On October 13, 1792, George Washington laid down a very important piece of brick. It was the first piece of brick in what would eventually be called the White House. Back then it was called the Executive Mansion, or simply the President’s House. While George Washington oversaw the construction of the president’s house, he would never live in the building.
An Irish-born architect named James Hoban won a national design competition with his plans. Over the next eight years, workers cleared land, built roads, cut down trees, and constructed the building. Some of these workers were White wage laborers. Others were enslaved laborers.
In 1800, John Adams became the first president to live in the building. The building would only last in its original form for 14 years. In 1814, British troops invaded Washington, DC. They set fire to the house as well as the US Capitol and Library of Congress. Congress briefly considered moving the nation’s capital to Cincinnati, Ohio. However, Washington, D.C., was rebuilt over the course of three years.
The building is white due to a mixture of lime and water, known as whitewash. Using whitewash was the best way to protect buildings in the 1700s. Throughout the 1800s, the president’s residence would occasionally be referred to as “the white house” by reporters. In 1901, President Theodore Roosevelt officially changed its name to the White House.
The house would again be considerably renovated [when something old is restored] under between 1948 and 1952 under President Harry Truman. These changes would make it into the house as it is recognized today.
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