The Red Room Through the Years
Gallery
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The State Floor of the White House during Thomas Jefferson's presidency, drawn by architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe.
Library of Congress -
A computer-generated image of the Polk Red Room looking south from the doorway of the Cross Hall.
David Ramsey/White House Historical Association -
A computer-generated image of the Polk Red Room looking southwest.
David Ramsey/White House Historical Association -
A black and white photograph taken by Frances Benjamin Johnston during the Chester A. Arthur administration. The room was redecorated by acclaimed New York designer Louis Comfort Tiffany in 1882.
Library of Congress -
The Red Room after the 1902 redecoration by McKim, Meade & White, ca. 1904.
Library of Congress -
The Red Room during the Harry S. Truman administration, ca. 1948.
Library of Congress -
The Red Room after the 1962 redecoration by First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy.
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum/NARA -
The Red Room during the Ronald Reagan administration in 1987.
White House Historical Association -
The Red Room during the Barack Obama Administration in 2010.
White House Historical Association
About this Gallery
Today’s State Floor of the White House has rooms designated by color (Green, Blue, and Red), purpose (State Dining Room and Family Dining Room), and directional orientation (East Room), but this was not always so. During the early administrations, each president used the rooms of the State Floor differently. The “Red Room” first appeared during the presidency of James K. Polk. As future administrations entered the Executive Mansion in the twentieth century, the walls of the “Red Room” represented a rich, crimson tradition for the space
