Honoring Presidents Day: A Tour of Our House, Pt 1.

The White House. 2008. Architectural Digest.

The March Architectural Digest has an excellent spread of photos and an article on First Lady Laura Bush's renovation to some of the rooms in the White House. I thought it would be fun to honor President's Day by looking into how some of these famous rooms - in our house - have been decorated over the years. One thing I find very comforting is the constant nature of the care and tending of this historic home. Each family who has lived there has clearly cared about our history and honoring our past. No matter what we think about their politics, these images show that they all care about their country and this, the symbol of our nation.

THE LINCOLN BEDROOM

President's office (before remade into Lincoln Bedroom). 1856.

The Lincoln Bedroom 1904 when it was first turned into a bedroom in 1903.

The Lincoln Bedroom from Truman renovation. 1947

Lincoln Bedroom after Kennedy renovation, 1963. Kennedy Library

The Lincoln Bedroom 2001.

The Lincoln Bedroom 2007, Bush Renovation. Courtesy The White House
The Lincoln Bedroom Bush renovation 2001-2007. Architectural Digest.


THE GREEN ROOM

The Green Room (hand tinted photo) ca. 1904. Library of Congress.
The Franklin & Eleanor Roosevelt Green Room, ca. 1945. Courtesy Library of Congress

The Green Room 1948 (reversed). Courtesy Conde Nast.

The Green Room 1963, Kennedy Restoration. Courtesy National Geographic

The Green Room 1977

The Green Room 1999. Courtesy The White House

The Green Room. Bush Renovation 2001-2007. Architectural Digest.

THE RED ROOM

The Red Room illustration ca. 1870

The Red Room ca. 1893

The Red Room, ca. 1924

The Red Room, 1948. Courtesy Library of Congress

The Red Room, 1962. Kennedy Library
The Nixon Red Room ca. 1972. Courtesy of the White House

The Red Room, 1981. Reagan Library

The Red Room, 2006. Courtesy cdhopk

THE BLUE ROOM

The Blue Room ca. 1885 (computer reconstruction) Courtesy Nast.

Chester Arthur's Blue Room ca. 1882. Courtesy Library of Congress

Blue Room. T. Roosevelt reconstruction. 1904. Courtesy The White House

The Blue Room ca. 1940 while Abbie Row was installing the silk wallcovering.
Courtesy of the National Park Service

The Blue Room ca. 1952. Courtesy Truman Library.

Jackie Kennedy's restored Blue Room, 1963 (photo: Robert Knudsen ©Kennedy Library)

The Blue Room ca. 1972 Nixon Renovation. Courtesy White House Historical Association

The Blue Room 1995. Courtesy of The White House

The Blue Room 2006. Courtesy of Ejconkey