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By Chloe Yoder

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The crowd of people admired the immense white building today known as the White House. Many people admire the White House due to the construction, important rooms, and presidents. During the construction of the White House the workers built many important rooms where the presidents went about their daily lives.

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To begin with, the White House has 132 rooms. The rooms in the White House  include thirty-five bathrooms, eight staircases, and three elevators (Green 6). When the people needed more room for office space, the workers replaced the greenhouses with the West Wing (O’Connor 23). Harry Truman wanted to put in another story in the South Portico to make it two stories instead of one. The builders of the new Portico cautioned Truman of the weak structure to build upon. Despite these warnings Harry Truman continued with the construction of the Portico. These changes began in 1940 and ended in 1952. The floor of the new second story was so weak that when they placed a piano on it the piano fell through the floor (Caroli 16). Additionally, the dance floor started sagging, so wooden beams were added to keep it from caving in (O’Connor 23).

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The construction history was key as it was the start of the White House. The construction began with the determined George Washington picking the look and “location” of it. The White House was supposed to be near Mount Vernon because it was George Washington’s hometown. He also wanted Washington, D.C. to be called Federal City because he was “embarrassed” with it being named after him (O’Connor 4). Theodore Roosevelt was the one who made the name "White House" a reality. It was named the White House because Americans wanted to call it that because of its color.

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Later, in 1792  James Hoban led the building process of the White House. African Americans, slaves, and men wearily built most of the White House (5). The workers started getting behind on the construction October 13, 1792 because George Washington wanted to change the "dimensions" of the White House. Washington wanted to add "embellishments" made of stone, get rid of the third floor, and make the White House larger by one-fifth. Even though James Hoban and his workers were behind schedule it was okay because eventually they finished the construction of the White House (Caroli 14).

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This was the Portico as it was undergoing the construction requested by Harry Truman. (The White House Historical Association)

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Many presidents while living at the White House changed the overall appearance of it. Additionally, a tennis court was added when Teddy Roosevelt wanted one built from 1901 to 1909. When requested by Richard Nixon, a bowling alley was added to the White House. Furthermore, when asked by Nixon, the swimming pool was reconstructed into a room for reporters. All of these changes happened when Richard Nixon was president from 1969 to 1974 (O’Connor 35). Eventually, the White House was burned down by the British in 1812 during war. The rebuilding of the White House started 1814 (The Lehrman Institute, “The White House”).

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This is Richard Nixon using his bowling alley that he had requested. (The White House Historical Association

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This is the Blueprint for the rebuilding of the White House. (The White House Historical Association)

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In the White House there are many important rooms that are still used today. Some rooms include the Private Family Rooms, the Queen’s Bedroom, the Lincoln Bedroom, the Blue Room, the Green Room, the Red Room, the State Dining Room, the Vermeil Room, the China Room, the Library, and the East Room (O’Connor 2). The Dining Room has thirty-five person seating (The Lehrman Institute, “The White House).

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To start with, all of the rooms in the White House had a different function. For example, the Blue Room was constructed for "social events." The Blue Room was also used if there was people who would like to meet the president (The Lehrman Institute, "Downstairs at the White House: Blue Room"). The green Room was used when Abraham Lincoln's son, Willie Lincoln passed away (The Lehrman Institute, "Downstairs at the White House: Green Room"). The Red Room was used for the President's more private events that were held at the White House (The Lehrman Institute, "Downstairs at the White House: Red Room"). The State Dining Room was simply for the presidents to have meals at (The Lehrman Institute, "The White House"). The Family Library's purpose was for the presidents to have books to read and it was also sometimes used for Tad and Willie Lincoln to be tutored in (The Lehrman Institute, "Upstairs at the White House: Family Library").

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This is an illustration showing the look of the Blue Room. (The Lehrman Institute)

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This is a painting depicting the Green Room. (The Lehrman Institute)

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This is a painting done on the Red Room. (The Lehrman Institute)

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This is Abraham Lincoln with a little boy in the White House Library. (The Lehrman Institute)

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This is the State Dining Room with the thirty-five person seating. (The Lehrman Institute)

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Another large part of the White House is the East Room. In the East Room sometimes concerts would be held for entertainment. The East Room also has performances, meetings, and all types of art. There are many successful musicians that perform in the East Room (The White House Historical Association, “The East Room”). Sometimes, during the Civil War the East Room would occupy “troops” when they had nowhere else to go (O’Connor 14). The East Room is eighty feet long, forty feet wide, and twenty-two feet high. It also has many mirrors and shelves made out of wood. Most of the White House is made up of the East Room. The Drawing Rooms connect to the East Room and portraits are used as decorations in it (The Lehrman Institute, “The White House”).

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This was when Johnny Cash performed in the East Room. (The White House Historical Association)

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This is the East Room after it had been decorated. (The White House Historical Association)

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Another place in the White House is the State Floor. Previously, it was created to be a Public Audience Room (The White House Historical Association, “The East Room”).

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Equally important as the rooms in the White House was daily life for the presidents. Daily life for the presidents had very many ups and downs and the presidents had very many obligations.  The first two people to live in the White House were John and Abigail Adams. During their time there the White House had many problems including a lack of glass and a roof that leaked. After four months of living in the White House John and Abigail Adams moved out and Thomas Jefferson moved in (O’Connor 6). Thomas Jefferson was a president, vice president, and secretary of the state. Jefferson soaked his “feet in ice water” a lot and pretended to be friends with Adams (Green 14). John Quincy Adams was the son of John Adams. John Quincy Adams was the first president to have his picture taken and he did not like being the president (20).

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Thomas Jefferson was a president, vice president, and secretary of the state. Jefferson soaked his “feet in ice water” a lot and pretended to be friends with Adams (Green 14). Thomas Jefferson, while living in the White House, knew a lady named Dolley Madison. Dolley Madison was appointed to be the first lady by mistake. Dolley was also the wife of James Madison, so, many people thought of her as popular in Washington, D.C. (The White House Historical Association, "The East Room"). John Quincy Adams was the son of John Adams. John Quincy Adams was the first president to have his picture taken and he did not like being the president (20).

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A well-known and accomplished president is Abraham Lincoln. Before living in the White House, he lived in Springfield, Illinois . There were many workers in the White House to make life easier for the Lincolns. Only seven rooms in the White House belonged to Abraham Lincoln and his family. These rooms were the the parents’ bedrooms, the children’s bedrooms, the “sitting room,” and the “private dining room”  (The Lehrman Institute, “The White House”). Lincoln had two sons named Tad and Willie. He got his sons each a goat that lived in the boys bedrooms for them to play with. In Lincoln’s spare time he read to his Tad and Willie (O’Connor 15).

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This is Tad Lincoln in his bedroom. (The Lehrman Institute)

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Two other presidents that had an impact on the White House during their times spent there were Martin Van Buren and William Henry Harrison. When Van Buren did not like the furniture and old china in the White House, he sold it. The president that had a short amount of time living in the White House was William Henry Harrison. William died due to pneumonia after only thirty days of living in the White House (6).

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This is an example of some of the china in the White House.
(The White House Historical Association)

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Some of the presidents, while living in the White House, even lived with their relatives and animals (Green 6). The president’s family lived in the West Wing. The president’s office was not open to the public (The Lehrman Institute, “The White House”)

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All in all, there are many important aspects of the White House that many people admire. The construction of the White House, important rooms, and daily lives of the presidents is what many people enjoy. If one ever goes to see the White House make sure to remember all of the purposeful work and dedication that has gone into it.

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Works Cited

Caroli, Betty Boyd. Inside the White House. New York: The Reader’s Digest Association Inc.,

1992.

Green, Dan. U.S. Presidents. United States: Toucan, 2017.

The Lehrman Institute. “Mr. Lincoln’s White House.” Mr. Lincoln’s White House, www.mrlincolns

whitehouse.org/the-white-house/. Accessed 26 Feb. 2019.

O’Connor, Jane. If the Walls Could Talk: Family Life at the White House. Simon and Schuster

Books for Young Readers, 2004.

The White House Historical Association. “The East Room.” https://www.white-house

history.org/white-house-tour/ the-east-room. Accessed 2 Feb. 2019.

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The picture in the background is a photo of the White House from the outside. (The Lehrman Institute)