What some people think
In 1948, Arthur M. Schlesinger, Sr. polled 55 prominent scholars in American history and government, and again in 1962 he asked 75 to rank Presidents within five categories - as great, near great, average, below average and failure. Another poll, conducted among nearly 850 members of the United States Historical Society in 1977, asked respondents to name the 10 greatest Presidents. There were 3 other group polls in 1970, 1981, and 1982, and 12 more individual assessments discussed in this article. So, out of 18 lists, the results were:
Washington
Lincoln
Franklin Roosevelt
Jackson
Theodore Roosevelt were on all 18 lists
Wilson and Jefferson were on 17 lists
Then Truman on 9
Polk on 7
John Adams on 6
Grover Cleveland on 5
Kennedy on 2.
In 1956, the popular poll results were:
Franklin Roosevelt
Lincoln
Washington
Eisenhower,
Truman
Wilson
Theodore Roosevelt
Jefferson.
In 1976, popular poll results were:
Kennedy
Lincoln
Franklin Roosevelt
Truman
Washington
Eisenhower
Theodore Roosevelt
Lyndon Johnson
Jefferson
Wilson
Nixon