11 score and 8 years ago – that’s 1792 – the cornerstone of the White House was laid. The White House history is rich with home decor nostalgia and inspiration. And, with each incoming president, tastes and trends have changed and interior design relics have required restoration. So, what do world leaders elect to spend their decorating funds on? Turns out, everything from ornate chandeliers to contemporary art.
John Adams
In 1800, John and Abigail Adams became the White House’s first presidential residents. Decor included furniture shipped in from Philadelphia and a full-length portrait of the late, great George Washington.
Martin Van Buren
According to The White House Historical Society, President Martin Van Buren gave the Blue Room its name by replacing the Oval Room’s original red wall coverings with shades of silver and, you guessed it, light blue! Van Buren opted for more regal decor, also purchasing fine glassware, marble tables and ornate chandeliers.
Abraham Lincoln
With the Civil War looming, Honest Abe paid little attention to furnishings. First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln managed the decorating, with purchases including dinner and dessert ware made of fine French porcelain, intricate carpets, wall coverings, and a mahogany bedroom set featuring the iconic Lincoln Bed. The First Lady may have been over budget twice, but the Lincoln Bed remains one of the most famous pieces of furniture in the White House!
Theodore Roosevelt
With six children now calling the White House home, Theodore and Edith Roosevelt got right to renovating. They expanded the second-floor family quarters, making way for presidential parents to come, and erected the West Wing, where staff offices were eventually relocated. The Roosevelts also hoped to bring the building’s neoclassical exterior indoors, so Colonial Revival furnishings, including impressive chandeliers and new state china, were added to the home.
Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson and his first wife, Ellen Wilson, focused in on landscaping, re-imagining both the East and West gardens and adding limestone furniture with a natural, organic feel. The year after Ellen Wilson’s death, President Wilson remarried Edith Bolling Galt who, most notably, set up the China Room, to exhibit the fascinating and rapidly growing collection of White House china.
John F. Kennedy
First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy made history a priority upon her 1961 move in, establishing a Fine Arts Committee to help her gather authentic period pieces. Among Mrs. Kennedy’s most impressive acquisitions were three chairs from Monroe’s original Oval Room suite circa 1817, and a chair crafted specifically for the East Room in 1818.
Richard Nixon
The Nixons moved into the White House in 1969, teaming up with the Committee for the Preservation of the White House to furnish the Red and Green rooms. Mrs. Nixon similarly secured an impressive collection of hundreds of pieces of historical furniture, including nineteen chandeliers and various china sets from previous administrations.
Bill Clinton
President Clinton, Mrs. Clinton and the preservation committee overhauled the Blue Room, the East Room, the Entrance Hall, Cross Hall, Grand Staircase and the State Dining Room over the years. Notably, two chairs from George Washington’s first presidential home, circa 1789, also joined the White House’s historical collection during Clinton’s time in office.
Barack Obama
During Barack Obama’s second term, the refurbished State Dining Room was unveiled. Improvements included an inspired custom woven rug, new, luxe window treatments and nearly three dozen chairs inspired by a set from James Monroe’s East Room, in 1818. Mrs. Obama also secured and displayed four American abstract art pieces, including a painting by Alma Thomas, making her the first female African-American artist in the White House collection.
Donald Trump
In 2019, nearly 220 years after John Adams first moved into the White House, Mrs. Trump headed up various restoration and renovation projects. According to USA TODAY, the first lady has focused her attention on the Red, Green and Blue Rooms, reviving fabric and revitalizing furniture. An elevator and bowling alley are also sparkling with new life!
So, what will make the books as our new White House history? We hear dark exteriors are “in” this year…
Sources:
The White House Historical Association, “Decorating the White House”
USA TODAY, “White House makeover: Melania Trump upgrades, refreshes and restores for state dinner”
Published on February 17, 2020
