15 Intriguing Facts You Don’t Know About The
White House
People
President of the United States, also known as POTUS is usually known as the most powerful person in the world.
The White House is home and office to the Presidents. It has been the centre of the US Government where
several major decisions about global politics take place. However, before President Theodore Roosevelt, it was
simply known as the Executive Mansion. Located in the Washington state of America. The address reads 1600
Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20500, USA.
The construction finished in the year 1800 and it has been the residence of every President ever since. On an
average, The White House has 6,000 visitors a day, over 30,000 in a week. It has also been subjected to various
rumours over the years and for once you might think that you have seen it all in "The West Wing" but there are
still some facts and stories that you have probably never heard of. Have a look at them.
1. Teddy Roosevelt officially named it White House in 1901.
Let’s start with the most basic information, since 1811 it has been unofficially and periodically called the White
House and before 1901 it had different names. From time to time it was called the President’s Palace, the
Executive Mansion, the Presidential Mansion, and the President’s House. These names were often used
interchangeably. President Theodore Roosevelt, in 1901, made sure that the name White House stuck and
hence made it official.
2. Presidents adore this lavish place.
The White House is one of the most exclusive and luxurious homes on Earth and Presidents don’t shy away from
praising it. Gerald R. Ford used to call it the “the best public housing I’ve ever seen” while according to President
Harry S. Truman, it was a “glamorous prison”. As per First Lady Nancy Regan, her husband President Ronald
Regan said it was “an eight-star hotel”.
3. The White House has a twin in Ireland.
The Leinster House in Dublin, Ireland is called as the “mini White House”. Irish architect James Hoban, who
designed the White House is said to have taken the idea for his sketches from the Leinster House. He submitted
his drawing plans for the “design the Presidential residence” contest held by President George Washington.
Along with this, there also is a private house in McLean, Virginia that’s an exact replica of the White House.
Although it is the smaller version, it has the Lincoln Bedroom, Blue Room, and other similarities.
4. The West Wing was initially supposed to be temporary.
The West Wing didn’t exist until 1902 when Teddy Roosevelt had it built. Roosevelt’s six children proved too
distracting before the West Wing, the president would work from a room of his choice on the second floor where
the first family also lived. It was originally known as the Executive Office Building but wasn’t attached to the
main house until President Taft instructed to do so in 1913 so that he could be more involved in the daily
operations.
5. The theory about the secret tunnels.
The White House does have secret underground tunnels. According to whitehouse.gov1, there is a bunker
underneath the East Wing located approximately six stories underground. It is believed that the Oval Office has
trap doors inside that lead down to the secure bunker. After the Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt
did have a bomb shelter built there with access to the vaulted basement of the Treasury Building of the White
House. This room designed specifically for the president was basically a concrete box.
Reports said that under Truman administration in early 1950, the work began for White House underground
Tunnel System. During that time, to connect the West Wing and the East Wing to the Bomb Shelter, a tunnel was
built. In 1987, another secret tunnel was built to protect the president in case of a terrorist attack.
6. Even the first family doesn’t get free food in the White House.
They don’t pay rent but at the end of each month, the president receives a bill for his family’s food and grocery
expenses, in addition to things like toiletries, dry cleaning, including toothpaste. This bill is then deducted out of
the annual salary of the president.
7. It didn’t have running water until 1833.
Before 1833, the White House was deprived of the facility of running water until it got its first “bathing house”
and first running water. Not only that but in 1853, the presidential family members themselves were given the
right to running water.
8. Let there be light.
It was during President Benjamin Harrison’s presidency when the White House got electricity for the first time in
1891. President Harrison and his wife Caroline were so scared of touching the switches that they refused to turn
it on or off themselves. They left the lights on all night. They had butlers turn the lights on and off for them.
In 1979, President Carter installed solar panels for the first time over the West Wing. In 2003, President Bush got
the first solar electric panel installed over the West Wing and in 2014, President Obama got it installed over the
main residence as well.
9. The first movie made in the White House.
The first movie to be screened at the White House was D. W. Griffith’s “The Birth of a Nation” by President
Woodrow Wilson in 1915. The Birth of a Nation was a landmark film at that time adapted from The Clansmen
with alarmingly racist overtones and centred on themes like the KKK and Reconstruction.
10. White House has been the home to several animals.
It is indeed true that the White House has been the home for several species of animals. President Hoover had
two gators that had free reign of the house. President Jefferson let his mockingbird fly around the house.
President John Q. Adams had a gator and kept him in an upstairs bathroom. He gave the unfortunate job of
feeding and taking care of his pet to one of his attendants. President Calvin Coolidge’s posse included a wallaby, a bobcat, two lion cubs, a bear cub, and a pygmy
hippopotamus. At different times, the White House had been home to snakes, alligators, cats, bear cubs,
bobcats, lion, cubs and much more.
11. It became wheel chair friendly in 1933.
The White House wasn’t always a wheelchair friendly place until FDR took office. It was in 1933 when the layout
and design were refashioned to include ramps and elevators in the house. The President also included a heated
indoor pool for his polio therapy.
12. The Haunted White House.
There have been stories that the White House is haunted. According to the spooky legend, Abraham Lincoln’s
spirit still lingers at the White House and several stories have been built around this. Over the years, many
residents and guests have claimed to witness the late President’s ghost. One of the most famous stories is that of the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill when he encountered
Lincoln’s spirit emerging from the bathtub beside the fireplace. He refused to stay in Lincoln’s Bedroom ever
again. Mary Eben, the personal secretary of Eleanor Roosevelt believed to have seen Lincoln sitting on his bed
with his boots on, she ran screaming out of the bedroom.
13. Tom Hanks gifted three coffee makers to the White House.
The two-time Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks swung by the White House in 2004 and noticed the lack of a
coffee maker in the pressroom which he claimed to be sleep deprived. He bought an Espresso maker for the
press room and visited again in 2010 when he upgraded it to a new deluxe model. This March in 2017, he
again sent a $1700 coffee machine to the pressroom.
14. The basement is like a mini mall.
The basement of the White House is basically an underground strip mall with a flower shop, a carpenter’s shop
a dentist’s office and much more. There is a bowling alley as well which was added by Nixon in 1969.
15. An unknown number of security personnel.
Nobody knows the exact number of how many secret service agents guard the White House. The White House
has top of the line security features. The Secret Service does not publicly share the number of agents assigned
to protect the White House and most of the details about security features are unknown or just speculations. It
has 147 bullet proof windows and an entire swat division on the roof whenever the president goes anywhere.
Snipers are always present on the roof and the White House who are said to have the ability to take down an
aircraft.