Main Content
Left to right: Bess Abell, Lady Bird Johnson, Tyler Abell, Lyndon Abell, Dan Abell, and President Lyndon B. Johnson sitting in the Yellow Oval Room for Tyler Abell’s appointment as Chief of Protocol. September 25, 1968.
Bess Abell, social secretary in the Johnson administration, 1963 to 1969
“Enjoy [being social secretary]. It’s the best job in the White House, next to being First Lady.”
For more than one hundred years, White House Social Secretaries have demonstrated a profound knowledge of protocol and society in Washington, D.C. The position had its beginnings in the Theodore Roosevelt administration when First Lady Edith Roosevelt hired an executive clerk. From the intricacies of ceremony planning to routine office work, the social secretary must possess unfailing tact in
For more than two centuries, the White House has been the home of American presidents. A powerful symbol of the nation, it is a uniquely private and public space. Since John and Abigail Adams first moved into the “President’s House” in November 1800, hundreds of individuals have worked behind the scenes to help the White House fulfill its roles as a seat
The White House Military Social Aides have played an important role in many different White House events and functions. They have assisted the president with diplomatic protocol at state events, at annual meetings with the leaders of Congress and the federal judiciary, and at other significant social events. Military Social Aides play the role of assistant hosts at the White
While the presidency is often in the eye of the public, those who ensure operations at the White House run smoothly on a day-to-day basis often carry out their work behind the scenes. Furthermore, some of the president's most intimate relationships play out behind the walls of the Executive Mansion. In this collection, pull back the curtain on some of
