Old Executive Office Building
Encyclopedia
The Eisenhower Executive Office Building (EEOB), formerly known as the Old Executive Office Building (OEOB) and as the State, War, and Navy Building, is an office building in Washington, D.C.
, just west of the White House
. The building is maintained by General Services Administration
and occupied by the White House Office of Administration
/Executive Office of the President. It is on 17th Street NW, between Pennsylvania Avenue
and New York Avenue
, and West Executive Drive. The building is a U.S. National Historic Landmark
. Many White House employees have their offices in this structure, which is connected to the White House by a tunnel.
and Thomas Jefferson
readied the new capital for the government that was set to move there in December 1800. Future President John Adams
suggested placing the executive buildings near the Capitol, to be near Congress, but at George Washington's insistence, they were built near the White House. George Hadfield
, who had worked on the United States Capitol
, provided a design for an executive building in 1798. The design was used to build four identical buildings, two on each side of the White House. The building located on the site of the current Old Executive Office Building was known as the War Office, housing the Navy and War Departments, along with the Patent Office and other government offices. The building was occupied in 1800. On November 8, 1800, a fire severely damaged the War Office building, forcing building occupants to work out of temporary quarters until May 1801. During the War of 1812
, when the British burned Washington, D.C., the War Office was among many buildings destroyed.
When rebuilding after the war, the burned-out shell of the old building was used as a basis for constructing new buildings. The War Department moved into the new War Office building in 1820. When the War Office building was torn down in 1884, to make way for the Old Executive Office Building, its portico and marble columns were relocated to Arlington National Cemetery
, to serve as a gateway to the cemetery.
, the building—originally called the State, War, and Navy Building because it housed the Departments of State
, War
, and the Navy
—was built between 1871 and 1888 in the French
Second Empire-style. It was designed by Alfred B. Mullett
, Supervising Architect
.
Much of the interior was designed by Richard von Ezdorf using fireproof cast-iron structural and decorative elements, including 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 original tenants of the building quickly outgrew the building and finally vacated the building completely in the late 1930s. The building gradually became seen as inefficient and was nearly demolished in 1957. In 1981, plans began to restore all the "secretary of" suites. The main office of the Secretary of Navy was restored in 1987 and is now used as the ceremonial office of the Vice President of the United States
. 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
's Executive Office
, such as the Office of the Vice President
, the Office of Management and Budget, and the National Security Council
. However, its most public purpose is that of the Vice President's Ceremonial Office, used mainly for special meetings and press conferences.
Many celebrated national figures have participated in the historical events that have taken place within the Old Executive Office Building's granite walls. Theodore Roosevelt
, William Howard Taft
, Franklin D. Roosevelt
, Dwight D. Eisenhower
, Lyndon B. Johnson
, Gerald Ford
, and George H. W. Bush
all had offices in this building before becoming President. It has housed 16 Secretaries of the Navy, 21 Secretaries of War, and 24 Secretaries of State. Winston Churchill
once walked its corridors and Japanese
emissaries met there with Secretary of State
Cordell Hull
after the bombing
of Pearl Harbor
. President Herbert Hoover
occupied the Secretary of the Navy
's office for a few months following a fire in the Oval Office
on Christmas Eve
, 1929. Dwight D. Eisenhower held the first televised Presidential news conference in the building's Indian Treaty Room
in January 1955. In recent history, Richard Nixon
had a private office there during his presidency. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was the first in a succession of Vice Presidents to the present day who have had offices in the building. Oliver North
had his office in Room 302.
A small fire on December 19, 2007 damaged an office of the vice-president's staff and included the VP ceremonial office. According to media reporting, the office of the Vice President's Political Director, Amy Whitelaw, was heavily damaged in the fire.
The OEOB was referred to by Mark Twain
as "the ugliest building in America." Harry Truman
called it "the greatest monstrosity in America." Henry Adams
called it Mullet's “architectural infant asylum.”
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, just west of the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
. The building is maintained by General Services Administration
General Services Administration
The General Services Administration is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies. The GSA supplies products and communications for U.S...
and occupied by the White House Office of Administration
Office of Administration
The Office of Administration is an entity within the Executive Office of the President tasked with overseeing the general administration of the entire Executive Office.-History:...
/Executive Office of the President. It is on 17th Street NW, between Pennsylvania Avenue
Pennsylvania Avenue
Pennsylvania Avenue is a street in Washington, D.C. that joins the White House and the United States Capitol. Called "America's Main Street", it is the location of official parades and processions, as well as protest marches...
and New York Avenue
New York Avenue (Washington, D.C.)
New York Avenue is one of the diagonal avenues radiating from the White House in Washington, D.C. It is a major east-west route in the city's Northwest and Northeast quadrants and connects downtown with points east and north of the city via Cheverly, Maryland, the John Hanson Highway and the...
, and West Executive Drive. The building is a U.S. National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
. Many White House employees have their offices in this structure, which is connected to the White House by a tunnel.
Original buildings
The first White House executive buildings were built in the late 1790s, as George WashingtonGeorge Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
and Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
readied the new capital for the government that was set to move there in December 1800. Future President John Adams
John Adams
John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
suggested placing the executive buildings near the Capitol, to be near Congress, but at George Washington's insistence, they were built near the White House. George Hadfield
George Hadfield (architect)
George Hadfield was born in Livorno, Italy of English parents, who were hotel-keepers. He studied at the Royal Academy, and worked with James Wyatt for six years before emigrating to the United States....
, who had worked on the United States Capitol
United States Capitol
The United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
, provided a design for an executive building in 1798. The design was used to build four identical buildings, two on each side of the White House. The building located on the site of the current Old Executive Office Building was known as the War Office, housing the Navy and War Departments, along with the Patent Office and other government offices. The building was occupied in 1800. On November 8, 1800, a fire severely damaged the War Office building, forcing building occupants to work out of temporary quarters until May 1801. During the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, when the British burned Washington, D.C., the War Office was among many buildings destroyed.
When rebuilding after the war, the burned-out shell of the old building was used as a basis for constructing new buildings. The War Department moved into the new War Office building in 1820. When the War Office building was torn down in 1884, to make way for the Old Executive Office Building, its portico and marble columns were relocated to Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
, to serve as a gateway to the cemetery.
State, War, and Navy Building
According to the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
, the building—originally called the State, War, and Navy Building because it housed the Departments of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
, War
United States Department of War
The United States Department of War, also called the War Department , was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army...
, and the Navy
United States Department of the Navy
The Department of the Navy of the United States of America was established by an Act of Congress on 30 April 1798, to provide a government organizational structure to the United States Navy and, from 1834 onwards, for the United States Marine Corps, and when directed by the President, of the...
—was built between 1871 and 1888 in the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Second Empire-style. It was designed by Alfred B. Mullett
Alfred B. Mullett
Alfred Bult Mullett was an American architect who served from 1866 to 1874 as Supervising Architect, head of the agency of the United States Treasury Department that designed federal government buildings...
, Supervising Architect
Office of the Supervising Architect
The Office of the Supervising Architect was an agency of the United States Treasury Department that designed federal government buildings from 1852 to 1939....
.
Much of the interior was designed by Richard von Ezdorf using fireproof cast-iron structural and decorative elements, including 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 original tenants of the building quickly outgrew the building and finally vacated the building completely in the late 1930s. The building gradually became seen as inefficient and was nearly demolished in 1957. In 1981, plans began to restore all the "secretary of" suites. The main office of the Secretary of Navy was restored in 1987 and is now used as the ceremonial office of the Vice President of the United States
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
. 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
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
's Executive Office
Executive Office of the President of the United States
The Executive Office of the President consists of the immediate staff of the President of the United States, as well as multiple levels of support staff reporting to the President. The EOP is headed by the White House Chief of Staff, currently William M. Daley...
, such as the Office of the Vice President
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
, the Office of Management and Budget, and the National Security Council
United States National Security Council
The White House National Security Council in the United States is the principal forum used by the President of the United States for considering national security and foreign policy matters with his senior national security advisors and Cabinet officials and is part of the Executive Office of the...
. However, its most public purpose is that of the Vice President's Ceremonial Office, used mainly for special meetings and press conferences.
Many celebrated national figures have participated in the historical events that have taken place within the Old Executive Office Building's granite walls. Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...
, Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
, Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
, Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
, Gerald Ford
Gerald Ford
Gerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977, and the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974...
, and George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
all had offices in this building before becoming President. It has housed 16 Secretaries of the Navy, 21 Secretaries of War, and 24 Secretaries of State. Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
once walked its corridors and Japanese
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
emissaries met there with Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
Cordell Hull
Cordell Hull
Cordell Hull was an American politician from the U.S. state of Tennessee. He is best known as the longest-serving Secretary of State, holding the position for 11 years in the administration of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt during much of World War II...
after the bombing
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
of Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
. President Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
occupied the Secretary of the Navy
United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy of the United States of America is the head of the Department of the Navy, a component organization of the Department of Defense...
's office for a few months following a fire in the Oval Office
Oval Office
The Oval Office, located in the West Wing of the White House, is the official office of the President of the United States.The room features three large south-facing windows behind the president's desk, and a fireplace at the north end...
on Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
, 1929. Dwight D. Eisenhower held the first televised Presidential news conference in the building's Indian Treaty Room
Indian Treaty Room
The Indian Treaty Room is located in the East Wing of the Old Executive Office Building. It was designed by Richard von Ezdorf, Draftsman for the Supervising Architect of the Treasury. Completed in 1879, it cost more to construct than any other room in the building at about $33.50 per square foot...
in January 1955. In recent history, Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
had a private office there during his presidency. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was the first in a succession of Vice Presidents to the present day who have had offices in the building. Oliver North
Oliver North
Oliver Laurence North is a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer, political commentator, host of War Stories with Oliver North on Fox News Channel, a military historian, and a New York Times best-selling author....
had his office in Room 302.
A small fire on December 19, 2007 damaged an office of the vice-president's staff and included the VP ceremonial office. According to media reporting, the office of the Vice President's Political Director, Amy Whitelaw, was heavily damaged in the fire.
The OEOB was referred to by Mark Twain
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
as "the ugliest building in America." Harry Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
called it "the greatest monstrosity in America." Henry Adams
Henry Adams
Henry Brooks Adams was an American journalist, historian, academic and novelist. He is best known for his autobiographical book, The Education of Henry Adams. He was a member of the Adams political family.- Early life :He was born in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Charles Francis Adams Sr...
called it Mullet's “architectural infant asylum.”