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President
Franklin Roosevelt addresses the nation in a fireside
chat - Library of Congress
Reconstruction of the West Wing in 1930 after extensive
damage by a Christmas Eve fire in 1929 included
a central air-conditioning system installed by Carrier
Engineering Company. When President Franklin D.
Roosevelt and his staff experienced their first
warm season at the White House in 1933, air-conditioning
units were added to the private quarters on the
second floor. Roosevelt swam as therapy for polio,
so an indoor pool featuring modern water circulation
and sterilization technology was built for him in
the West Terrace in 1933. Broadcasting equipment
was moved into the Diplomatic Reception Room, the
setting for Roosevelt's fireside chats. In the mid-1930s
the house's electrical system was rewired and both
the large and small kitchens were remodeled to feature
such modern conveniences as hotel-size electric
ranges and ovens. The result was modern streamlined
kitchens of stainless steel, immaculate and uncluttered;
indirect lighting fell on cream-colored walls and
on green and cream-colored linoleum with borders.
The small kitchen was converted into a pantry, with
refrigerators and warming ovens, serving both the
kitchen and the State floor pantry, to which it
was linked by electric dumbwaiters and a narrow,
twisting stair.
Source: William Seale, The President's House, 897, 920, 924, 927, 948, 957, 959.
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