United Kingdom and Ireland in The White House-Photo 7
As the British entered the White House, troops took small souvenirs and mementos from their invasion of the U.S. capital. One of the items taken from the White House was this walnut medicine chest. The chest was acquired by Thomas Kains, who served as a purser aboard the HMS Devastation. It was presented to the White House in 1939 by Kain’s grandson, became part of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, was subsequently lent to the White House in 1961, and became a part of the White House Collection in 2012. The photo shows Press Secretary Stephen Early with the chest upon its arrival at the White House on April 26, 1939.
- Credit
- Library of Congress
