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Gutted White House

Gutted White House

Creator: Abbie Rowe, National Park Service, April 12, 1950

Gutted to the outside stone walls, deepened with a new two story basement, reinforced with concrete and 660 tons of steel, and fireproofed, the White House was stabilized during President Truman's administration. The protection of the historic stone walls was so important that workers dismantled a bulldozer and reassembled it inside to avoid cutting a larger doorway out of the walls. Shafts out of windows carried out debris from the inside of the house, and external stairs were built because the inside was completely empty during the renovation.

Photographer
Abbie Rowe
Date of Work
April 12, 1950
Credit
Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum/ NARA