planning every piece and then committing to it. He fights the same way: a clean boxer who picks a plan and keeps pushing it.

See POTUS KO

Questions about Dwight D. Eisenhower

Did Jim Thorpe end Eisenhower's football career?

You'll hear that tackling Jim Thorpe in a 1912 game is what ended Eisenhower's football career. He did play against Thorpe that year. But the knee injury that finished him came later, in a game against Tufts.

What did Eisenhower write before D-Day?

Before D-Day in June 1944, Eisenhower wrote a short note to use if the invasion failed. It took all the blame himself. He never had to send it.

What is the class the stars fell on?

Eisenhower's West Point class of 1915 turned out so many generals that it's known as the class the stars fell on.