• James Buchanan
    Bureau of Engraving and Printing
    portrait
    engraving
    This engraving of President James Buchanan was produced by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. Prior to his presidency, Buchanan served in the United States House of Representatives and the Senate, was secretary of state under presidents James K. Polk and John Taylor, and served as an ambassador. He was president from March 4, 1857 until March 4, 1861.
  • Prince of Wales at President Buchanan's Reception
    Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper
    reception
    Head of State
    East Room
    This illustration is of a reception held in honor of Albert Edward, the Prince of Wales and future king of the United Kingdom, in the East Room of the White House on October 4, 1860. The reception was hosted by President James Buchanan, likely the man standing to the Prince's right. The future King Edward VII was 18 years old at the time of this trip and toured the Capitol and various government buildings, as well as Mount Vernon.
  • President Buchanan Meets with Japanese Delegation
    Unknown
    delegation
    White House Guests
    East Room
    military
    This illustration depicts President James Buchanan meeting with the Japanese diplomatic delegation in 1860. This was the first visit of Japanese representatives to the United States. The May 17, 1860 meeting, one of several between the Japanese delegation and the President, took place in the East Room of the White House and was attended by members of the military, government, and clergy among other guests.
  • President Buchanan and Harriet Lane with Gifts from Japanese Delegation
    Unknown
    First Family
    This wood engraving depicts President James Buchanan and Harriet Lane, his niece who served as White House hostess, inspecting gifts given to the United States by the Japanese delegation in the spring of 1860. This was the first visit to the United States by Japanese diplomats. The visit was a response to the 1852-1854 expedition to Japan by Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry that resulted in an open trade treaty between the two nations. Some of the gifts visible in the engraving are katanas, saddles, and fabric. The caption at the bottom of the image is in German.
  • A Presidential Reception at the White House, Washington.
    Harper's Weekly
    reception
    East Room
    This illustration was published on March 13, 1858 in "Harper's Weekly." The illustration depicts a reception in the East Room of the White House during the James Buchanan administration. Hosting dinners and receptions at the White House became a regular practice for the president in the mid-19th century.
  • Visitors From the East: President Buchanan Greets Visitors from Far Away, 1860
    Peter Waddell
    delegation
    White House Guests
    First Family
    This 2011 oil on canvas painting by Peter Waddell depicts President James Buchanan with his niece, and White House hostess, Harriet Lane greeting three Japanese visitors to the White House. The Japanese diplomats arrived in the United States in the spring of 1860. The visit was a response to the 1852-1854 expedition to Japan by Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry that resulted in an open trade treaty between the two nations. ***Interior use only for publications***
  • Harriet Lane Johnston
    Unknown
    First Family
    portrait
    This photograph is of Harriet Lane, who was the niece and ward of President James Buchanan. After she finished her boarding school education, she began accompanying Buchanan to formal events. When Buchanan was elected president, Lane assumed the role of White House hostess and was popular with the American public. She married Elliot Johnston in 1866. In 1903, Lane donated her private art collection to the National Art Gallery which later became part of the Smithsonian Institution. As a result she was given the nickname "first lady of the National Collection of Fine Arts."
  • James Buchanan
    John Chester Buttre
    engraving
    portrait
    This engraving by John Chester Buttre is of President James Buchanan. This image was influenced from a daguerreotype by Mathew Brady. Buttre completed the engraving in the mid-19th century. Before being elected as the fifteenth president of the United States, Buchanan served as a member of the United States House of Representatives and Senate for the state of Pennsylvania, secretary of state, and the United States minister to Russia and Great Britain.
  • Miss Lane's Conservatory, at the W.H., Washington
    Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper
    Conservatory
    This lithograph published in Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper in 1858 depicts the newly added White House Conservatory. In the print, presumably, is Harriet Lane, President James Buchanan's niece who served as White House hostess during his administration, standing in the Conservatory. The Conservatory was built during Buchanan's administration and stood on the grounds of what is today the West Colonnade and West Wing. The Conservatory had a small, 12 foot passage between the glass room and the Executive Mansion and served as a private space for first families of the era. P. Hall Baglie is credited with the tinting of this lithograph.