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How many U.S. presidents have been assassinated?

Four American presidents have been assassinated (killed by a sudden and secret attack) while in office: Abraham Lincoln in 1865; James Garfield in 1881; William McKinley in 1901; and John F. Kennedy in 1963. Additionally, assassination attempts were made on the lives of presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933), Harry S Truman (1950), Gerald R. Ford (two attempts, both in 1975), and Ronald Reagan (1981).

Lincoln (1809–1865) was shot on the evening of April 14, 1865, as he sat in the presidential box at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., watching a performance of the play Our American Cousin. The assassin was actor John Wilkes Booth (1838–1865). After shooting Lincoln, Booth jumped onto the stage, falling and breaking a leg. Wilkes limped away, calling out, "Sic semper tyrannis" (a Latin phrase meaning "Thus always to tyrants")....

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