— Ch. 1 · Origins And Early History —
Oval Office.
~7 min read · Ch. 1 of 7
George Washington never lived in the White House. He spent his presidency in Philadelphia, where he built a large semi-circular addition to the rear of the President's House in 1790. This bow window allowed him to receive guests standing between three windows during Tuesday afternoon audiences. Delegations from Congress and foreign dignitaries visited this space on New Year's Day, the Fourth of July, and his birthday. John Adams used the same bow window when he occupied the Philadelphia mansion starting in March 1797. Architect James Hoban likely saw this bow window when he visited Washington in June 1792. Hoban won the design competition for the White House the following month. The elliptic salon at the center of the White House became an outstanding feature of his original plan. Oval rooms were common in neoclassical architecture early in the 19th century. In November 1800, John Adams became the first president to occupy the White House. He and Thomas Jefferson used Hoban's oval rooms as Washington had used his bow window salon. They stood before the three windows at the south end to receive guests. Some presidents later used the second-floor Yellow Oval Room as their private offices and libraries. This cultural association between the president and an oval room was fully expressed in the Taft Oval Office completed in 1909.
Roosevelt Redesign And Construction
President Franklin D. Roosevelt engaged New York architect Eric Gugler to redesign the West Wing in 1933. FDR used a wheelchair and needed easier access and more privacy than the previous office offered. Gugler excavated a full basement and added subterranean offices under the adjacent lawn to create staff space without increasing the building's apparent size. The directive to maximize office space resulted in narrow corridors and cramped staff offices elsewhere. Gugler expanded the building eastward to build a new Cabinet Room and Oval Office at the southeast corner. The modern office featured robust Georgian details including doors topped with substantial pediments and bookcases set into niches. A deep bracketed cornice and a ceiling medallion of the Presidential Seal defined the grandeur. Light bulbs hidden within the cornice washed the ceiling in light rather than using a chandelier. Hints of Art Moderne appeared in sconces flanking the windows and the eagle representation in the ceiling medallion. Roosevelt and Gugler worked closely together often over breakfast while Gugler sketched ideas. One notion from these sketches became fixed: two high back chairs placed in front of the fireplace. This allowed Roosevelt to be seated while guests sat at the same level, de-emphasizing his inability to stand without help. Construction of the modern Oval Office was completed in 1934.