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Lafayette Square (Once the White House Overlooked a Residential Neighborhood, 1902) by Peter Waddell

Lafayette Square (Once the White House Overlooked a Residential Neighborhood, 1902) by Peter Waddell

Artist
Peter Waddell
Date of Work
1902
Medium
Oil
Credit
Peter Waddell for the White House Historical Association

Lafayette Square (Once the White House Overlooked a Residential Neighborhood, 1902) by Peter Waddell

Peter Waddell, Lafayette Square, oil on canvas, 48 x 60.

Lafayette Square, once surrounded by residential houses and mansions was a grand neighborhood that included the White House. Benjamin H. Latrobe's Saint Johns Church, built in 1816, was soon followed by his design for Stephen Decatur's house, erected 1818-1819, on the northwest corner of the square. Dolley Madison spent her last years in a residence directly across the park on the northeast side of the square. In 1902 during the renovation of the White House, Theodore Roosevelt became a temporary square resident, living near Decatur House at 22 Jackson Place.

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