Main Content

First Family Life

Featured Collection

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

clear filters
Scholarship

Christmas with the Kennedys

The White House celebrates many holiday traditions, some of which are historic and others more recent. New arrivals to the Executive Mansion bring unique familial rituals that they are often blended with time-tested White House and presidential customs. During the holiday season, the president and first lady participate in public traditions such as receiving a tree for the Blue Room,

Scholarship

Things That Go Bump in the Blue Room

Most White House ghost stories revolve around long-deceased presidents or first ladies, such as Abigail Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Dolley Madison, Andrew Jackson, and Abraham Lincoln. Some are more tangential to the White House, such as Anna Surratt, the daughter of Lincoln assassination conspirator Mary Surratt. But legends featuring spooks and specters aren’t restricted to nineteenth-century stories that have been re

Article

Upstairs at the White House with Tricia Nixon

This month marks the 50th anniversary of Upstairs at the White House with Tricia Nixon, a historic White House television event with the now iconic CBS television news show, 60 Minutes. While Harry Truman, Jacqueline Kennedy, and Claudia “Lady Bird” Johnson had previously conducted recorded tours of the White House, this was the first time that cameras were allowed upstairs for a te

Article

White House Christmas Traditions

Few first ladies enjoyed Christmas as exuberantly and creatively as did Pat Nixon. During the five holiday seasons she spent in the White House, Mrs. Nixon introduced traditions that continue to the present day. She set a standard for festooning the Executive Mansion during the holidays that every first lady since has honored and built on. For most of the