To Own a Piece of the White House: Gavel

This wooden gavel was made from wood salvaged during the Truman Renovation. Souvenir kits were made from surplus wood, nails, plaster, and bricks removed from the Executive Mansion were sold to the public, usually in the form of kits, as was the case with this gavel. The plaque on the gavel's head authenticates its White House origins. This photograph was taken by Jim Allen.

Artist: Unknown
Photographer: Jim Allen
Date of Work: 1950
Credit: The White House Historical Association

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The Truman Renovation

Read Digital Edition Foreword, Robert L. BreedenReality and Illusion: The White House and Harry S. Truman, William P. O'BrienTempest in a Teapot: Truman's Failed Attempt at an Office Addition, Elizabeth Beard GoldsmithLorenzo Simmons Winslow: Architect of the White House, 1933-1952, William B. BushongPictures of the Operation: Abbie Rowe Photographs, the White House Renovation, Clay BauskePresident Truman's Televised Tour, Rex W.
Podcast
Washington National Cathedral & the White House

Featuring Very Reverend Randolph Hollerith and Reverend Canon Jan Naylor Cope
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President Truman's Renovation

During the administration of President Harry S. Truman, the White House underwent a renovation and expansion so extensive, it changed the Executive Mansion more than the fire of 1814. The White House we know today is largely due to the renovation led by Truman. The construction took place between 1948 and 1952 and was a remarkable feat of engineering. National Park Service photographer
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The 2018 White House Christmas Ornament

Every year since 1981, the White House Historical Association has had the privilege of designing the Official White House Christmas Ornament. These unique collectibles — honoring individual presidents or specific White House anniversaries — have become part of the holiday tradition of millions of American families. In this collection, explore the history behind our 2018 design, and discover how President Harry S. Truman made a la
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2024 National History Day Resources

The 2024 National History Day (NHD) theme is Turning Points in History. The White House Historical Association offers a variety of resources to assist students working on NHD projects.
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White House History Table of Contents

NUMBERS 1 THROUGH 6 (COLLECTION I) WHITE HOUSE HISTORY • NUMBER 1 1 — Foreword by Melvin M. Payne 5 — President Kennedy’s Rose Garden by Rachel Lambert Mellon 13 — White House Album: History in the Camera’s Eye by Oliver Jensen 23 — The Association’s Twentieth Year by Nash Castro 29 — History in White House Silver by Joseph D. Carr 39 — Stone Walls Preserved by James I. McDaniel 46 — A Colored Man’s Reminiscences of
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Easter Egg Roll Significant Dates

April 29, 1876 – President Ulysses S. Grant signed legislation protecting the public turf and grounds of the U.S. Capitol; egg rolling was among the activities banned. April 2, 1877 – It rained on Easter Monday, so the new law did not have to be enforced. April 22, 1878 - The first annual White House Easter Egg Roll was held after President Rutherford B. Hayes agreed to open
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The Ground Floor

The white marble walls of the Ground Floor corridor complement the vaulted ceiling arching gracefully overhead. Architect James Hoban installed the groin vaulting around 1793. Its sturdy construction withstood the fire of 1814. The vaulted ceiling seen today is a copy of the original vaulting built during the Truman Renovation between 1948 and 1952. One of the house's finest architectural elements, this ceiling was
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State Dining Room

The State Dining Room, which now seats as many as 140 guests, was originally much smaller and served at various times as a drawing room, office, and Cabinet Room. Today's State Dining Room incorporates the space that President Thomas Jefferson used as a private office. Tall and generously proportioned, the room had fireplaces on the east and west and was flooded
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The Blue Room

The Blue Room with the Yellow Oval Room above and the Diplomatic Reception Room below it, form the most elegant space of James Hoban's plans for the White House. For the south wall of the Blue Room, he designed French doors flanked by long windows. An oval portico with curving stairs that descended to the South Lawn was included in
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The Entrance Hall

The Cross Hall and large Entrance Hall are at the center of the original plan by James Hoban for the State Floor of the White House. The basic floor plan has not been altered substantially, although modifications have been made to the design and placement of the principle staircases. The plan is arranged so that the Cross Hall connects all
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White House Tour

Following a competition for the design of the President's House in the spring of 1792, Irish architect James Hoban was commissioned to build a home and office for the President of the United States. With guidance from President George Washington, Hoban employed craftsmen brought from as far away as Scotland and oversaw a free and enslaved labor force that constructed one