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Rescue of the Papers of State During the Burning of Washington
In August 1814, British forces occupying the Chesapeake Bay began to sail up the Patuxent River in Maryland. Fearing an attack on the capital, Secretary of State James Monroe offered to scout the British position and report back to President James Madison. Monroe, accompanied by cavalry, left Washington and rode into southern Maryland. On August 19 and 20 the British landed troops at
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"A Communication Between These Offices"
When David Baillie Warden remarked in 1816 that “it was originally proposed to form a communication between the [executive departmental] offices and the house of the president,” he was referring to the initial idea for a close configuration of all the executive buildings within the President’s Square.1 Four L-shaped wings were shown as attached directly to the President’s House on Pierr
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A British Traveler's Observations of Van Buren's Servants
Martin Van Buren was sometimes criticized for his kingly airs, but during his administration the White House was sparsely staffed. The 1840 census of Washington, D.C., indicates that only two or three white servants, and about five free “colored persons,” resided in the Executive Mansion, although others may have lived elsewhere.1The British writer James Silk Buckingham (1786–1855), a former Member of Par
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The First Fan
While both President Calvin Coolidge and First Lady Grace Coolidge were well known baseball supporters, not everyone realized that of the two, Grace Coolidge was by far the more knowledgeable and enthusiastic fan. Bucky Harris, who managed the Senators during their great run of 1920s success, said she was “the most rabid baseball fan I ever knew in the White Ho
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Nash Castro: A Board Member's Role with the Kennedy Rose Garden
I recently had the opportunity to visit with Nash Castro, the last surviving founder of the White House Historical Association, who also played a role in the story of the Rose Garden while serving as liaison to the White House for the National Park Service during the Kennedy administration. His influence would be even stronger in the Johnson administration, when
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Eleanor Roosevelt's "My Day": Christmas
The Roosevelts celebrated Christmas with a flurry of public and private activities. The non-stop action began the week before Christmas as children, grandchildren and other family members began arriving at the White House. "I think this old house likes the sound of children's voices," Eleanor Roosevelt (ER) wrote in one of her December columns. "It certainly is an ideal place
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Baron and Baroness Hyde de Neuville and Decatur House
One of America’s most celebrated naval heroes, Stephen Decatur, died on March 22, 1820 from wounds sustained in a duel with Commodore James Barron. Decatur’s tragic loss also confronted his 44-year-old widow Susan with the problem of how to maintain their new home near the White House, known as “Decatur House,” a fashionable three-story Federal town house designed by master architec
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Advances in Entertaining
First Lady Helen Taft loved entertaining and White House hospitality during the William Howard Taft administration centered on the dining table, where the Tafts' tastes were regal. A "Forty-quart Peerless Ice Cream Freezer," with a direct current motor and a twelve-foot long Imperial French Coal Range were added to the large kitchen in 1912. On January 25, 1915, President Woodrow Wilson joined the
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Building a White House Kitchen
By the time Theodore Roosevelt took office, the use of electric light was common in American houses. The entire wiring system was replaced during a major restoration of the White House in 1902. Only the service areas of the house retained their gaslight fixtures, and these were used only in case of a power failure. A large main kitchen and an
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Memoirs of Isabella Hagner 1901-1905
The White House Historical Association has reset the following excerpt of Isabella Hagner’s typescript memoirs, now in the White House collection in the Isabella Hagner James Papers in the Office of the Curator. Editor Priscilla Roosevelt has corrected the typographical errors, modernized some punctuation, added explanatory endnotes, and made a slight rearrangement of the original text in order to pr
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Millard Fillmore's Musical Family
President Millard Fillmore and his family were particularly musical. Mrs. Fillmore, the former Abigail Powers, made certain the White House had not only a music room, but also three pianos. For relaxation Mrs. Fillmore enjoyed playing duets with her talented daughter, Mary Abigail, a fine amateur musician, proficient on the piano, harp and guitar. During the Fillmore administration, the famous
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Presidents and the Hey Day of Horse Racing in the Federal City
President Richard M. Nixon was the first sitting president to attend the Kentucky Derby on May 3, 1969. In his party that day were Mrs. Nixon and then Governor and Mrs. Ronald Reagan, all rooting for the winner, California-based Majestic Prince. Presidential parties attending horse races was once a common occurrence in the colonial period and early republic. Even before the seat