On July 11 and 12 of 1864, the Confederates attached Fort Stevens, which was one of 68 fortifications protecting Washington, D.C. during the War Between the States. Because it was relatively late during the War and the South was on the verge of defeat, the fort was thinly defended by a very small number of unseasoned troops. Fortunately for the Yankees, the defenders of the fort were able to hold on until reinforcements arrived, thus preventing the capture of Washington, which would have been somewhat of a setback for the North.
On both days of the battle, Abraham Lincoln stood on the parapet of the fort to watch the festivities. His top-hatted six-foot four-inch figure quickly drew the attention of Confederate sharpshooters, much to the chagrin of those standing next to him--especially one Army surgeon who was critically wounded by a bullet intended for the President. A Massachusetts infantryman finally told his Commander-In-Chief to "Get down, you damn fool!" Lincoln complied. Many accounts say that the soldier was future Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, but that part of the story is apocryphal at best.
Lincoln was probably the only sitting (well, technically, he was standing at the time) President targeted by enemy* fire in combat.
The Fort Stevens battlefield is now the site of the Walter Reed Army Hospital.
*FDR was subjected to "friendly" fire in combat, but that will be the subject of a future Factoid.
*FDR was subjected to "friendly" fire in combat, but that will be the subject of a future Factoid.
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