In today’s article, explore the extraordinary life of William Costin—a free African-American activist and scholar who successfully challenged Black Codes in the Circuit Court of the District of Columbia #SPNInitiative: whitehousehistory.org/william-costin…
Learn about the complicated past and the paradoxical relationship between slavery and freedom in the nation's capital with our research initiative, Slavery in the President's Neighborhood #SPNInitiative: whitehousehistory.org/spn/introducti…
Join us live on Facebook this Tuesday, 5/5, at 5:00pm et for White House History Live! Historian Lina Mann will discuss 5 previously untold stories about the role of enslaved people in White House history #SPNInitiative: facebook.com/events/4628214…
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Since 1817, President James Monroe's gilded bronze and mirrored plateau has impressed White House visitors.
Image: White House Historical Association
After the British burned the White House in 1814, President Monroe purchased Parisian furniture to refurbish the scorched Executive Mansion. Among the newly acquired furniture was the gilded centerpiece, made by the Parisian firm Denière et Matelin.
Image: White House Collection/WHHA
Described as "mat gilt with garlands of fruit and vines," Monroe's plateau featured 16 figures presenting wreaths and pedestals. It is accompanied by three baskets, a pair of urns, and stands, which remain today.
One of First Lady Edith Roosevelt’s White House legacies was the introduction of garden parties (pictured). Before becoming first lady, she held extravagant garden parties at the Roosevelt’s family home in Oyster Bay, New York.
📷: @SagamoreHillNHS
@SagamoreHillNHS Mrs. Roosevelt’s White House garden parties gained such traction that local papers announced that her inaugural party as “the first time in the history of the White House that the mistress of the mansion has given this kind of function.”
🖼️: White House Collection/WHHA
@SagamoreHillNHS With hundreds of guests attending her inaugural party, she wore an elegant white taffeta and organdy dress, trimmed with ruffles and lace. Pictured is Mrs. Roosevelt’s 1905 garden party on the South Lawn of the White House.
It’s #FirstLadyFriday, and today we’re highlighting the life of First Lady Jane Pierce, born in New Hampshire on this day in 1806.
Image: Library of Congress
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Jane Appleton married Franklin Pierce in 1834, though she was uninterested in politics and the spotlight that came with it.
Image: White House Collection/White House Historical Association
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Their marriage was marked by tragedy, as they had lost two young children before Pierce’s election to the presidency in 1852. Unfortunately, death followed them to the White House.
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Salvadore Catalano, a Sicilian-born sailor, became an American naval hero as a critical player in a secret mission during the First Barbary War.
A native of Sicily, his composure and knowledge of Tripoli Harbor were essential to the mission.
Image: Library of Congress
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In one of the most courageous actions in American naval history, Catalano piloted the Intrepid for Lieutenant Stephen Decatur’s destruction of the captured USS Philadelphia in Tripoli Harbor in 1804.
Image: U.S. Naval Academy Museum Collection/U.S. Navy Photograph
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The mission to destroy the USS Philadelphia was perilous. Pirates (also called Corsairs) on board the Philadelphia hailed Decatur, but it was Catalano who answered, buying time for the Intrepid crew to attach ropes to the Philadelphia to pull the vessels together.
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This #FirstLadyFriday, we recognize the many women who served as “surrogate” White House hostesses. Typically, first ladies are the wives of presidents, but daughters, nieces, sisters, daughters-in-laws, and friends have stepped into this significant role.
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President Thomas Jefferson, whose wife, Martha, passed away nearly two decades before his inauguration, was the first president to be joined by surrogate hostesses at the White House.
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His daughters, Martha Jefferson Randolph (pictured here) and Maria Jefferson Eppes, welcomed guests to the Executive Mansion, dined with visitors, and managed enslaved and free servants.
After his farewell speech at the entrance to the White House on September 7, 1825, an emotional Marquis de Lafayette embraced President John Quincy Adams, signalling the end of his yearlong triumphant return to the United States.
Image: White House Historical Association
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Originally intended as a four-month tour, the general’s visit stretched into a thirteen-month journey to all twenty-four states, and inspired patriotic celebrations and expressions across a young country during the waning days of the “Era of Good Feelings.”
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President Adams could not allow the general to leave without one last celebration in his honor. Adams celebrated Lafayette’s September 6 birthday with a White House dinner.
Image: White House Collection/White House Historical Association