Photos show how the White House's decor has changed over the years
Al Drago/The New York Times-Pool/Getty Images
- The Oval Office has been expanded, renovated, and redecorated several times throughout US history.
- Donald Trump redecorated the Oval Office with many of the same artifacts from his first term.
- Truman renovated the State Dining Room in the '50s, and Jacqueline Kennedy restored it in the '60s.
The White House has 132 rooms, and each new US president gets $100,000 to redecorate them.
With every new president comes new design choices, often reflecting their values and political views.
We traced the histories of three significant White House rooms — the Oval Office, the Blue Room, and the State Dining Room — to see how their designs have changed over the years.
Evan Vucci
The office's oval shape was inspired by the shape of the Blue Room on the first floor, according to the White House Historical Association.
B.M. Clinedinst/Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images
The Oval Office was designed by architect Nathan C. Wyeth.
Harris & Ewing Collection/Library of Congress
Among Hoover's upgrades was the Oval Office's first telephone.
Harris & Ewing Collection/Library of Congress
Roosevelt expanded the West Wing to accommodate more staff. The Oval Office was moved to the southeast corner of the White House, which had initially been a laundry-drying yard.
Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
The ceiling depicts the Presidential Seal.
Harold Sellers/JFK Library
The Resolute Desk was a gift from Queen Victoria to President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1880.
Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum
Striped sofas were a popular furniture trend in the '70s.
Susan Biddle/White House/File/AP
The armchairs on either side of the Resolute Desk, dating back to Hoover's time in the White House, were reupholstered in blue.
Doug Mills/AP Images
The rug featured olive branches along the border and sunbeam designs around the presidential seal in the center.
J.Scott Applewhite/File/AP
The rug was made by The Scott Group of Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Mark Wilson/Newsmakers/Getty Images
The new gold rug featured a sunbeam design.
Pete Souza/Getty Images
The rug featured the Martin Luther King Jr. quote: "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.''
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Jackson's treatment of Native Americans, including the signing of the Indian Removal Act, has made him a controversial figure.
Al Drago/The New York Times-Pool/Getty Images
In addition to Roosevelt, the wall featured portraits of Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton hung together to symbolize the benefits of different opinions.
Biden's Oval Office also included busts of fellow progressives and activists showcased throughout the room: Robert F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt, and labor leader and civil rights activist Cesar Chavez.
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Trump also reinstated a red button on the Resolute Desk that summons a Diet Coke, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Andrew Harrer-Pool/Getty Images
The oval shape dates back to President George Washington's practice of holding levees, formal greeting receptions inspired by English court, according to the White House Historical Association.
AP
By 1940, Roosevelt cleared out and returned to the Oval Office.
AP
It also featured striped wallpaper.
Harvey Meston/Getty Images
The striped wallpaper was replaced with dark blue.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
The room was remodeled after the Committee for the Preservation of the White House recommended that it be refurbished.
Eric Draper/White House/Getty Images
The Blue Room isn't just for ceremonial greetings. In 2001, President George W. Bush met with British Prime Minister Tony Blair there before addressing the nation in the wake of September 11.
J. Scott Applewhite/File/AP
For the Obamas' first Christmas in the White House in 2009, the Blue Room was adorned with an 18-foot high Douglas fir illuminated with LED lights.
ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images
In 2021, first lady Jill Biden decorated the tree with doves carrying a banner with the names of every US state and territory.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
The menu is usually chosen by the first lady.
Library of Congress
Roosevelt expanded the State Dining Room during the 1902 White House renovation and added a moose head to the walls.
Library of Congress
The renovation cost $5.7 million, according to the Truman Library Institute.
AP
She conducted a tour of the newly restored White House that was watched by more than 80 million Americans on television in 1962, according to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.
Ron Edmonds/AP
Back when Clinton was the governor of Arkansas, he spoke at the White House in the State Dining Room in 1987.
Shealah Craighead/White House via Getty Images
It featured a cream-colored carpet and matching curtains.
Alex Wong/Getty Images
The tables were set in honor of British Prime Minister David Cameron's visit to the White House.
Alex Wong/Getty Images
The State Dining Room was dramatically lit in purple in 2015 for a post-state dinner reception for the prime minister of Japan.
Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP
He did host two state dinners during his presidency: President Emmanual Macron of France in 2018 and Prime Minister Scott Morrison of Australia in 2019.
Andrew Harnik/AP
During Biden's presidency, the State Dining Room featured the same curtains and rug from the Trump administration.
LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images
The event featured a performance by Jon Batiste and a menu including Maine lobster and crème fraîche ice cream.