• White House Conservatory
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    conservatory
    This photograph of the White House Conservatory was taken by Frances Benjamin Johnston in 1890. The White House Conservatories were expansive in the late nineteenth century, maintaining plants of all kinds that bloomed year-round. Though beloved by many presidents, the conservatories were demolished in 1902 as a part of Theodore Roosevelt's major renovation of the White House.
  • White House Orchids
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Conservatory
    This photograph shows the orchid house that was added to the White House Conservatory complex during the Ulysses S. Grant administration. A tropical flower rare to the United States at the time, orchids underwent a boom in popularity beginning in the mid-1800s. This photograph was taken by the prominent female photographer of the era, Frances Benjamin Johnston, who was known for her portrait and architectural photography and often photographed the White House.
  • Bedroom, Benjamin Harrison Administration
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    bedroom
    Lincoln Bed
    This circa 1893 black and white photograph taken by Frances Benjamin Johnston depicts a White House bedroom during the administration of President Benjamin Harrison. The Lincoln Bed is in the center of the photograph. To the left is a mirrored wardrobe likely purchased during the Buchanan or Lincoln administration. Note the crocheted Harrison pillowcase and the portrait of General William T. Sherman above the doorway.
  • Green Room of Executive Mansion
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Green Room
    State Floor
    This 1881 black and white photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston was published by Charles S. Cudlip and depicts the Green Room of the White House. The room was redecorated by W.B. Moses and Co. for First Lady Lucretia Garfield. The redecorating was completed after the death of President James A. Garfield.
  • War Room, William McKinley Administration
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Treaty Room
    Second Floor
    Spanish-American War
    This photograph of the War Room by Frances Benjamin Johnston was taken in 1898 during the William McKinley administration. Telegraph equipment and maps tacked to the walls helped track military movements during the Spanish-American War. Seated at the telegraph desk on the left is Benjamin F. Montgomery.
  • Cabinet Room, William McKinley Administration
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Cabinet Room
    West Wing
    This 1898 black and white photograph taken by Frances Benjamin Johnston shows the Cabinet Room during the administration of President William McKinley. McKinley met with advisors in this room during the Spanish-American War. The peace protocol ending the war was signed in this room on August 12, 1898.
  • White House, Corridor (Entrance Hall)
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Entrance Hall
    State Floor
    glass screen
    Tiffany
    This circa 1889 black and white photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston depicts the Entrance Hall of the White House, including the Tiffany Screen. In 1882, Louis Comfort Tiffany created this glass screen to separate the Entrance Hall from the Cross Hall. The glass screen featured topaz, ruby, and amethyst jewels set into the glass alongside four eagles and a shield with the initials "US." The glass screen was removed and auctioned off during the Roosevelt renovation, and reinstalled in a Maryland hotel. The surviving glass was destroyed in a fire in 1923.
  • Bedroom in the White House
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    bedroom
    Family Quarters
    This 1893 black and white photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston depicts a White House bedroom at the end of the nineteenth century.
  • Staff Office Quarters, William McKinley Administration
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    staff offices
    Second Floor
    This photograph of staff quarters by Frances Benjamin Johnston was taken between 1889 and 1901 during the William McKinley administration. At the time, the staff quarters were located on the east end of the Second Floor of the Executive Mansion. It was not until the 1902 construction of the West Wing that staff quarters were moved.
  • White House, President's Library, No. 7
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Yellow Oval Room
    Second Floor
    This photograph of the Yellow Oval Room by Frances Benjamin Johnston was taken in 1890 during the Benjamin Harrison administration. The Yellow room is located on the Second Floor of the Executive Mansion and has served as a formal drawing room since First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy's White House restoration. At the time of this photograph, however, the room was a library. In 1850, First Lady Abigail Fillmore received an appropriation from Congress to convert this room into a library, and it remained as such for the next fifty years.
  • White House, East Corridor
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    East Sitting Hall
    Second Floor
    This photograph of the East Sitting Hall and corridor by Frances Benjamin Johnston was taken between 1889 and 1906. The room, the located on the east end of the Center Hall on the Second Floor of the Executive Mansion, is recognized for its grand, arched window and is a comfortable and quiet location for the First Family to relax.
  • East Room with Visiting Tourists, Second Grover Cleveland Administration
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    East Room
    This circa 1890s black and white photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston depicts visiting tourists in the East Room of the White House during the second administration of President Grover Cleveland. New Grecian decorations had been added by President Ulysses S. Grant in 1873. In the 19th-century the East Room became one of the most famous rooms in the United States and was a premier destination for visitors to the capital.
  • Ida McKinley's Bedroom
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Family Dining Room
    Family Quarters
    This circa 1893 black and white photograph taken by Frances Benjamin Johnston depicts the White House bedroom of First Lady Ida McKinley. Mrs. McKinley decorated the space with embroidery. Over the brass bed is a portrait of one of her daughters who died as an infant. This room became the President's Dining Room in 1961 during the administration of President John F. Kennedy.
  • White House, Staircase (Private)
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    staircase
    Cross Hall
    Second Floor
    renovation
    This circa 1889 black and white photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston depicts the staircase that once led from the west end of the Cross Hall to the Second Floor. The staircase was removed during the 1902 Roosevelt renovation for the expansion of the State Dining Room.
  • White House Bedroom
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    bedroom
    Family Quarters
    This black and white photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston depicts a White House bedroom circa 1893.
  • White House, Blue Room
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Blue Room
    State Floor
    Tiffany
    This photograph of the Blue Room by Frances Benjamin Johnston was taken in 1889, likely during the Benjamin Harrison administration. The Blue Room is located on the State Floor of the Executive Mansion and is famous for its oval shape, central location, and views of the Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial through the South Portico windows. This photograph was shot looking north towards the Cross Hall with the Entrance Hall obscured by Louis Comfort Tiffany's colored glass screen. The screen was installed to shield the State Drawing Rooms from drafts.
  • Blue Room after Tiffany Redecoration
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Blue Room
    State Floor
    Tiffany
    This photograph of the Blue Room was taken around 1882, likely during the Chester A. Arthur administration. President Arthur commissioned Louis Comfort Tiffany to redecorate several rooms that year, including the Blue Room. Tiffany used a variety of robin's-egg blue on the walls and the design included a ceiling patterned with the Union shield, horizontal banding, and a silver embossed pattern as seen on the walls in this photograph. The Blue Room is located on the State Floor of the Executive Mansion and is famous for its oval shape, central location, and views of the Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial through the South Portico windows.
  • State Dining Room, Benjamin Harrison Administration
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    State Dining Room
    State Floor
    chandeliers
    centerpieces
    This photograph of the State Dining Room by Frances Benjamin Johnston was taken ca. 1893 after its redecoration by Edgar Yergason during the Benjamin Harrison administration. In 1891, electricity was installed, though there are remnants of Louis Comfort Tiffany's redecoration from a decade before, including light fixtures, hammered silver backed gas wall brackets, and low-back oak chairs. The four walnut side tables lining the walls were placed there in 1867 and would remain there for nearly fifty years.
  • White House, Corridor (Entrance Hall)
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Entrance Hall
    Tiffany Screen
    Louis Comfort Tiffany
    Edgar Yergason
    This circa 1892 black and white photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston depicts the Entrance Hall of the White House, including the Tiffany Screen. In 1882, Louis Comfort Tiffany created this glass screen to separate the Entrance Hall from the Cross Hall. The glass screen featured topaz, ruby, and amethyst jewels set into the glass alongside four eagles and a shield with the initials "US." The glass screen was removed and auctioned off during the Roosevelt renovation, and reinstalled in a Maryland hotel. The surviving glass was destroyed in a fire in 1923. Note the electric light bulbs along the bottom of chandelier. The ornate wall decorations were designed by upholsterer Edgar Yergason.
  • Red Room with Louis C. Tiffany Decor of 1882
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Red Room
    State Floor
    Louis Comfort Tiffany
    armchairs
    This black and white photograph of the Red Room by Frances Benjamin Johnston was taken in 1882 during the Chester A. Arthur administration. President Arthur commissioned designer Louis Comfort Tiffany to redecorate a number of the rooms on the State Floor in 1882, including the Red Room. Tiffany's redesign of the Red Room was decorated inline with the Aesthetic movement of the 19th century, including the copper and silver ceiling in a star motif and the Herter Brothers armchairs.
  • White House Private Dining Room after Electricity was Installed
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Family Dining Room
    State Floor
    lighting
    chandeliers
    centerpieces
    State Service
    This circa 1892 photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston depicts the Family Dining Room as it appeared during the administration of President Benjamin Harrison. Note the President Rutherford B. Hayes state service plates and the President Ulysses S. Grant-era Gorham Mfg. Co. "Hiawatha Boat" centerpiece displayed on the left sideboard. First Lady Julia Grant selected the centerpiece at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia.
  • Blue Room, Chester A. Arthur Administration
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Blue Room
    State Floor
    Tiffany
    This photograph of the Blue Room was taken between 1883-1884, during the Chester A. Arthur administration. In 1882, President Arthur commissioned Louis Comfort Tiffany to redecorate several rooms, including the Blue Room as seen here. Tiffany used a variety of robin's-egg blue on the walls and the design included an ivory and silver frieze of embossed, hand-pressed paper. The Blue Room is located on the State Floor of the Executive Mansion and is famous for its oval shape, central location, and views of the Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial through the South Portico windows.
  • Entrance Hall Showing the Tiffany Screen, Benjamin Harrison Administration
    Frances Benjamin Johnston
    Entrance Hall
    State Floor
    glass screen
    Tiffany
    This photograph of the Entrance Hall by Frances Benjamin Johnston was taken in 1889 during the Benjamin Harrison administration. The Entrance Hall is located just beyond the front door of the North Portico in the Executive Mansion. In 1882 Chester A. Arthur commissioned the interior designs and decorative arts of Louis Comfort Tiffany to make the Entrance Hall more welcoming. In this photograph, Tiffany's colored glass screen was placed to make the hall more warm and welcoming to visitors as well as to keep the cold, winter draft of the front door from the drawing rooms beyond.