Creepy Curse: Founding Fathers Croak On Fourth Of July

Presidents Who Died On July 4th: Unlucky Independence Day: John Adams (left), Thomas Jefferson (middle), and James Monroe (right) all died on the Fourth of July. Coincidence -- or something more?

Wednesday, June 30, 2010 1:40 GMT

Just ask historian Bill Fawcett, author of Oval Office Oddities (HarperCollins), who notes that three of the first five American presidents – John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Monroe – all died on Independence Day (Jul. 4).

Even stranger: Adams and Jefferson died on the same exact day – July 4, 1826 – precisely 50 years to the date after they both signed the Declaration Of Independence.

Fawcett also notes that a fourth president, Zachary Taylor, got sick and died from Cholera just five days after attending July 4, 1850, festivities under the hot sun in Washington, D.C.

Thus, he often wonders if “some cranky British general” placed a strange curse on the presidents, or if it’s just one of those random coincidences in history.

Says Fawcett: “It seems three of our presidents celebrated the 4th by dying on it and celebrating it killed a fourth during the first 60 years of our nation.”