A Look At Presidents Before And After Their Time in Office

Some of them went through remarkable changes.

August 22, 2018 5:00 am
Ronald Reagan's inauguration in 1981. (CQ Roll Call via Getty Images)
Ronald Reagan's inauguration in 1981. (CQ Roll Call via Getty Images)
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Being president of the United States is no easy feat — in fact, it is an incredibly difficult and stressful job. Presidents usually come out of their one or two terms looking a little more aged — sometimes they’re downright haggard — than before they went in. There has been much talk about how grey Barack Obama got during his eight years and office, and Abraham Lincoln’s four years in office — some of the most tumultuous in America’s history — left an obvious mark on the president.

Below, we take a look at pictures of presidents before and after their presidency.

Abraham Lincoln

16th President

March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865

The first photographic portrait of the new president (Wikipedia)
Abraham Lincoln (Library of Congress Prints)

Lyndon B. Johnson

36th President

November 22, 1963 – January 20, 1969
Lyndon Baines Johnson, 36th President of the United States from 1963 to 1969 sworn in as President of the United States on an aircraft carrying the body of his assassinated predecessor John Kennedy. November 1963. (Photo12/UIG via Getty Images)
UIG via Getty Images
Lyndon Baines Johnson and Richard Nixon embrace during inauguration ceremonies. (© CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)
Corbis via Getty Images

Barack Obama

44th President

January 20, 2009 – January 20, 2017
Presidential Inauguration of Barak Obama on the west side of The U.S. Capitol Tuesday morning.(The Denver Post, Andy Cross) (Andy Cross/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
Denver Post via Getty Images
President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden await the inauguration of Donald Trump on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol on January 20, 2017 in Washington, DC. In today’s inauguration ceremony Donald J. Trump becomes the 45th president of the United States. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Getty Images

Richard Nixon

37th President

January 20, 1969 – August 9, 1974
New First Lady Patricia Nixon with her husband, President Richard M. Nixon at his Inauguration. (Henry Groskinsky/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images)
The LIFE Picture Collection/Gett
Richard Nixon (1913 – 1994) gives the thumbs up as he addresses the White House staff upon his resignation as 37th President of the United States, Washington, DC, 9th August 1974. His son-in-law David Eisenhower is with him on the left. (Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Getty Images

Harry S. Truman

33rd President

April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953
Harry Truman in 1945. (Keystone-FranceGamma-Rapho via Getty Images)
Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images
Former President Harry S. Truman, center; John F. Kennedy, right; and another chat in Boston on March 8, 1954. He was in town for nine hours, during which he will speak at a luncheon at the Sheraton Plaza to raise funds for the Truman Memorial Library. (Edward F. Carr/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
Boston Globe via Getty Images

Jimmy Carter

39th President

January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981
President Carter watches television after his presidential inauguration. Washington DC, January 20, 1977. (© CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)
Corbis via Getty Images
Republican President-elect Ronald Reagan (R) and wife Nancy (2R) standing with President Jimmy Carter wife Rosalynn outside the White House. (Diana Walker/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)
Time & Life Pictures/Getty Image

Bill Clinton

42nd President

January 20, 1993 – January 20, 2001
Pres. Bill Clinton raising hand, taking oath of office in his Inaugural Day swear-in, daughter Chelsea (L), VP Al Gore (R) et al in witness, Chief Justice William Rehnquist officiating. (Dirck Halstead/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images)
The LIFE Images Collection/Getty
Former US President Bill Clinton is pictured during a visit to the Kycukiro Health Center in Kigali 25 September 2002. Clinton is in the Rwandan capital for a one-day visit aimed mainly at focusing attention on the fight against AIDS. (MARCO LONGARI/AFP/Getty Images)
AFP/Getty Images

Ronald Reagan

40th President

January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989
Ronald Reagan’s inauguration in 1981. (CQ Roll Call via Getty Images)
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A 1990 portrait of former President Ronald Reagan. | Location: indoors. (Visions of America LLC/Corbis via Getty Images)
Corbis via Getty Images

George W. Bush

43rd President

January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009
President George W. Bush flashes the “W” sign for his middle name “Walker” as he greets supporters at the Marriott Wardman Inaugural Ball in Washington, DC, 20 January 2001. Bush attended nine balls following his inauguration as the 43rd U.S. President. (MIKE NELSON/AFP/Getty Images)
AFP/Getty Images
Former U.S. President George W. Bush makes a speech at the World Knowledge Forum on October 14, 2009 in Seoul, South Korea. Bush praised Asian economies for leading the global economy out of its slump, while warning against a rise in trade protectionism. (The Maeil Business Newspaper via Getty Images)
Getty Images

Franklin D. Roosevelt

32nd President

March 4, 1933 – April 12, 1945
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1933 (Wikipedia)
This is a picture of Franklin D. Roosevelt taken on April 11, 1945 — one day before he died.

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