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Lighting the White House
Designed to be lit in the way common to the world at the beginning of the nineteenth century, the President’s House in 1800 had natural light streaming in through windows that stretched 14 feet high and 5 feet across. The first family and residence staff pulled tables and chairs close to the windows so they could read and write, or sew and po
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Mrs. Taft and the Cherry Blossoms
When Helen Herron Taft became the nation’s first lady in March 1909, Eliza Ruhamah Scidmore had been vainly struggling for almost a quarter-century to interest Superintendents of the U.S. Army’s Office of Public Buildings and Grounds in planting Japanese flowering cherry trees to beautify the driveway of Potomac Park. Scidmore, an accomplished traveler, author, and reporter who had visi
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White House Decorative Arts in the 1800s
John Adams spent the majority of his presidency in Philadelphia, but later occupied the President's House in Washington, D.C., which officially became the new federal city in December 1800. About a month beforehand, President Adams moved into the Executive Mansion on November 1. The house was unfinished, yet habitable, and the president and First Lady Abigail Adams made six rooms comfortable,
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White House Decorative Arts in the 1810s
In 1809, James and Dolley Madison moved into the nearly completed President’s House that contained worn furnishings from past administrations. Mrs. Madison employed Surveyor of Public Buildings Benjamin H. Latrobe to refurbish the State Floor, and he custom-designed furniture for the Oval Room. On August 24, 1814, British forces invaded Washington, D.C. and set fire to the public buildings. The conflagration de
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INTRODUCTION: Memoirs of the First White House Social Secretary Isabella Hagner
Isabella Hagner James, known to all as Belle, was the only daughter of Dr. Charles Evelyn Hagner and Isabella Wynn Davis. Her parents were “cave-dwellers,” as old Washingtonians styled themselves, and Belle’s reminiscences of her early life vividly resurrect the mores of late nineteenth-century Washington.1 They also recount vicissitudes of fortune that rival the plots of Edith Wharton or Henry
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Installing White House Conveniences
The Second Floor quarters occupied by President Abraham Lincoln and his family were used much as they had been during the 1850s. The Lincolns also had the added convenience of cold running water for washstands in their rooms. During this time the gas system was also expanded, and a new spring-bell system enabled Lincoln to signal the reception room and
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Jefferson's White House Upgrades
Thomas Jefferson gave orders for the demolition of the outdoor wooden privy and had two water closets installed upstairs, one on each end of the house. He also had a wine cellar built just west of the house and called it an "ice house." Jefferson made changes to many of the fireplaces, including equipping the kitchen with its first iron
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President Garfield's White House Upgrades
On February 12, 1880, a wooden crate arrived at the White House containing a new contrivance which would make an immediate impact on the Rutherford B. Hayes administration: a Fairbanks & Company Improved Number Two Typewriter.From that time on presidential letters began to appear in ragged little lines of type, instead of a clerks' fancy penmanship. A year later an experimental
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White House Decorative Arts in the 1820s
Reconstruction and refurbishing of the burned President's House continued into the 1820s. To refurnish the large house, President James Monroe exceeded funds appropriated by Congress and had even sold the government some of his own pieces to fill the rooms. He employed local craftsmen for some items, but imported most of the furniture from France. Few Americans had seen such
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White House Decorative Arts in the 1830s
Andrew Jackson’s 1829 inaugural reception drew throngs of supporters to the President’s House. Their exuberant descent on the house left a wake of broken china and soiled seat cushions. A $14,000 appropriation was used to repair and refurbish the interior and replace the broken china and glassware. Additional funds were acquired to finish and furnish the East Room with blue upho
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White House Decorative Arts in the 1840s
The clamor over Martin Van Buren's perceived abuse of the furniture fund continued after he left office in 1841. Successor William Henry Harrison found the family quarters of the President's House lacking practical furnishings. Congress did approve $6,000 for new furniture. However, Harrison died of pneumonia only a month after taking office. John Tyler moved in with seven children and invalid wife
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White House Decorative Arts in the 1850s
During his short term as president, Zachary Taylor refurbished the second-floor family quarters, the area where Margaret Taylor, his ill wife, spent most of her time. Congress provided the standard $14,000 for furnishings and Taylor purchased dressing bureaus, mahogany washstands, wardrobes, and beds for the family. When he died in July 1850, Millard and Abigail Fillmore moved into the house and successfully