This photograph of First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and White House Executive Pastry Chef Roland Mesnier with the White House gingerbread house was taken in December 1999. Chef Mesnier and his team created gingerbread versions of the White House, the Washington Monument, the Jefferson Memorial, and Mount Vernon. The scene also included the Potomac river winding through the display. The theme chosen for 1999 was "Saving America's Treasures," highlighting Mrs. Clinton's program to help preserve important landmarks and historic artifacts.

In this photograph, President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter dance in the East Room during the Congressional Christmas Ball on December 11, 1979. For decades, first families have hosted annual balls for members of Congress during the holiday season.

This photograph was taken on December 9, 1991 during a press preview hosted by First Lady Barbara Bush of the White House holiday decorations. That year, Mrs. Bush's holiday theme drew inspiration from the a needlepoint creche created by the Saintly Stitchers, a needlepoint group of the St. Martin's Episcopal Church in Houston, Texas. For her holiday decorations, over 1,300 needlepoint ornaments were created for the holiday decorations with patterns designed by White House Chief Floral Designer Nancy Clarke. Here, Mrs. Bush points towards ornaments based on the classic storybook characters "Raggedy Ann" and "Raggedy Andy," which she personally stitched for the Blue Room Christmas Tree.

In this photograph, President George H. W. Bush participates in a ceremonial wreath laying at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery on Veterans Day 1991. Since 1921, presidents have paid their respects at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, often in observance of military commemorations including Veterans Day and Memorial Day.

In this photograph, taken on December 7, 1992, First Lady Barbara Bush poses with White House Executive Pastry Chef Roland Mesnier and assistant pastry chef Franette McCulloch in front of the White House Gingerbread House in the State Dining Room. This was the first year Mesnier oversaw the creation of the gingerbread house. Mesnier diverted from the style of his predecessor, Hans Raffert, whose traditional A-frame gingerbread houses had been a staple of White House holiday celebrations since 1969. Instead, Mesnier and his pastry team constructed a winter village scene for the gingerbread display, complete with sledding marzipan elves.

This photograph shows the Official White House Gingerbread House on display in the State Dining Room for the 2002 holiday season. To complement First Lady Laura Welch Bush's holiday theme "All Creatures Great and Small," the gingerbread White House was populated with marzipan animals representing current and former presidential pets.

In this photograph, President George W. Bush, First Lady Laura Welch Bush, Vice President Richard B. Cheney, and Second Lady Lynne V. Cheney join White House staff for a moment of silence on the South Lawn in commemoration of the second anniversary of the terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001. In 2002, President Bush designated September 11th as Patriot Day, a time that has been recognized through presidential proclamations as a national day of remembrance, prayer, and service. Presidents and first ladies typically commemorate the day through moment of silence observations on the White House South Lawn, and by attending remembrance ceremonies at sites affected by the terrorist attacks.

This photograph was taken after executive office staff evacuated the White House following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. Anita McBride, assistant to President George W. Bush, led a group of senior staff to continue operations from the DaimlerChrysler office building, where her husband Tim McBride, former aide to President George H. W. Bush, worked as director of government affairs. This photograph shows Ken Mehlman, deputy assistant to the president for political affairs (left), and Brad Blakeman, deputy assistant to the president for appointments and scheduling (third from left), at work at their temporary "command post" in the DaimlerChrysler offices with Israel Hernandez, deputy assistant to the president (second from left), and Joel D. Kaplan, special assistant to the president in the office of the chief of staff (right).

This photograph was taken after executive office staff evacuated the White House following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. Anita McBride, assistant to President George W. Bush (pictured here at right), led a group of senior staff to continue operations from the DaimlerChrysler office building, where her husband Tim McBride, former aide to President George H. W. Bush, worked as director of government affairs. Also pictured in this photograph: Helen Mobley, director of presidential scheduling for correspondence and invitations (seated at left of Mrs. McBride), Josh Deckard, intern for the office of the White House chief of staff (standing behind at left), and Ashley Davis, deputy director of management and administration (standing behind at right).

This photograph was taken after executive office staff evacuated the White House following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. Anita McBride, assistant to President George W. Bush, led a group of senior staff to continue operations from the DaimlerChrysler office building, where her husband Tim McBride, former aide to President George H. W. Bush, worked as director of government affairs. Here, Scott Stanzel, spokesperson for the White House Office of Media Affairs (far right), meets with communication staff in a DaimlerChrysler conference room. Pictured listening to Stanzel from left to right: Ken Lisaius, Wendy Nipper, and Jimmy Orr.

This photograph was taken from the corner of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue near Lafayette Square in Washington, D.C. during the evacuation of executive office staff following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. The evacuation notice applied to approximately 1,800 staff members who worked in the East and West Wings of the White House, the Old Executive Office Building (later rededicated as the Eisenhower Executive Office Building), the New Executive Office Building, and the Winder Building. Here, Anita McBride, assistant to President George W. Bush (center) confers with Mary Matalin, counselor to Vice President Richard B. Cheney. Shortly after this photograph was taken, Matalin joined Vice President Cheney in the Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOC) beneath the White House, and McBride and other senior White House transitioned into the DaimlerChrysler office building to continue their work for the day.

In this photograph taken on September 12, 2001, First Lady Laura Welch Bush listens to her East Wing staff members share what they experienced during the evacuation of the White House on September 11, 2001. Mrs. Bush learned of the suspected terrorist attacks during a visit to the United States Capitol Building the previous day, where she had intended to brief the the United States Senate Committee on Education on the White House Summit on Early Childhood Cognitive Development she had hosted that July.

In this photograph, White House staffers run toward the iron gates on West Executive Avenue following an evacuation order issued by the United States Secret Service after the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. In response to the threat of additional attacks, approximately 1,800 executive office employees were evacuated from the East and West Wings of the White House, the Old Executive Office Building (later rededicated as the Eisenhower Executive Office Building), the New Executive Office Building, and the Winder Building.

In this photograph, First Lady Laura Welch Bush speaks at the United States Capitol Building following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York, New York on the morning of September 11, 2001. Mrs. Bush had planned on visiting the Capitol that day to brief the United States Senate Committee on Education on the White House Summit on Early Childhood Cognitive Development she had hosted that July. Here, Mrs. Bush is pictured standing between senators Judd Gregg of New Hampshire and Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts.

This photograph is of Mitchell Elias Daniels, Jr., director of the Office of Management and Budget during the George W. Bush administration. Daniels formerly served as White House director of political and intergovernmental affairs under President Ronald Reagan, and went on to serve as the governor of Indiana from 2005-2013. On September 11, 2001, Daniels hesitated to evacuate his office in the Old Executive Office Building (later rededicated as the Eisenhower Executive Office Building) and returned to work later that day from the Roosevelt Room in the West Wing.

This photograph was taken near Lafayette Square in Washington, D.C. during the evacuation of executive office staff following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. The evacuation notice applied to approximately 1,800 staff members who worked in the East and West Wings of the White House, the Old Executive Office Building (later rededicated the Eisenhower Executive Office Building), the New Executive Office Building, and the Winder Building.

This photograph was taken on September 11, 2001. It shows West Wing staff gathered in the Navy Mess to watch media coverage of the unfolding terrorist attacks, and to await further instructions. The staff reported to the Navy Mess following the instructions of United States Secret Secret, and were later ordered to evacuate the building. Operated by the United States Navy, the Navy Mess is located near the Situation Room in the West Wing and serves as a cafeteria and restaurant for White House staff.

In this photograph, Vice President Richard B. Cheney meets with national security advisor Condoleezza Rice, deputy national security advisor Stephen J. Hadley, and other senior national security officials in the Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOC) following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. From the secure facility beneath the White House, Vice President Cheney and the team of national security advisors communicated with President George W. Bush to monitor the crisis as it unfolded. President Bush received news of the suspected terrorist attacks while taking part in a reading demonstration at Emma E. Brooker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida, and for the hours that followed worked from his office aboard Air Force One.

This photograph was taken after executive office staff evacuated the White House following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. Anita McBride, assistant to President George W. Bush, led a group of senior staff to continue operations from the DaimlerChrysler office building, where her husband Tim McBride, former aide to President George H. W. Bush, worked as director of government affairs. This photograph shows a group of White House staffers working from meeting rooms relinquished by DaimlerChrysler employees for their use.

This photograph was taken from the corner of H Street and Jackson Place near Lafayette Square in Washington, D.C. during the evacuation of executive office staff following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. The evacuation notice applied to approximately 1,800 staff members who worked in the East and West Wings of the White House, the Old Executive Office Building (later rededicated as the Eisenhower Executive Office Building), the New Executive Office Building, and the Winder Building. Other evacuees including members of the press can be seen among the crowd, including CNN correspondent John King.

This photograph was taken on September 11, 2001. It shows West Wing staff exiting the Navy Mess following an evacuation order issued by the United States Secret Service. The staff had reported to the Navy Mess following earlier instruction by the Secret Service, where they watched television coverage of the unfolding terrorist attacks. Operated by the United States Navy, the Navy Mess is located near the Situation Room in the West Wing and serves as a cafeteria and restaurant for White House staff.

In this photograph, Vice President Richard B. Cheney evacuates his West Wing office following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. For his protection, the vice president was evacuated to a secure bunker beneath the White House, where he continued to work from the Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOC). That morning, President George W. Bush received news of the suspected terrorist attacks while taking part in a reading demonstration at Emma E. Brooker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida.

In this photograph, taken on September 11, 2001, First Lady Laura Welch Bush watches media coverage of the morning's terrorist attacks from the office of Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts at the United States Capitol Building. Mrs. Bush had planned on visiting the Capitol that day to brief the United States Senate Committee on Education on the White House Summit on Early Childhood Cognitive Development she had hosted that July. Here, the the first lady is pictured at right with her chief of staff Andrea "Andi" Ball (center), and an unidentified staff member.

In this photograph, White House Executive Pastry Chef Roland Mesnier (fourth from left, wearing chef's hat) reunites with members of the White House pastry team at the corner of H Street and Connecticut Avenue near Lafayette Square following the evacuation of the White House on September 11, 2001. Although White House Chief User Gary Walters issued the evacuation notice to White House Residence staff following the terrorist attacks that morning, communication regarding the evacuation was difficult due to a lack of government-issued communication devices carried by White House staff. Unable to reach his colleagues working in the White House Pastry Shop, Chef Mesnier relied on his large chef's torque for his staff to identify him among the crowd of evacuees outside the White House.

This photograph was taken after executive office staff evacuated the White House following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. Anita McBride, assistant to President George W. Bush, led a group of senior staff to continue operations from the DaimlerChrysler office building, where her husband Tim McBride, former aide to President George H. W. Bush, worked as director of government affairs. Here, White House spokespeople gather for a meeting in the DaimlerChrysler offices. Pictured standing from left to right: Taylor Griffin, Ken Lisaius, Jeanie Mamo, Wendy Nipper, and Jimmy Orr.