File talk:West Point Cadets passing Reviewing Stand, inauguration Parade, Washington, D.C, from Robert N. Dennis collection of stereoscopic views.jpg

Why 1905 appears correct

Copied from remarks originally made at User talk:Jmabel/Stereo cards of Washington, D.C.

Apparently the first president to have a reviewing stand was Garfield. The West Point cadets started marching in 1873, but 1885 was their last year until 1901. The 1881 Garfield stand looks a lot bigger (if that is in fact the stand pictured), so my guess is either 1885, or the early 1900s. Apparently Taft had two parades; the actual inaugural day was a blizzard, so they had another parade when the weather got better. Per here anyways. Carl Lindberg (talk) 05:27, 23 January 2011 (UTC)

Ooh. Look at the photos here from 1905 (Theodore Roosevelt's inauguration parade); they capture nearly the same angle. The four white pillars on either side of the street are there, with the same decorations hanging off of them. While it's possible they reused those props in other years, that seems unlikely. Other LoC photos do show the West Point cadets marching that day as well, and the linked photos show it was also a sunny day, same as this one (though 1897 and 1901 were also sunny). My guess is definitely 1905 for this one. Carl Lindberg (talk) 07:46, 24 January 2011 (UTC)

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