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The White House Garden Tours
When the White House gates open at 10:00 am on Saturday, April 13th, thousands of people will stream through for the start of the 2019 White House Spring Garden Tour. Few of them will know that this special tour – one of only two weekends each year that the grounds of the President’s House are open to the general public – is part of the
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Camp David
Sixty miles outside of Washington, D.C. is a rustic wilderness retreat that serves presidents and first families as a secluded getaway from the White House. Camp David was originally built as a camp for federal employees and their families, a project completed in 1938 through the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during the New Deal. The camp is located east of
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An Introduction to "Away From the White House"
America's presidents have been trying to get away from it all for more than two hundred years and never quite succeeding. The job and its responsibilities follow no matter where they are. But vacationing presidents find that time away from the White House can clear the mind, rest the body, restore energy, and perhaps add a touch of humanity to
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The First Ladies Timeline
Martha WashingtonAbigail AdamsMartha JeffersonDolley MadisonElizabeth MonroeLouisa AdamsRachel Jackson / Emily DonelsonHannah Van Buren / Angelica Van BurenAnna Harrison / Jane HarrisonLetitia Tyler / Julia TylerSarah PolkMargaret TaylorAbigail Powers FillmoreJane PierceHarriet LaneMary LincolnEliza Johnson / Martha Johnson PattersonJulia GrantLucy HayesLucretia GarfieldEllen Arthur / Mary Arthur McElroyFrances Cleveland / Rose ClevelandCaroline HarrisonIda McKinleyEdith RooseveltHelen TaftEllen Wilson / Edith WilsonFlorence HardingGrace CoolidgeLou HooverEleanor RooseveltElizabeth TrumanMamie EisenhowerJacqueline KennedyClaudia JohnsonPat NixonBetty FordRosalynn CarterNancy
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Splendor and Scrutiny of White House Tableware
When Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Grégoire-Trudeau attended a State Dinner at the White House on March 10, 2016, they enjoyed a meal that was the result of months of thoughtful preparation. From the floral arrangements to the menu, no detail was overlooked—and this included the plates off of which they ate. Guests at White House fun
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Monuments to the American Revolution in Lafayette Park
In 1853, Clark Mills’ statue of President Andrew Jackson on horseback is in the center of Lafayette Park. The park’s four corners were later allocated for statues commemorating significant Europeans who assisted American forces during the American Revolution. In 1891 the first statue was erected, honoring the Marquis de Lafayette. Some feared the statue would impact the view of the White Hous
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Patricia Nixon's Visitor Friendly White House
Not long after she became First Lady, Pat Nixon was asked what she planned to focus on in her new role. Her response was simple: “People are my project.”1Mrs. Nixon did not want to be constrained by selecting one specific project. Instead, she wanted the latitude to pursue various projects that directly helped people.As First Lady, Mrs. Nixon trav
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Benjamin Banneker
Benjamin Banneker, a free African-American man living in a slave state in the eighteenth century, never knew the weight of iron shackles or the crack of an overseer’s whip. A native of Baltimore County, Maryland, his experience diverged from those of most African Americans living in the early United States. He received a formal education during his youth, maintained hi
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A Celebration for Veterans
At the end of World War I, over 200,000 wounded soldiers returned home to the United States. To help these veterans cope with their physical and psychological injuries, post-war presidents hosted annual garden parties at the White House. These events took place on the South Lawn and included wounded veterans from local military and naval hospitals. The veterans, along with their
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Enslaved Workers on the White House Grounds
Uncovering the lives of enslaved people poses many challenges. Because enslaved people were denied the right of literacy, as a result, most did not leave behind written records of their lives or experiences. The enslaved were also treated as commodities to be bought and sold, rather than as human beings, further excluding their thoughts and voices from the record. Therefore,
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Building the President's House with Enslaved Labor
In several ways, James Hoban’s life resembles the classic immigrant success story. Born to a modest family in County Kilkenny, Ireland, Hoban studied at the Dublin Society School of Architectural Drawing before seeking greater opportunities abroad. He arrived in the new United States by 1785 and was settled in Charleston, South Carolina, by 1787, where he and his business partner Pierce Pu
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White House Hostesses: The Forgotten First Ladies
First ladies hold a unique place in American history. The collection of first ladies' gowns and artifacts remains one of the most popular exhibitions, visited by millions of annual visitors at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C..1 First ladies are the focus of documentaries, podcasts, books, and scholarly works that examine their lives and contributions