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Eisenhower Executive Office Building

Coordinates:38°53′51.24″N77°2′20.93″W/ 38.8975667°N 77.0391472°W/38.8975667; -77.0391472
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not to be confused with theNew Executive Office Building.
State, War, and Navy Building
Eisenhower Executive Office Building in 1981
Eisenhower Executive Office Building is located in Central Washington, D.C.
Eisenhower Executive Office Building
LocationPennsylvania Avenueand 17th Street, NW
Washington, D.C.,United States
Coordinates38°53′51.24″N77°2′20.93″W/ 38.8975667°N 77.0391472°W/38.8975667; -77.0391472
Built1871–1888
ArchitectAlfred B. Mullett
Architectural styleFrench Second Empire
NRHP referenceNo.69000293
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJune 4, 1969[1]
Designated NHLNovember 11, 1971[2]

TheEisenhower Executive Office Building(EEOB), formerly known as theOld Executive Office Building(OEOB), and originally known as theState, War, and Navy Building(SWAN Building), is aUnited States governmentbuilding that is now part of theWhite Housecompound in the U.S. capital ofWashington, D.C.The building houses various agencies that comprise theExecutive Office of the President,such as theWhite House Office,theOffice of the Vice President,theOffice of Management and Budget,and theNational Security Council.[3]Opened in 1888, the building was renamed in 1999 in honor ofDwight D. Eisenhower,the 34th U.S. president and afive-starU.S. Army generalwho wasAllied forcescommander duringWorld War II.

The building is located on 17th Street NW, betweenPennsylvania Avenueand State Place and West Executive Drive. It was commissioned by PresidentUlysses S. Grant,and built between 1871 and 1888 on the site of the original 1800 War/State/Navy Building[4]and the White House stables, in the FrenchSecond Empire style.

As its first name suggests, it was initially built to house the staff of three governmentcabinetdepartments. The building's elaborate architectural style received substantial criticism when it was first completed; it has since been designated as aNational Historic Landmark.

History

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The first executive offices were constructed between 1799 and 1820 on the former site of theWashington Jockey Club,flanking theWhite House.[5]In 1869, following the Civil War, Congress appointed a commission to select a site and submit plan and cost estimates for a new State Department Building, with possible arrangements to house the War and Navy departments.[5]

Construction of the building (undated), now the EEOB
The (second) State, War, and Navy Building in 1917

The building, originally called theState,War,andNavy(SWAN) Building because it housed these three departments, was built between 1871 and 1888 in theFrenchSecond Empire style.[6]

It was designed byAlfred B. Mullett,Supervising Architectof the Department of Treasury, which had responsibility for federal buildings. Patterned after French Second Empire architecture that clashed sharply with theneoclassicalstyle of the other Federal buildings in the city, it was generally regarded with scorn and disdain. WriterMark Twainreferred to this building as "the ugliest building in America."[7]PresidentHarry S. Trumancalled it "the greatest monstrosity in America."[8]HistorianHenry Adamscalled it Mullett's "architectural infant asylum."[9]Mullett later resigned. Beset by financial difficulties, litigation, and illness, in 1890 he committed suicide.[10]

The exterior granite was cut and polished on the island ofVinalhaven, Maine,under a contract with Bodwell Granite Company.[11]Much of the interior was designed byRichard von Ezdorf,using fireproof cast-iron structural and decorative elements. These included massive skylights above each of the major stairwells, and doorknobs with cast patterns indicating which of the original three occupying departments (State, Navy, or War) occupied a particular space. The total cost to construct the building was $10,038,482 when construction ended in 1888 ($339 million in 2023), after 17 years.[citation needed]

The original tenants quickly outgrew the building and finally vacated it completely in the late 1930s. Becoming known as the Old Executive Office Building, it housed staff members of theExecutive Office of the President.The building was considered inefficient and was nearly demolished in 1957. In 1969, the building was designated as aNational Historic Landmark.[12]

In 1981, plans began to restore all the "secretary of" suites. The main office of the Secretary of the Navy was restored in 1987 and is now used as the ceremonial office of thevice president.Shortly after September 11, 2001, the 17th Street side of the building was vacated and has since been modernized. The building continues to house various agencies that compose the president'sexecutive office,such as theOffice of the Vice President,theOffice of Management and Budget,and theNational Security Council.Its most public function is that of the Vice President's Ceremonial Office, which is used chiefly for special meetings and press conferences.[13]

PresidentRichard Nixonmaintained a "hideaway" office in Room 180 of the EEOB, pictured here in 1969.

Many celebrated national figures have participated in historical events that have taken place within the Old Executive Office Building. PresidentsTheodore Roosevelt,William Howard Taft,Franklin D. Roosevelt,Dwight D. Eisenhower,Lyndon B. Johnson,Gerald Ford,andGeorge H. W. Bushall had offices in this building before becoming president. It has housed 16Secretaries of the Navy,21Secretaries of War,and 24Secretaries of State.Sir Winston Churchillonce walked its corridors andJapaneseemissaries met there with Secretary of StateCordell Hullafter thebombingofPearl Harbor.

Presidents have occupied space in the EEOB as well.Herbert Hooverworked out of theSecretary of the Navy's office for a few months following a fire in theOval OfficeonChristmas Eve1929. President Dwight D. Eisenhower held the first televised presidential news conference in the building'sIndian Treaty Room(Room 474) on January 19, 1955.[14]PresidentRichard Nixonmaintained a private "hideaway" office in room 180 of the EEOB during his presidency, from where he preferred to work, using theOval Officeonly for ceremonial occasions.[15]

Vice PresidentLyndon B. Johnsonwas the first in a succession of vice presidents who have had offices in the building.[13]The first wife of a vice president to have an office in the building wasMarilyn Quayle,wife ofDan Quayle,vice president to George H.W. Bush.[citation needed]

The Old Executive Office Building was renamed the Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building when PresidentBill Clintonapproved legislation changing the name on November 9, 1999. PresidentGeorge W. Bushparticipated in a rededication ceremony on May 7, 2002.[16]

A small fire on December 19, 2007, damaged an office of the vice-president's staff and included the VP ceremonial office.[17]According to media reporting, the office of the vice president's Political Director, Amy Whitelaw, was heavily damaged in the fire.[18]

Occupants

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The EEOB from the intersection of Pennsylvania Ave and 17th St. NW, pictured in 2021

Presidents

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Vice presidents

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Secretaries of State

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Secretaries of War

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Army chiefs of staff

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Secretaries of the Navy

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Senior Navy officers

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  • The Navy Department Library, 1915
    The Navy Department Library, 1915
  • An overhead view looking northeast, circa 1920
    An overhead view looking northeast, circa 1920
  • The Eisenhower Executive Office Building north façade
    The Eisenhower Executive Office Building north façade
  • Executive Office Building façade detail
    Executive Office Building façade detail
  • Charles Evans Hughes with the EEOB in the background
    Charles Evans Hugheswith the EEOB in the background
  • A hallway with decorative elements
    A hallway with decorative elements
  • A skylight above a staircase
    A skylight above a staircase
  • A fisheye view of the Façade, 2017
    Afisheyeview of the Façade, 2017
  • Detail of the northwest corner
    Detail of the northwest corner
  • Pauline Wayne, President Taft's pet cow in front of the building
    Pauline Wayne,President Taft's pet cow in front of the building
  • The front façade on Pennsylvania Avenue, 2018
    The front façade on Pennsylvania Avenue, 2018

See also

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References

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  1. ^"National Register Information System".National Register of Historic Places.National Park Service.April 15, 2008.
  2. ^"State, War, and Navy Building".National Historic Landmark summary listing.National Park Service. Archived fromthe originalon October 10, 2012.RetrievedFebruary 20,2009.
  3. ^"Eisenhower Executive Office Building".The White House.Retrieved2024-10-05.
  4. ^"Public Building West of the White House May 1801 - August 1814".US Department of State, Office of the Historian.RetrievedJanuary 21,2021.
  5. ^ab"Eisenhower Executive Office Building".The White House.RetrievedOctober 24,2020.
  6. ^Edleson, Harriet (February 1, 2012).Little Black Book of Washington DC(2012 ed.). Peter Pauper Press, Inc. p. 26.ISBN978-1-4413-0661-6.
  7. ^"The White House Area".Archived fromthe originalon October 5, 2008.RetrievedJanuary 1,2009.
  8. ^"Call it ugly or a monstrosity; call it Eisenhower Building".The Morning Sun.Pittsburg, Kansas. November 10, 1999. Archived fromthe originalon May 14, 2001.RetrievedJanuary 21,2021.
  9. ^White Jr., Richard D. (November 10, 2003).Roosevelt the Reformer.The University of Alabama Press. p. 8.ISBN978-0-8173-1361-6.
  10. ^"Mullett, Alfred B. (1834-1890)".North Carolina Architects and Builders.Retrieved2024-09-02.
  11. ^Grindle, Roger (October 1, 1976)."Bodwell Blue: The Story of Vinalhaven's Granite Industry".Maine History.16(2).RetrievedOctober 9,2022.
  12. ^Morton III, W. Brown (May 24, 1971)."National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Executive Office Building/State, War, and Navy Building".National Park Service.RetrievedOctober 19,2016.withthree photos from 1971
  13. ^ab"Vice President's Ceremonial Office".whitehouse.gov.RetrievedDecember 19,2007– viaNational Archives.
  14. ^"Indian Treaty Room".whitehouse.gov.Archivedfrom the original on September 12, 2014.RetrievedMarch 1,2008– viaNational Archives.
  15. ^"Room 180".whitehouse.gov.RetrievedAugust 5,2017– viaNational Archives.
  16. ^"An Imaginary Tour of Pennsylvania Avenue: Pennsylvania Avenue Old Executive Building".Federal Highway Administration.RetrievedMarch 3,2014.
  17. ^"Fire damages Cheney's ceremonial offices near White House".NBC News.Associated Press.December 19, 2007. Archived fromthe originalon December 20, 2007.RetrievedJanuary 21,2021.
  18. ^Hunt, Terence (December 20, 2007)."Fire damages Cheney's ceremonial offices near White House".The Boston Globe.Associated Press.RetrievedJanuary 21,2021.
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