US Presidents Last Words Before They Died
By WILLIAM FISCHER
History
George Washington
Washington’s final hours on December 14, 1799 were recorded by his secretary, Tobias Lear, whose diary entry for that day is preserved at the National Archives.
Lear said that Washington asked to be buried until at least three days after he died. When Tobias said that understood this request, Washington said his last words: "Tis well."
John Quincy Adams
When taking questions after a speech Adams gave on February 21, 1848, he suffered a massive stroke that he was never able to fully recover from.
Doctors’ attempted treatments and Adams’s final words were quickly disseminated to the public before his death on February 23: “This is the last of earth, but I am composed.”
Andrew Jackson
Many witnesses agree Jackson’s last words were “I hope to meet each of you in Heaven. Be good, children, all of you, and strive to be ready when the change comes.”
However, according to Mark R. Cheathem, the variation reported by Jackson’s slave Hannah was “I hope to meet you all in Heaven, both black and white.”
James K. Polk
Per the Polk Home and Museum, Polk and his wife Sarah were touring the south in June 1849 when Polk contracted cholera and died soon after on June 15.
For how much his political life consumed him, his romantic last words were for his wife: "I love you, Sarah. For all eternity, I love you."
Zachary Taylor
Taylor’s time in office was cut short, as he died only 16 months after being elected. The given cause was "cholera morbus," per the UVA Miller Center.
Vice President, Millard Fillmore, said some of Taylor’s last words were, “I have always done my duty. I am ready to die. My only regret is for the friends I leave behind me.”