Collection Weddings and the White House
From First Lady Dolley Madison's sister Lucy Payne Washington's wedding in 1812 to the nuptials of President Joseph Biden and First...
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Sheet music, from The Lady of the Lake, 1812.
Music Division, Library of CongressPresident John Tyler was accompanied by "Hail to the Chief" after First Lady Julia Gardiner Tyler instructed the Marine Band to play it whenever the president made an official appearance.
White House Historical AssociationFirst Lady Sarah Polk made Hail to the Chief official in announcing the president's entrance to an event. On this 1994 White House Christmas ornament, the band and the Polks are shown on the South Grounds of the White House.
White House Historical Association"Hail to the Chief," with its preceding fanfare Ruffles and Flourishes, is traditionally played to announce the arrival of the president at official functions. The melody was based on an old Gaelic air, and adapted from Sir Walter Scott’s poem, The Lady of the Lake. "Hail to the Chief" is attributed to English composer James Sanderson. The song was already very popular when the Marine Band played it at the laying of the cornerstone for the first lock of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal on May 29, 1829, in the presence of President Andrew Jackson. This was the first documented performance of the song for a sitting president. Two first ladies are credited with using Hail to the Chief to announce the arrival of the president at an official event—Julia Tyler and Sarah Polk. In 1954, the Department of Defense created an official policy that made "Hail to the Chief" a tribute to the President of the United States.
From First Lady Dolley Madison's sister Lucy Payne Washington's wedding in 1812 to the nuptials of President Joseph Biden and First...
Every year since 1981, the White House Historical Association has had the privilege of designing the Official White House Christmas Ornament....
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Every year since 1981, the White House Historical Association has had the privilege of designing the Official White House Christmas Ornament....
Thousands of people traverse historic Lafayette Park every day to get a glimpse of the White House. The park, right...
Since 1965, the White House Historical Association has been proud to fund the official portraits of our presidents and first ladies,...