Ronald Reagan Presidential History, Official First Inaugural Ball Invitation, 1981

Ronald Reagan

Ephemera and pamphlets

Reagan, Ronald. Official Inaugural Ball Invitation, 1981, documents the ceremonial celebrations accompanying the beginning of Ronald Reagan’s first presidential term and George H. W. Bush’s vice presidency. Reagan and Bush took their oaths of office on January 20, 1981, during the 49th presidential inauguration, with Reagan becoming the 40th President of the United States. The daytime ceremony was itself significant within the history of presidential inaugurations as the first swearing-in conducted on the West Front of the United States Capitol, a location subsequently adopted for later ceremonies. The invitation survives from the evening social program surrounding that transfer of executive authority and provides a contemporary artifact of the formal public culture through which a new presidential administration was introduced and celebrated.

Official inaugural ball invitation. Washington, D.C., January 20, 1981. Approximately 5¼ x 7½ inches. The invitation announces: “In Honor of the President of the United States and Mrs. Reagan / The Vice President of the United States and Mrs. Bush / The Presidential Inaugural Committee 1981 / Requests The Honor of Your Company at the Inaugural Ball / Tuesday Evening The Twentieth of January One Thousand Nine Hundred and Eighty One / In The City of Washington / Nine O’Clock,” followed by the dress instruction, “White and Black Tie Optional.” Its naming of Ronald and Nancy Reagan together with George H. W. and Barbara Bush situates the piece within the ceremonial presentation of both the presidential and vice presidential households. Reagan Library records confirm that inaugural balls were held that evening and preserve Reagan’s January 20 remarks delivered to the celebrations.

The invitation dates from the opening day of an administration that Reagan publicly characterized in his inaugural address as a “new beginning,” with his remarks emphasizing economic recovery, reduced government, and restoration of national confidence. The ceremonial context was heightened by another major event that day: Reagan announced during the congressional inaugural luncheon that the American hostages held in Iran had been released, giving January 20, 1981 additional importance within contemporary political and diplomatic history. Slight yellowing around the edges; currently protected beneath plastic, with glare in the supplied image resulting from that covering; good condition. A contemporary piece of presidential ephemera documenting the formal celebrations surrounding Ronald Reagan’s first inauguration and the opening of the Reagan Bush administration.

Item #16894

Price: $100.00