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Motor Cars Come to the White House: Wilson Administration

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  • Motor Cars Come to the White House; White House History (Number 28) - Photo 8

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    President Woodrow Wilson’s Pierce Arrow Touring Car, undated photograph.

    Library of Congress

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  • Motor Cars Come to the White House; White House History (Number 28) - Photo 11

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    President Woodrow Wilson and First Lady Edith Wilson ride in a parade in downtown Los Angeles while Secret Service agents keep watch. Wilson was on tour promoting the League of Nations, September 21, 1919.

    Library of Congress

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  • Motor Cars Come to the White House; White House History (Number 28) - Photo 9

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    President Woodrow Wilson and First Lady Edith Wilson go for a drive in Washington, D.C., March 20, 1920, after his illness.

    Library of Congress

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  • Motor Cars Come to the White House; White House History (Number 28) - Photo 10

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    First Lady Edith Bolling Wilson steps from the Pierce Arrow limousine on H Street in Northwest Washington, D.C., near the intersection of 13th and H Streets with New York Avenue in 1920.

    National Archives and Records Administration

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  • Motor Cars Come to the White House; White House History (Number 28) - Photo 12

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    The Wilsons’ Pierce Arrow is now in the collection of the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library in Staunton, Virginia, and is shown in front of Wilson’s birthplace, The Manse, which the library maintains.

    The Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Museum/NARA

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About this Gallery

"Advancement of the motor age continued apace at the White House during President Woodrow Wilson’s tenure in office. By the end of 1913, America had produced 1,258,060 automobiles and the industry was symbolic of progress and the means to expand trade, tourism, and a greater unity of the states. America needed better roads and highways, and President Wilson embraced the cause." — Hillary Mannion

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