The White House

Description

The official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Designed in the neoclassical style using Aquia Creek sandstone painted white. Hoban modelled the building on Leinster House in Dublin, a building which today houses the Oireachtas, the Irish legislature.

It has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. The term "White House" is often used as a metonym for the president and their advisers.

Construction Started, Oct 13, 1792

Constructed, Nov 1, 1800

The north front is the principal façade of the White House and consists of three floors and eleven bays. The ground floor is hidden by a raised carriage ramp and parapet, thus the façade appears to be on two floors. The central three bays are behind a prostyle portico (this was a later addition to the house, built circa 1830), serving, thanks to the carriage ramp, as a porte cochere. The windows of the four bays flanking the portico, at first-floor level, have alternating pointed and segmented pediments, while at second-floor level, the pediments are flat. The principal entrance at the center of the portico is surmounted by a lunette fanlight. Above the entrance is a sculpted floral festoon. The roofline is hidden by a balustraded parapet. The mansion's southern façade is a combination of the Palladian and neoclassical styles of architecture. It consists of three floors, all visible. The ground floor is rusticated in the Palladian fashion. At the center of the façade is a neoclassical projected bow of three bays. The bow is flanked by five bays, the windows of which, as on the north façade, have alternating segmented and pointed pediments at first-floor level. The bow has a ground-floor double staircase leading to an Ionic colonnaded loggia (with the Truman Balcony at second-floor level), known as the south portico. The more modern third floor is hidden by a balustraded parapet and plays no part in the composition of the façade.

Burned, Aug 24, 1814

The British forces burned the White House during the War of 1812, leaving only weakened exterior walls, most of which had to be rebuilt. A few items taken during the sack were later returned, while others were believed lost in a shipwreck. President James Madison lived in temporary residences until reconstruction, overseen by Hoban and Latrobe, was completed in 1817. During the War of 1812 British attack on Washington, D.C., Dolley Madison famously saved a full-length portrait of George Washington from the White House. She ordered her servant to save or, if needed, destroy the painting to keep it from enemy hands. The portrait remains part of the White House collection today.

Addition, 1824

The South Portico was designed by Hoban, with decorative stonework carved by Italian artisans brought to Washington.

Addition, 1830

The North Portico was designed by Hoban. The North Portico’s Ionic variation included carved rose swags to harmonize with earlier designs. During John Quincy Adams’ presidency (1825-1829), an iron garden pump with “nine spout holes” was attached to a well at the nearby Treasury Building and provided water to the White House Grounds.

Addition, 1833

Running water iron pipes in the Ground Floor Corridor for drinking and fire protection under Andrew Jackson, as well as a "bathing room" (early bathroom) was added in the East Wing. There was no indoor plumbing before this. Servants carried water from an off-site well.

Addition, 1853

The first flushing toilet was installed under Millard Fillmore. Later Franklin Pierce added a more modern bathroom, including a bathtub. Records indicate that the Second Floor of the White House had central plumbing, including hot and cold water taps.

Addition, Oct, 1857

President James Buchanan, encouraged by his niece and hostess Harriet Lane, added a wooden greenhouse to the White House’s West Terrace, designed by Edward Clark. Intended mainly for enjoyment rather than utility, it offered fresh flowers and a serene retreat for presidents and their families. Harriet Lane, Mary Todd Lincoln, and Julia Grant—who kept orchids—were among its admirers. Rutherford and Lucy Hayes, avoiding alcohol, often ended dinners with guest strolls through the greenery. The conservatory also housed historic plants, including a sago palm once owned by George Washington. The conservatory burned down in 1867. It took four fire companies several hours to contain the blaze and ensure that it did not spread to the rest of the mansion. Over time, the White House conservatory was rebuilt and expanded into a complex of greenhouses on the west side.

Renovation, 1881

By the Civil War, the White House was overcrowded and its location—near a canal and swamp—raised health concerns. Brig. Gen. Nathaniel Michler proposed relocating the president’s residence to Meridian Hill or Metropolis View, but Congress rejected both plans.

By 1876, a 2,000-gallon tank was installed in the attic to supply water throughout the White House.

When Chester A. Arthur became president in 1881, he ordered extensive renovations, bringing in Louis Comfort Tiffany’s designers. Over twenty wagonloads of furnishings were auctioned, saving only busts of John Adams and Martin Van Buren. In 1882, decorative updates included gold and silver accents in the main corridor, a new red-and-gold design for the Red Room, and a 50-foot jeweled Tiffany glass screen separating the corridor from the north vestibule.

Proposed, 1891

President Benjamin Harrison and First Lady Caroline proposed major White House extensions—a National Wing on the east for a historical art gallery and a west wing for official functions—but the plan, developed by Col. Theodore A. Bingham, was not adopted. The Harrisons also began the tradition of the White House Christmas tree.

Extended, 1902

Theodore Roosevelt hired McKim, Mead & White to renovate the building in a neoclassical style, removing Victorian additions and creating the West Wing to house executive offices. William Howard Taft later expanded the West Wing, adding the Oval Office. The conservatory/Green house were all demolished to make way for the West Wing, as moving or recreating them was too costly, and architect Charles McKim believed they clashed with the White House’s neoclassical style.

Addition and Renovation, 1930

In 1925, Congress allowed the White House to accept donated furniture and art. After a 1929 fire damaged the West Wing, Herbert Hoover oversaw its repair. In the 1930s, a second story and larger basement were added, and Franklin Roosevelt moved the Oval Office to its current location by the Rose Garden.

Redeveloped, 1933

During Franklin D. Roosevelt’s presidency, the White House was among the first government buildings in Washington, D.C. to become wheelchair accessible, accommodating his use of a wheelchair due to paralysis. In the 1990s, Hillary Clinton approved adding a ramp in the East Wing corridor to improve wheelchair access for public tours and events entering through the secure east entrance.

Restoration, 1951

By 1948, decades of neglect, structural changes, and added features had left the White House near collapse. President Truman ordered a full reconstruction, relocating to Blair House from 1949–1951 including extensive plumbing renovations. Contractor John McShain’s team dismantled the interior, installed a steel frame, and rebuilt the rooms, adding central air, two sub-basements, and repositioning the grand staircase. The $5.7 million project (about $69 million in 2024) preserved the structure but replaced many historic finishes with generic ones. Damaged original plasterwork and Beaux Arts paneling were lost, though Truman repurposed timber from the old frame to panel several rooms.

Declared, Sept, 1961

Congress declared the White House a museum, allowing the president to designate its furniture, fixtures, and decorative arts as historic or artistically significant, protecting them from being sold. The house was accredited as a museum in 1988

Restored, 1963

First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy led a major White House restoration (1961–63), working with Henry Francis du Pont to acquire historic furnishings and artifacts, many once in the house, and with Paris designer Stéphane Boudin to style rooms in historically inspired themes: Federal (Green Room), French Empire (Blue Room), American Empire (Red Room), Louis XVI (Yellow Oval Room), and Victorian (Treaty Room). Antique furniture, period-accurate fabrics, and notable artworks were added, creating a more authentic, elegant interior. Mrs. Kennedy also installed the 1834 Vue de l'Amérique Nord wallpaper in the Diplomatic Reception Room, salvaged from a demolished mansion. She oversaw the first White House guidebook, with sales funding the project, and presented the restored home to the public in a televised 1962 tour.

Refurbished, 1974

During the Nixon administration (1969–74), First Lady Pat Nixon refurbished the Green, Blue, and Red Rooms with curator Clement Conger, adding over 600 artifacts—the largest acquisition by any administration. President Nixon converted FDR’s old swimming pool into the modern press briefing room and added a single-lane bowling alley in the White House basement.

Related Sites

Pennsylvania Avenue at the White House

Timeline

1792

1800

1814

1824

1857

1863

1868

1901

1902

1903

1934

1947+ 1

1951

1963

Images

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Images

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The northern facade with a columned portico facing Lafayette Square

The southern facade with a semi-circular portico facing the South Lawn and The Ellipse

The South Lawn, where State Arrival Ceremonies are held.

The mansion itself covers 55,000 square feet.

A few major renovations have expanded and fortified the mansion, but it hasn't received a major overhaul since the 1940s.

The White House is considerably larger in reputation than physical space when compared to other major landmarks across the US.

An 18-acre enclosed area keeps the mansion at a distance from the public on the street in the heart of Washington, DC.

1963 - Restored

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1963 - Restored - Images

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1962

The Green Room following the Kennedy redecoration

1951 - Restoration

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1951 - Restoration - Images

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1950

A view of the south façade of the White House

1952

Many hands carefully hoist the Frank G. Cootes portrait of President Woodrow Wilson into position over the mantel in the Red Room

1902 - Extended

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1902 - Extended - Images

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1904

Red Room During the Theodore Roosevelt Administration

1889

White House, Corridor (Entrance Hall)

1903

New Year's Day Reception Waiting Line

1885

Red Room, Louis Comfort Tiffany Decor

1903

The Theodore Roosevelt Family

1902

White House Stairway

1857 - Addition

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1857 - Addition - Drawings and documents

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1858

Miss Lane's Conservatory, at the White House

1871

State Dinner at the White House to the Joint High Commissioners

1824 - Addition

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1824 - Addition - Drawings and documents

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1826

White House Plumbing Installation

1814 - Burned

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1814 - Burned - Drawings and documents

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1814

The taking of the city of Washington in America West Smithfield

1814

Days of Destruction: August 24-25, 1814

1814

U.S. Capitol after burning by the British

2009

How Dolley Madison rescued the George Washington portrait before British troops burned the White House on August 24, 1814.

1800 - Constructed

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1800 - Constructed - Drawings and documents

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James Hoban's Original design for the White House

1792 - Construction Started

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1792 - Construction Started - Drawings and documents

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2007

Depicts The White House construction as it may have appeared in 1796.

1795

This payroll lists five enslaved people

1795

This payroll shows the payroll for enslaved sawyers

ASSOCIATED SITES

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