Oval Office
The Oval Office is the formal working space of the president of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C.
The oval room has three large south-facing windows, in front of which the president's desk traditionally stands, and a fireplace at the north end. Two built-in bookcases are recessed in the western wall. There are four doors: the east door opens to the Rose Garden; the west door leads to a private study and dining room; the northwest door opens onto the main corridor of the West Wing; and the northeast door opens to the office of the president's secretary.
Presidents generally decorate the office to suit their own personal tastes, choosing furniture and drapery and often commissioning oval carpets. Artwork is selected from the White House collection, or borrowed from museums for the president's term.
Cultural history[edit]
The Oval Office has become associated in Americans' minds with the presidency itself through memorable images, such as a young John F. Kennedy, Jr. peering through the front panel of his father's desk, President Richard Nixon speaking by telephone with the Apollo 11 astronauts during their moonwalk, and Amy Carter bringing her Siamese cat Misty Malarky Ying Yang to brighten her father President Jimmy Carter's day. Several presidents have addressed the nation from the Oval Office on occasion. Examples include Kennedy presenting news of the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962), Nixon announcing his resignation from office (1974),[1] Ronald Reagan following the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster (1986),[2] and George W. Bush in the wake of the September 11 attacks (2001).[3]
Location of the Yellow Oval Room on the second floor of the White House. A number of presidents used this as their private office or library.
The Yellow Oval Room as President Grover Cleveland's private office, 1886. The Resolute desk stands before the windows.
The Yellow Oval Room as President Franklin D. Roosevelt's private office, 1933
Exterior of the West Wing (c. 1910s), showing the curve of the Taft Oval Office
President Hoover views West Wing fire ruins, January 15, 1930
West Wing expansion, 1934
Exterior of the Oval Office from the South Lawn, July 15, 2006
President William Howard Taft made the West Wing a permanent building, doubling its size by expanding it southward, and building the first Oval Office.[14] Designed by Nathan C. Wyeth and completed in 1909, the office was centered on the building's south facade, much as the oval rooms in the White House are. Taft wanted to be more involved with the day-to-day operation of his presidency, and intended the office to be the hub of his administration. The Taft Oval Office had ample natural light from its three windows and skylight. It featured a white marble mantel, simple Georgian Revival woodwork, and twin glass-doored bookcases. It also was likely the most colorful presidential office in history; its walls were covered with vibrant seagrass green burlap.[15]
On December 24, 1929, during the first year of President Herbert Hoover's administration, a fire severely damaged the West Wing. Hoover used this as an opportunity to create additional space, excavating a partial basement for staff offices. He restored the Oval Office, upgrading the quality of trim and installing air conditioning. He also replaced the furniture, which had undergone no major changes in twenty years.
Eastport and Passamaquoddy Bay (c.1840) by Victor De Grailly
Abraham Lincoln (c.1915) by George Story
