17 presidents who grew up in surprisingly humble homes

Max Kalnitz,Mykenna ManieceFeb 18, 2024, 18:58 IST

Jimmy Carter's childhood home in Plains, Georgia.Shutterstock; AP/Mark Humphrey

Some presidents like John F. Kennedy were born to wealthy families with large estates.
Others came from working-class families who lived in small cabins or on farms.

Unlike the Kennedys and Roosevelts of the world, some presidents' journeys to Washington began in surprisingly humble homes, cottages, or log cabins.

In fact, President Joe Biden found the transition to the White House so jarring in comparison to his upbringing that he likened it to a "gilded cage."

From Georgia farmlands to the island of O'ahu, here's a look at 17 presidents' modest beginnings.

John Adams was born in this quiet cottage in rural Massachusetts in 1735.

John Adams' birthplace.Joe Sohm/Visions of America/Getty Images

James Buchanan, the United States' 15th president, was born in this unpretentious log cabin in 1791.

James Buchanan's childhood cabin.MPI/Getty Images

James K. Polk grew up on a humble homestead, which has been recreated for a National Historic Site.

President James K. Polk's birthplace.North Carolina Historic Sites

Millard Fillmore spent his childhood in this log cabin in New Hope, New York.

Millard Fillmore's childhood home.Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Abraham Lincoln was born in a one-room log cabin on the Kentucky frontier.

A recreation of President Lincoln's log cabin on display in 1933 at the Century of Progress International Exposition in Chicago.Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago/Getty Images

Ulysses S. Grant lived in this quaint cottage for less than a year after his birth in 1822.

Ulysses S. Grant's birthplace in Point Pleasant, Ohio.AP Photo

A replica shows the modest log cabin where future president James Garfield was born.

A replica of James Garfield's birthplace.Beth J. Harpaz/AP Photo

In 1843, William McKinley was born in an upstairs bedroom of a two-story Ohio home that his parents were renting.

William McKinley's birthplace in Niles, Ohio as it appeared in 1902, the year after his death.C.H. Graves/Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images

Herbert Hoover spent the first three years of his life in this two-bedroom cottage in West Branch, Iowa.

President Herbert Hoover's birthplace.Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Harry S. Truman was born in this small house in Lamar, Missouri, in 1884.

The birthplace of President Harry S. Truman.Alfred Eisenstaedt/Getty Images

In 1908, Lyndon B. Johnson was born in a ranch-style home in Johnson City, Texas.

LBJ outside his family home in 1964.Bettmann/Getty Images

LBJ spent his childhood in a different house in Johnson City.

LBJ's reconstructed childhood home.Cynthia Dorminey/NPS

Ronald Reagan was born in an apartment above a bakery turned bank building in downtown Tampico, Illinois, in 1911.

The apartment building where Ronald Reagan was born.Scott Olson/Getty Images

President Richard Nixon was born in this single-family home in 1913 in Yorba Linda, California.

Former presidents Nixon, Reagan, Bush, and Ford pose for a picture with their wives outside Richard Nixon's birthplace and childhood home in 1990.Wally McNamee/Contributor/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images

The Plains, Georgia, farm where Jimmy Carter spent most of his childhood had no indoor electricity or plumbing and relied on wood stoves for heat.

The farm where Jimmy Carter grew up.Jeffrey M. Frank/Shutterstock

President Joe Biden was born in 1942 and spent the first 10 years of his life living with his maternal grandparents in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

President Joe Biden's childhood home.Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images

The Bush family lived in this 1,400-square-foot home in Midland, Texas.

President Bush and first lady Laura Bush visit the president's childhood home in Midland, Texas, in 2008.Evan Vucci/AP

A young Barack Obama lived in this single-family craftsman home in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Barack Obama's childhood home.Google Maps

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