Many US presidents used tobacco throughout history, preferring cigars, pipes, chewing tobacco, and cigarettes. Tobacco was culturally significant in America, originating from Native Americans and later becoming a key cash crop and source of tax revenue. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson cultivated tobacco but were not regular users. John Adams smoked and chewed tobacco, reportedly leaving stubs on the White House floor. James Madison smoked cigars, and his wife Dolley used snuff openly. Andrew Jackson used cigars, chew, and a pipe, placing spittoons in the White House. Seven presidents are noted as non-users: Lincoln, Wilson, Truman, Carter, G.H.W. Bush, Trump, and Biden. Ulysses S. Grant was a heavy cigar smoker, reportedly 20 daily, and died from related cancer. William McKinley smoked cigars but only mouthed them around his wife. Theodore Roosevelt smoked cigars but banned his daughter from smoking inside. Warren Harding was the first known cigarette smoker among presidents, also using cigars. Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, and Lyndon Johnson were noted tobacco users, with FDR, Eisenhower, and LBJ having strong cigarette habits. Richard Nixon was the last to offer cigars after dinners, and Bill Clinton was the last to smoke openly. First Lady Hillary Clinton ended the White House tobacco tradition by removing ashtrays and banning smoking in the residence.
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