Marian Anderson rehearsing with Leonard Bernstein in 1947.

In 1821-1822, Susan Decatur requested the construction of a service wing. The first floor featured a large kitchen, dining room, and laundry; while the second floor contained four rooms designated as living quarters. By 1827, the service wing was being used as an urban slave quarters. Henry Clay brought enslaved individuals to Decatur House, starting a trend that was solidified by

A State Dinner honoring a visiting head of government or reigning monarch is one of the grandest and most glamorous of White House affairs. It is part of an official State Visit and provides the president and first lady the opportunity to honor the visiting head of state and his or her spouse. In this collection, explore the history of

A dinner at the White House has always had significance beyond the gastronomical delights. The elegance of the State Dining Room and the intimacy of the Family Dining Room set the stage for the politics and diplomacy that takes place between courses. In this collection, learn how the style of each room has evolved with its purpose, and how the

The White House has hosted many important heads of state over the years. Typically, the president and first lady join the visiting leader for official talks, leisurely activities and, in many cases, a State Dinner. When Chinese Vice Premiere Deng Xiaoping (Teng Hsiao-ping) and his wife Madame Zhuo Lin came to the White House in 1979, it marked the highest-ranking Chinese

For more than one hundred years, White House Social Secretaries have demonstrated a profound knowledge of protocol and society in Washington, D.C. The position had its beginnings in the Theodore Roosevelt administration when First Lady Edith Roosevelt hired an executive clerk. From the intricacies of ceremony planning to routine office work, the social secretary must possess unfailing tact in

First Lady Lou Hoover's invitation to Jessie L. DePriest to a White House tea party in 1929 created a storm of protest and indignation. This traditional act of hospitality toward the wife of the first black man elected to Congress in the twentieth century created a political crisis for the president and first lady. This collection explores the "tempest" from the

On July 11, 1798, Congress passed legislation that created the United States Marine Corps and the Marine Band, America's oldest professional musical organization. The United States Marine Band has been nicknamed "The President's Own" because of its historic connection to the president of the United States. At its origin, the fledgling band consisted of a Drum Major, a Fife Major and 32 drums

Long before the emergence of the United States and Italy as modern nation states were influenced by classical writers, philosophers, theorists, and polymaths of the ancient world. The United States' diplomatic relationship with Italy began long before Italian President Antonio Segni was an official guest of President Lyndon B. Johnson in January of 1964. Since then, many other Italian leaders have

In 1816, Commodore Stephen Decatur, Jr. and his wife Susan moved to the nascent capital city of Washington, D.C. With the prize money he received from his naval feats, Decatur purchased the entire city block on the northwest corner of today’s Lafayette Square. The Decaturs commissioned Benjamin Henry Latrobe, one of America’s first professional architects, to design and buil