Historical estimate

James Garfield’s IQ: the Simonton 2006 2C number

Garfield’s displayed IQ in this atlas is 152—Table 1 column II-C—not a classroom test.

QuestionWhat was James Garfield’s IQ?
01

Start with the 2C number

On the ranking used here, James A. Garfield’s Simonton 2006 2C estimate is 152. Chester A. Arthur is also 152.3 in the same column; both display as 152.

James A. GarfieldChester A. Arthur
02

It is not a test result

No WAIS, Stanford–Binet, or school score report is attached to this figure. 2C is reconstructed from biographical ratings and earlier Cox-style estimates.

James A. Garfield
03

Where 152 sits on the list

Sorted by 2C, Garfield is below Theodore Roosevelt (153) and Woodrow Wilson (155) and above Abraham Lincoln (150). Open the presidents list sorted highest to lowest to see the full 42.

James A. GarfieldTheodore RooseveltWoodrow WilsonAbraham Lincoln
What the evidence supports

Simonton 2006 Table 1 II-C estimates 152.3, displayed as 152. It is a historiometric 2C value, not an administered IQ test.

Primary trail

Sources used in this investigation

peer-reviewed researchPresidential IQ, Openness, Intellectual Brilliance, and Leadership: Estimates and Correlations for 42 U.S. Chief ExecutivesPolitical Psychology (Wiley) · 2006