Presidents Who Survived Their Children

It is sad when a child dies before its parents. The Presidents have not been exempt from this fate. For our sake, we are only going to talk about those Presidential children who were direct descendants of the Presidents, not those who were adopted, stepchildren, or raised by the Presidents. Here are our lists:

Presidents who survived at least one of their children (lived to see at least one of their children deaths):

• John Adams – He survived Abigail “Nabby” Adams Smith (daughter), Grace Susanna “Suky” Adams (daughter), Charles Adams (son), and Elizabeth Adams (stillborn daughter)

• Thomas Jefferson – He survived Jane Randolph Jefferson (daughter), Peter Jefferson (son who was born and died on the same day), Mary “Polly” Jefferson Eppes, and Lucy Elizabeth Jefferson (he had two daughters by the same name who both died before Jefferson did)

• James Monroe – He survived James Spence Monroe (son)

• John Quincy Adams – He survived George Washington Adams (son), John Adams II (son), and Louisa Catherine Adams (daughter)

• Martin Van Buren – He survived Martin “Matt” Van Buren (son) and Winfield Scott Van Buren (son who was born and died on the same day)

• William Henry Harrison – He survived John Cleves Harrison (son), Lucy Singleton Harrison Este (daughter), William Henry Harrison, Jr. (son), Benjamin Harrison (son), Carter Bassett Harrison (son), and James Findlay Harrison (son)

• John Tyler – He survived Mary Tyler Jones (daughter), Anne Contesse Tyler (daughter), Elizabeth Tyler Waller (daughter) and Alice Tyler Denison (daughter)

• Zachary Taylor – He survived Sarah Knox Taylor Davis (daughter), Octavia Pannell Taylor (daughter), and Margaret Smith Taylor (daughter)

• Millard Fillmore – He survived Mary Abigail “Abbie” Fillmore (daughter)

• Franklin Pierce – He survived Franklin Pierce, Jr., Franklin “Frank” Robert Pierce, and Benjamin “Bennie” Pierce

• Abraham Lincoln – He survived Edward “Eddie” Baker Lincoln and William “Willie” Wallace Lincoln

• Andrew Johnson – He survived Charles Johnson (son) and Robert Johnson (son)

• Rutherford B. Hayes – He survived Joseph “Jody” Thompson Hayes (son), George Cook Hayes (son), and Manning Force Hayes (son)

• James Garfield – He survived Eliza Arabell “Trot” Garfield (daughter) and Edward Garfield (son)

• Chester Arthur – He survived William Lewis Herndon Arthur (son)

• Grover Cleveland – He survived “Baby” Ruth Cleveland (daughter)

• William McKinley – He survived Katherine “Katie” McKinley (daughter) and Ida “Little Ida” McKinley (daughter)

• Theodore Roosevelt – He survived Quentin Roosevelt (son)

• Calvin Coolidge – He survived Calvin Coolidge, Jr. (son).

• Herbert Hoover – He survived Allan Henry Hoover (son).

• Franklin Roosevelt – He survived Franklin Roosevelt (son).

• Dwight Eisenhower – He survived Doud Dwight “Icky” Eisenhower (son).

• John F. Kennedy – He survived Arabella Kennedy (daughter) who was a stillborn and Patrick Bouvier Kennedy (son).

• Ronald Reagan – He survived Maureen Reagan Revell (daughter)

• George HW Bush – He survived Pauline “Robin” Bush (daughter)

Presidents who survived (outlived) all their children:

• Franklin Pierce

• William McKinley

Presidents who had all their children survive (outlive) them:

• Ulysses Grant

• Benjamin Harrison

• William Howard Taft

• Woodrow Wilson

• Harry Truman

• Lyndon Johnson

• Richard Nixon

• Gerald Ford

Presidents who are still alive and all their children are still alive, too:

• Jimmy Carter

• Bill Clinton

• George W. Bush

• Barack Obama

• Donald Trump

Presidents who had children they survived and they also have had children that have survived them:

• John Adams

• Thomas Jefferson

• James Monroe

• John Quincy Adams

• Martin Van Buren

• WH Harrison

• John Tyler

• Zachary Taylor

• Millard Fillmore

• Abraham Lincoln

• Andrew Johnson

• Rutherford B. Hayes

• James Garfield

• Chester Arthur

• Grover Cleveland

• Theodore Roosevelt

• Calvin Coolidge

• Herbert Hoover

• Franklin Roosevelt

• Dwight Eisenhower

• John F. Kennedy

• Ronald Reagan

• George HW Bush

Presidents who had no direct descendants:

• George Washington

• James Madison

• Andrew Jackson

• James K. Polk

• James Buchanan

Presidents who had children with a mistress:

• Warren G. Harding – He had a daughter, Elizabeth Ann Britton Harding Blaesing, with his mistress, Nan Britton. Elizabeth (daughter) survived Harding.