The Grounds

Table Of Content

• Remarks by President Biden on the Passage of H.R. 815, the National Security Supplemental
• Young Americans know that the climate crisis is the existential threat of our time.
• Sitting Bull: The Life and Death of a Native American Chief
• History of the White House
• History & Culture
• Statement from President Joe Biden on Clemency Actions

In 1948, during the presidency of Harry Truman (1945–53), the main building was discovered to be structurally unsound; during the next four years the entire interior was carefully rebuilt, though the original exterior walls were left standing. The last major alterations to the White House were made in the 1960s by Jacqueline Kennedy, wife of Pres. Renowned for her beauty and refined taste, she collected and displayed items of historic and artistic value throughout its rooms. She made the White House a centre of national culture and awakened public interest in its beauties by conducting a televised tour of the mansion in 1962. The residence was designed by Irish-born architect James Hoban in the Neoclassical style.[4] Hoban modeled the building on Leinster House in Dublin, a building which today houses the Oireachtas, the Irish legislature.

Remarks by President Biden on the Passage of H.R. 815, the National Security Supplemental

Following his inauguration in March 1801, Jefferson became the second president to reside in the executive mansion. In keeping with his ardent republicanism, he opened the house to public visitation each morning, a tradition that was continued (during peacetime) by all his successors. He personally drew up landscaping plans and had two earthen mounds installed on the south lawn to remind him of his beloved Virginia Piedmont. Meanwhile, construction continued on the building’s interior, which still lacked ample staircases and suffered from a persistently leaky roof. During Jefferson’s tenure, the White House was elegantly furnished in Louis XVI style (known in America as Federal style). The main building still contains the presidential family’s living quarters and various reception rooms, all decorated in styles of the 18th and 19th centuries.

Young Americans know that the climate crisis is the existential threat of our time.

Original construction of the White House began in October 1792 after President George Washington chose what is now 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue as the location for the new home of the federal government. The building was designed by architect James Hoban, whose plans were selected out of nine proposals, and was loosely based on the neo-classical Leinster House in Dublin. The White House is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., in Washington, D.C., perhaps the nation's most famous address. Empowered by the Residence Act of 1790, President George Washington chose the exact spot for the 10-square-mile capital, on the Potomac River's east bank and near the Capitol building. Builders laid the White House cornerstone on October 13, 1792, with the Capitol cornerstone following soon after on August 18, 1793.

Sitting Bull: The Life and Death of a Native American Chief

In the 1820s, Hoban added eastern and western terraces as well as a semicircular southern portico and a colonnaded northern portico. The later addition of the West Wing (1902) and East Wing (1942) provided additional office space. Theodore Roosevelt adopted “White House” as the building’s official name in 1902.

Louvre Considers Moving Mona Lisa to Underground Chamber to End 'Public Disappointment'

Each president adds their own personal style to the workspace, choosing artwork from the White House collection or borrowing from museums. Six desks have been used in the Oval Office, the most famous of which is the Resolute desk. Made of wood from the HMS Resolute, the desk is currently in use by President Biden. In 1800, President John Adams and first lady Abigail Adams moved into the still unfinished building on November 1. While it was much smaller than L’Enfant’s proposal, the completed building was still the largest home in the country and would retain that title until after the Civil War.

Why the Secret Service closed its investigation of cocaine found at the White House without conducting interviews - NBC News

Why the Secret Service closed its investigation of cocaine found at the White House without conducting interviews.

Posted: Fri, 14 Jul 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Responding to charges that she had stolen government property when she left the White House, she angrily inventoried all the items she had taken with her, including gifts of quilts and waxworks from well-wishers. After September 11, 2001, this change was made permanent, in addition to closing E Street between the South Portico of the White House and the Ellipse.[109] In response to the Boston Marathon bombing, the road was closed to the public in its entirety for a period of two days. On May 20, 1995, primarily as a response to the Oklahoma City bombing of April 19, 1995, the United States Secret Service closed off Pennsylvania Avenue to vehicular traffic in front of the White House, from the eastern edge of Lafayette Park to 17th Street. Later, the closure was extended an additional block to the east to 15th Street, and East Executive Avenue, a small street between the White House and the Treasury Building. In June 2023, fighter jets moved to intercept a light aircraft that violated Washington DC airspace near the White House, before it crashed in Virginia.[108] All occupants in the intrusion aircraft were killed.

In 1824, he added the South Portico for James Monroe, and he constructed the North Portico for Andrew Jackson from 1829 to 1830. Less than fifty years after the Roosevelt renovation, the White House was already showing signs of serious structural weakness. President Harry S. Truman began a renovation of the building in which everything but the outer walls was dismantled. The reconstruction was overseen by architect Lorenzo Winslow, and in 1952, the Truman family moved back into the White House. Thomas Jefferson added his own personal touches upon moving in a few months later, installing two water closets and working with architect Benjamin Latrobe to add bookending terrace-pavilions. Having transformed the building into a more suitable representation of a leader’s home, Jefferson held the first inaugural open house in 1805, and also opened its doors for public tours and receptions on New Year’s Day and the Fourth of July.

The largest room in the White House is the East Room, which measures about 80 feet by 37 feet (24 meters by 11 meters). Here receptions, balls, concerts, and bill-signing ceremonies are held; plays and operas are presented on a specially built stage. Despite its great size, the room is gracious, with an oak parquetry floor, gold and ivory draperies, white enameled woodwork, and crystal chandeliers. This room was the scene of the weddings of the daughters of Presidents Ulysses S. Grant, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and Lyndon B. Johnson. The White House was first opened to the public during Thomas Jefferson’s presidency in 1805. It happened because many who attended the swearing-in ceremony at the US Capitol simply followed him home, where he then greeted them in the Blue Room.

The cornerstone was laid on October 13, 1792, and over the next eight years a construction team comprised of both enslaved and freed African Americans and European immigrants built the Aquia Creek sandstone structure. It was coated with lime-based whitewash in 1798, producing a color that gave rise to its famous nickname. Built at a cost of $232,372, the two-story house was not quite completed when John Adams and Abigail Adams became the first residents on November 1, 1800. In 1842 the visit to the United States of the English novelist Charles Dickens brought an official invitation to the White House. After his calls at the White House door went unanswered, Dickens let himself in and walked through the mansion from room to room on the lower and upper floors. Finally coming upon a room filled with nearly two dozen people, he was shocked and appalled to see many of them spitting on the carpet.

The Red Room, which is furnished in the style of a 19th-century American Empire parlor, owes its name to the scarlet silk brocade, with a scroll border of gold, that is used as a wall covering. This is an oval room distinguished by the sapphire-blue color scheme of its drapes, upholstery, and carpet. It has been used by nearly every president since, with the exceptions of Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. The White House is one of the few prominent buildings in Washington, D.C. One of the reasons why it is recognized is the fact that it is the home of the sitting US President and his family. Due to its importance to the country, the building is well protected by the Secret Service, local law enforcement agencies in Washington DC, and the branches of the US military.

According to whitehouse.gov, members of the American public can tour the White House by scheduling a visit through their member of Congress. Citizens of a foreign countries can arrange tours through their embassy. “There had been a pool inside the White House added by Franklin Roosevelt that he would use as exercise for his polio, but later, Gerald Ford wanted an outdoor pool,” says Fling.

According to the White House Historical Association, the cost of construction was $232,372. Use of public transportation is strongly encouraged, as there is no parking available on the White House complex and street parking is limited. The closest Metrorail stations to the White House are Federal Triangle (blue and orange lines), Metro Center (blue, orange, silver, and red lines), and McPherson Square (blue, orange, and silver lines).

George Washington did not enjoy the comforts of the famous house after he was inaugurated in 1789 because there was no capital city nor official residence. After the passing of the Residence Act, Philadelphia was the temporary capital where President George Washington stayed as the federal city was being built. Construction of the White House began after deliberations by the federal authorities and a design competition that determined the look of the White House. The foundation was laid in 1792 by a labor force of African American slaves, free African American laborers, and other immigrants who were yet to legalize their status in America, many of whom were from Europe. The construction plan was made by French engineer Charles Pierre L’Efant and it entailed having two floors and using less costly materials but it had to be altered after problems.