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Mapping Lady Bird Johnson's Whistle-Stop Tour
Less than a month before the 1964 presidential election, First Lady Lady Bird Johnson traveled for four days through the American South by train. In a practice known as whistle-stop campaigning, the first lady set out with her team, invited guests, and members of the press aboard the personalized “Lady Bird Special.” They visited eight states and stopped in forty-seven towns. The
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An Introduction to "Away From the White House"
America's presidents have been trying to get away from it all for more than two hundred years and never quite succeeding. The job and its responsibilities follow no matter where they are. But vacationing presidents find that time away from the White House can clear the mind, rest the body, restore energy, and perhaps add a touch of humanity to
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A White House Worker Remembers President Kennedy's Assassination
President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy had developed a bond with White House doorman Preston Bruce. The slain President's brother, Attorney General Robert Kennedy, invited Bruce to walk with members of the Kennedy family to JFK's memorial service at St. Matthew's Cathedral. Here are some of Bruce's recollections:"My heart ached to see Mrs. Kennedy march up
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Keeping Cool in the White House
During the 19th century Washington’s infamous summer heat and humidity presented challenges to presidents and their families. In that pre-air conditioning era, most chose to leave Washington in summer for fresher places – sometimes estates in Virginia, farms in Massachusetts, seaside or fishing retreats in New England, or on the New Jersey shore or Chesapeake Bay.At times during the hot
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White House Workers Timeline
The White House Historical Association has undertaken a research initiative called "Slavery in the President's Neighborhood." With this initiative, the Association seeks to tell the stories of the enslaved and free African Americans who built, lived, and worked at the White House, as well as the surrounding homes on Lafayette Park. While there are few written accounts of their experiences,
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African Americans in the White House Timeline
The White House Historical Association has undertaken a research initiative called "Slavery in the President's Neighborhood." With this initiative, the Association seeks to tell the stories of the enslaved and free African Americans who built, lived, and worked at the White House, as well as the surrounding homes on Lafayette Park. While there are few written accounts of their experiences,
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The Presidents Timeline
GEORGE WASHINGTON | 1789-1797 JOHN ADAMS | 1797-1801 THOMAS JEFFERSON | 1801-1809 JAMES MADISON | 1809-1817 JAMES MONROE | 1817-1825 JOHN QUINCY ADAMS | 1825-1829 ANDREW JACKSON | 1829-1837 MARTIN VAN BUREN | 1837-1841 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON | 1841 JOHN TYLER | 1841-1845 JAMES K. POLK | 1845-1849 ZACHARY TAYLOR | 1849-1850 MILLARD FILLMORE | 1850-1853 FRANKLIN PIERCE | 1853-1857 JAMES BUCHANAN | 1857-1861 ABRAHAM LINCOLN | 1861-1865 ANDREW JOHNSON | 1865-1869 ULYSSES S. GRANT | 1869-1877 RUTHERFORD B.
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Emancipation Day in Washington, D.C.
Congress passed the Compensated Emancipation Act to end slavery in the District of Columbia and President Abraham Lincoln signed the bill into law on April 16, 1862. Three years later, after the Civil War ended and after the 1865 ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution officially abolishing slavery nationwide, African Americans in the District began to celebrate April 16 as a holiday.
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“A Charming Resort”
For nearly a century, the United States Marine Band’s Saturday afternoon public concerts on the south grounds of the White House from June to September were a fixture of cultural life in Washington, D.C. Performed largely in an era before radio, motion pictures, television and the internet, the concerts offered people a chance to sample free, high quality en
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History of China State Visits to the White House
On January 29, 1979, President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter received Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping and his wife, Madame Zhuo Lin, for an official visit to Washington D.C. The occasion marked the highest-ranking Chinese visitor to the White House since Madame Chiang Kai-shek visited in 1943.
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Commodore Stephen Decatur: An Early American Naval War Hero
In President Theodore Roosevelt’s description of the capture of the HMS Macedonian by the USS United States in his 1882 book The Naval War of 1812, the future president wrote, “Commodore Decatur handled his ship with absolute faultlessness,” and explained how through Decatur’s bravery and fortitude, a “skillful crew, ably commanded,” was able to defeat their British foes. In this and other en
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Splendor and Scrutiny of White House Tableware
When Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Grégoire-Trudeau attended a State Dinner at the White House on March 10, 2016, they enjoyed a meal that was the result of months of thoughtful preparation. From the floral arrangements to the menu, no detail was overlooked—and this included the plates off of which they ate. Guests at White House fun