Special Sub-Topic: Presidential Name Game Click Here To Play: Presidential Name Game

To tell the truth is not a sin, I saw the first cotton gin - who am I?

George Washington. Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin in 1793, which revolutionized the production of cotton. Honest George Washington was president.

I purchased land on a lark, then I sent out Lewis and Clark. Who am I?

Thomas Jefferson. In 1803, Thomas Jefferson concluded the Louisiana Purchase - the greatest land deal in the history of the US. In 1804 he sent explorers Lewis and Clark to explore this area west of the Mississippi to find out just how much land he purchased for 15 million dollars.

To live at the Hermitage was my fate - I was elected president in 1828. Who am I?

Andrew Jackson. Elected to the presidency during one of American history's nastiest elections in 1828, Andrew Jackson, a son of the western frontier and icon of the ascendancy of the 'common man' in American politics, served two terms as president, after which he retired to Hermitage, his plantation in Tennessee. The campaign of 1828 was marred by bitterness and mud-slinging with Jackson's wife being accused of bigamy!

What God hath wrought went across the line - the telegraph was working fine! I was the president when the first telegraph message was sent - who am I?

John Tyler. In 1844 Samuel Morse invented the telegraph - its first message, 'What God Hath Wrought', was transmitted from Baltimore to Washington, D.C. John Tyler was just finishing up his first and only term as president - soon to be replaced by James Polk - another one-timer, in 1845.

The old Whig party finally grounded - the Republican Party was now founded. I was president at the time the GOP made its debut - who am I?

Franklin Pierce. The Republican party was founded in 1854 after the Whig Party lost favor among northern and western voters after the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act. We did not get a republican president until 1861, however.

The first GOP president and a son of Kentucky, I ran the US in 1861. Who am I?

Abraham Lincoln. President Lincoln, the first Republican president, signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 which changed the course of the Civil War and made way for the 13th Amendment which freed the slaves.

My presidental career ended with a bang - about the same time as Jesse started his gang. Who am I?

Andrew Johnson. In 1866 Jesse James and his brother, Frank robbed Missouri's Clay County Savings Association of $60,000. Around this time (1868) of lawlessness and daring broad-daylight raids, President Andrew Johnson was battling in congress as radical Republicans initiated impeachment proceedings against him for his violation of the Tenure of Office Act (he had dismissed the Secretary of War without congressional approval). Although Johnson was impeached by the House, the impeachment failed to pass in the Senate by a single vote. Although he served out his term, the impeachment forever marred his name and ended his political career (out with a bang).

The telephone invention and Custer's last stand took place when I was the leader of the land. Who am I?

Ulysses S. Grant. In 1876 Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone, one of the most important technological advances of the 19th century. Also during this year, George Armstrong Custer led his 7th Cavalry against the Sioux and Cheyenne who annihilated the attacking troops in the Battle of Little Bighorn.

I wasn't president for long at all - but I did see the invention of basketball. Who am I?

Benjamin Harrison. In 1891 James Naismith, an instructor at the YMCA's training school in Springfield, Mass. invented an indoor sport using a round ball and two peach baskets to improve YMCA attendance during cold weather. During this time, Benjamin Harrison was president. He is the only president in history to be preceded and followed by the same man (Grover Cleveland).

With the slogan, 'Remember the Maine', I took the US to war with Spain. Who am I?

William McKinley. In 1898, the US Navy battleship Maine exploded in Havana Harbor, killing 266 crewman. American blamed Spain for the disaster and called for retaliation. With cries of 'Remember the Maine!', the US launched into a conflict with Spain that lasted several months. Because of the popularity he gained during this small and forgotten war, Theodore Roosevelt, who had assumed office following McKinley's assassination in 1901, was elected president in 1904.