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First Family Life

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First Children

What was it like to grow up in a home where some of the most important political decisions are being made at the same time as you are trying to pass your driver's license exam? We all remember our childhood firsts, but for most of us, these quintessential memories did not take place in one of the country's most famous

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A History of Presidential Vacations & Retreats

In this series of video clips, Historian Lawrence L. Knutson talks about presidential vacations and retreats. He offers anecdotes for presidents including Abraham Lincoln, Grover Cleveland, Lyndon B. Johnson, and William J. Clinton. Remarks are taken from his book Escaping the Gilded Cage: An Illustrated History of Presidential Vacations and Retreats. Knutson is a journalist who retired in 2003 after a 37

Article

White House Decorative Arts in the 1910s

When President and Mrs. William H. Taft came to the White House in 1909, they didn’t change the furnishings in any of the state rooms. The first lady replaced the Victorian furniture in the president’s bedroom with Colonial Revival mahogany pieces and personal furnishings. The Taft's twenty-fifth anniversary was the major social event of their administration and among the many

Article

White House Decorative Arts in the 1900s

Increased coverage by the press and public interest in the lives of the White House families inevitably has led to writing about objects in the White House. Mrs. McKinley granted permission to Abby Gunn Baker to research and write the first history of the White House china. The McKinleys also refurbished the Blue Room in the Colonial Revival style—the fi

Article

White House Decorative Arts in the 1890s

The extended family of Benjamin Harrison stretched the Executive Mansion's available living space to the limit and a number of beds were ordered to accommodate the family. Caroline Harrison was a life-long art student, and her interest in china painting led her to search the White House for old services. She had these repaired and preserved and can be credited