The President of the United States Meets the King of Rock ‘n' Roll

Early on the morning of December 21, 1970, Elvis Presley arrived at the White House and requested a meeting with President Richard Nixon. This impromptu meeting resulted in a famous photograph of the pair shaking hands in the Oval Office.

Today, it remains one of the most requested photographs from the National Archives and Records Administration. Although the photograph is iconic, the story behind this impromptu historic meeting is even more remarkable! In honor of the 52nd anniversary of this visit, White House Historical Association historian Lina Mann discusses Elvis Presley and Richard Nixon’s meeting in the Oval Office through exploration of a new digital exhibit.

Credit: White House Historical Association

Page
White House History Live
Collection
The Nixon White House 1969 - 1974

On January 20, 1969, Richard Nixon was inaugurated as the thirty-seventh president of the United States. During his time in the White House (1969–74), President Nixon sought to unite a divided nation after the social, political, and cultural turbulence of the 1960s. Before becoming president, Nixon served in the U.S. Navy, the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, and as
Collection
State Dinners

A State Dinner honoring a visiting head of government or reigning monarch is one of the grandest and most glamorous of White House affairs. It is part of an official State Visit and provides the president and first lady the opportunity to honor the visiting head of state and his or her spouse. In this collection, explore the history of
Collection
Weddings and the White House

From First Lady Dolley Madison's sister Lucy Payne Washington's wedding in 1812 to the nuptials of President Joseph Biden and First Lady Jill Biden's granddaughter Naomi Biden on the South Lawn in November 2022, the White House has long been the site of wedding ceremonies and receptions. In over two hundred years, there have been nineteen documented weddings and four receptions hosted
Page
Video from Lectures and Events
Page
Inauguration 2021 Virtual Events
Scholarship
Additional Resources for Slavery in the President's Neighborhood

For Teachers Classroom Resource Packet: Slavery, Freedom, and the White HouseJames Madison's Montpelier: Fate in the BalanceThe Enslaved Household of Thomas JeffersonElizabeth Keckly: From Slavery to the White HouseWHTTI Session with the Decatur House Advisory CouncilThe Burning of the White House (Makematic)White House Valets (Makematic)Student Plays
Event
White House History Live: President Garfield, From Radical to Unifier

Join us in learning more about White House History right from your own home. Our Facebook Live series, White House History Live, delves into the stories that make up the history of the Executive Mansion. Bestselling author and historian C.W. Goodyear will discuss his new biography of James A. Garfield. This work offers fresh insight and nuance to the
Event
White House History Live: Indigenous DC - Native Peoples and the Nation's Capital

Join us in learning more about White House History right from your own home. Our Facebook Live series, White House History Live, delves into the stories that make up the history of the Executive Mansion. Historian Elizabeth Rule discusses her new book, Indigenous DC: Native Peoples and the Nation’s Capital. Washington, DC, is Indian land, but Indigenous peoples are of
Video
The Rise of Edith Wilson

While this nation has yet to elect its first woman president—and though history has downplayed her role—just over a century ago a woman became the nation’s first acting president. In fact, she was born in 1872, and her name was Edith Bolling Galt Wilson. Rebecca Roberts, author of the new biography Untold Power, discusses the beautiful, brilliant, charismatic, and ca
Video
The Life and Legacy of Lady Bird Johnson

Lady Bird Johnson was a groundbreaker, a savvy business woman, an indispensable right-hand to her political husband, a mother, an East Texas girl, a political activist and to so many, an inspiration. LBJ Presidential Library & Museum curator Lara Hall gives a closer look at the library’s current exhibit: Lady Bird: Beyond the Wildflowers, a personal walk-through of Mrs. Jo
Event
White House History Live: Slavery and Freedom in the White House Collection

Join us in learning more about White House History right from your own home. Our Facebook Live series, White House History Live, delves into the stories that make up the history of the Executive Mansion. The White House Historical Association’s new digital exhibit, “Slavery and Freedom in the White House Collection” explores the history of slavery and emancipation in the Un