21 rare photos that reveal the private side of life in the White House

White House domestic secrets revealed

While it may well be the most famous home in America, the White House is nevertheless full of secrets and stories seldom revealed to the public eye.

From wild parties to private bowling alleys, these rare photographs from the White House archives take you behind the scenes with American presidents through the ages and let you explore the more private side of public life.

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1850: Old Whiskers the White House goat

This snap from 1850 depicts President Benjamin Harrison’s son Russell with his three children on the grounds of the White House.

The President’s youngest grandson, Benjamin Harrison McKee, affectionately nicknamed "Baby McKee” by the press, sits with his sister astride a small goat cart pulled by his pet, ‘His Whiskers’ or ‘Old Whiskers.’ The domesticated goat was given to Benjamin by his grandfather and remained a popular White House pet, along with several dogs and two opossums.

1890s: the Louis Comfort Tiffany screen

This image from the 1890s depicts the glass screen created in 1882 by Louis Comfort Tiffany, the American artist revered for his glass work, to separate the Entrance Hall from the Cross Hall.

While the screen was originally intended to serve the functional purpose of preventing cold drafts from the main door permeating into the White House, the finished product was a decorative masterpiece inlaid with topaz, ruby and amethyst jewels alongside four eagles and a shield with the initials 'US.'

1893: the White House kitchens

Substantially less well documented than its public-facing upper levels, the White House ground floor was used to house its kitchen and many servants’ rooms during the 19th century, damp and moldy as it was.

Pictured here in the ‘family kitchen’ is Dolly Johnson, President William Henry Harrison’s cook, who came to the White House in 1889 and stayed on through four administrations despite the difficult working conditions.

1902: behind the scenes in the new West Wing

While notoriously the beating heart of the White House today, the West Wing did not come into being until 1902 as part of an extended restoration and remodel undertaken by President Theodore Roosevelt.

Office staff were moved from their previous home on the second floor of the White House into the new extension, which was originally intended as a temporary structure but became an integral part of the operation of the building and, indeed, of the government.

1914: Woodrow Wilson's flock of sheep

Not quite your typical pastoral scene, this photo shows the flock of sheep belonging to President Woodrow Wilson, which he employed to keep the lawn trimmed during the First World War.

The flock was led by an ornery ram known as Old Ike, who was famous for chewing tobacco and cigars. Who needs a fleet of gardeners with this kind of organization? At its peak, the flock consisted of 48 sheep, whose fleece was sold at auction to raise money for the Red Cross.

1915: Suffragettes picket the White House

This snap from 1915 depicts a group of Suffragettes outside the White House campaigning for the right to vote, which they finally achieved with the passing of the 19th Amendment in 1919 and its subsequent ratification in 1920.

The National Women’s Party garnered particular attention for the cause of women’s suffrage by famously picketing the White House over many months, leading to the imprisonment of many campaigners.

1921: the Easter Egg Roll

A beloved White House tradition since the first one was held in 1878, the annual White House Easter Egg Roll encourages children to gather on the famously lush South Lawn to roll hard-boiled eggs and participate in other holiday-themed activities.

Several children are pictured here in 1921 partaking in the tradition, with parents and senior members of the White House staff following more sedately in their wake.

1921: a social springtime stroll

Pictured here out for a springtime stroll on the White House grounds are President Warren Harding, famous Major League Baseball first baseman ‘Pop’ Anson and Anson’s two daughters.

The foursome is also accompanied by Harding’s dog, Laddie Boy. The ladies are dressed in the height of 1920s fashion, appropriate for meeting a president on a relaxed visit.

1933: the Roosevelts relaxing at home

Franklin D. Roosevelt, known as FDR, was the longest-serving president of the United States, having stood in office from 1933 until he died in 1945. Roosevelt saw the US through both the Great Depression and the Second World War, and along with his wife, Eleanor, was a largely revered and well-regarded leader through some of the country’s darkest moments.

The couple is pictured here in a relaxed moment in the White House in 1933, at the very start of Roosevelt’s first term.

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1939: Diana Hopkins writes a letter to Santa Claus

The White House has been home to many children over the centuries, most of them the offspring of the sitting president. However, the little girl pictured here writing a letter to Santa Claus is the daughter of Harry Hopkins, a trusted deputy and advisor to FDR, who actually lived at the White House with his daughter, Diana.

Diana’s mother had passed away two years previously, but First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt had taken the little girl under her wing and gifted her the rocking chair in which she sits.

1948: Harry Truman's turkeys

The White House has more turkey-related traditions than you might expect. The presidential tradition of officially ‘pardoning’ a Thanksgiving turkey originated with President Harry Truman in 1947. However, he is pictured here in 1948, graciously accepting the gift of two prize turkeys from the Poultry and Egg National Board for his Christmas dinner. It seems he wasn’t feeling quite so magnanimous about this festive feast!

1957: welcoming the Queen to the White House

Following the traditional exchange of state visits, President Dwight D. Eisenhower and First Lady 'Mamie' welcomed Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, to the White House in October 1957.

They are pictured here arriving at the North Portico in all their finery and clearly in high spirits. This seemingly amicable atmosphere was echoed in Eisenhower’s account of the visit, of which he declared, “This was one ceremonial visit we were sorry to see end."

1962: the Kennedy children play in the Oval Office

While the Kennedy clan had no official ties to royalty, their tenure in the White House was known as ‘Camelot,’ a supposed Golden Age of glamour and idealism. John F. and Jackie Kennedy were a young, attractive and dynamic couple when they moved into those hallowed halls in 1961.

At just 43, JFK brought his young family into the White House and occasionally even into the Oval Office. Pictured here in 1962, John F. Junior and Caroline play in front of the Resolute Desk, which Kennedy was the first president to use.

1962: Jackie Kennedy leads a televised tour

The Kennedy administration also witnessed a groundbreaking event in the form of the first-ever televised White House tour. On Valentine’s Day in 1962, a reported 56 million viewers tuned in to the CBS broadcast as Jackie Kennedy took to the American airwaves to give the people a glimpse inside the White House’s restored public rooms - a national first.

1963: JFK and John F. Junior horsing around

Another sweet snap from just a year later depicts Kennedy with John F. Junior, aged two and a half, on the West Wing Colonnade, playing with a toy horse. Kennedy famously found time for his family during his tenure in office, which was cut tragically short by his assassination eight months later.

1971: Richard Nixon goes bowling

In 1947, President Truman officially opened the White House bowling alley, a two-lane alley situated in the West Wing. It was later moved to the Old Executive Office building in 1955, where President Richard Nixon can be seen here taking his shot at the presidential pins in 1971.

In 1973, Nixon had a one-lane bowling alley built at the White House under the North Portico entrance. This new alley was more private than the old one, whose lanes were also open to staffers.

1971: Pat Nixon shows off her restoration work

As passionate as her predecessor about the White House’s historical preservation, First Lady Pat Nixon followed in Jackie Kennedy’s footsteps to restore several of the home’s rooms. She is pictured here in 1971 showing off the newly restored Green Room, which she worked with curator Clement Conger to resurrect.

1974: Liberty demands attention

It was often ‘bring your dog to work day’ when President Gerald R. Ford was in the White House. Pictured here in an important meeting in 1974, Ford, Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger and US National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft try to keep their minds on the task at hand…despite Ford’s dog Liberty’s best efforts to distract them with an obvious request for belly rubs!

1975: President Ford relaxes in the residence

Gerald Ford did make time for relaxation outside of the Oval Office. Pictured here in a rare photo of the presidential living quarters, he sits with First Lady Betty Ford in their cozy White House living room, evidently enjoying a peaceful evening together in 1975.

With comfortable chintz-covered furniture and plenty of reading material scattered about, the room could almost be a typical American home rather than a presidential residence.

1981: Ronald Reagan sits at the Resolute Desk

It doesn’t get much more presidential than this 1981 snap of President Ronald Reagan sitting behind the Resolute Desk, but then the former actor-turned-politician had plenty of experience in front of the camera, experience which many believe led to his election in 1980.

Handsome and charismatic, Reagan served two terms in the White House, famously surviving an assassination attempt just seventy days after taking office.

1985: Princess Diana parties at the White House

On another royal visit, Ronald and Nancy Reagan welcomed Prince Charles (now King Charles III) and the late Princess Diana to the White House in 1985.

In a diary entry after the event, Reagan proclaimed that “the dinner for the Prince & Diana was a great success" and that "Ted G. had decorated the W.H. more beautifully than we’ve ever seen it. Leontyne Price sang wonderfully & then everyone danced like at a Junior Prom.”

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