Please note that the following is a digitized version of a selected article from White House History Quarterly, Issue 52, originally released in print form in 2019. Single print copies of the full issue can be purchased online at Shop.WhiteHouseHistory.org No part of this book may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. All photographs contained in this journal unless otherwise noted are copyrighted by the White House Historical Association and may not be reproduced without permission. Requests for reprint permissions should be directed to rights@whha.org. Contact books@whha.org for more information. Š 2019 White House Historical Association. All rights reserved under international copyright conventions.
REFLECTIONS
Honoring President Dwight D. Eisenhower: The 2019 Christmas Ornament each presidents’ day, the white house historical association reveals the design of the next annual White House Christmas Ornament. For the past thirty-eight years, these ornaments have not only been the most identifiable public aspect of the Association’s work but have represented, for hundreds of thousands of Americans, an opportunity to bring a small part of the White House into their homes for the holidays. As a reader of White House History Quarterly, I want you to be among the first to learn of the 2019 design. This year, the annual White House Christmas Ornament will honor America’s thirty-fourth president, Dwight D. Eisenhower. For collectors of our ornaments, the choice will not be a surprise, as we feature the presidents sequentially in the order in which they held office, with occasional detours to commemorate significant anniversaries, such as the Bicentennial of the White House in 2000. The White House Christmas Ornament is a unique teaching tool that gives insight into the administration of each president. In the past, the Association has chosen designs that highlight important “firsts” in presidential and White House history, from President Benjamin Harrison’s introduction of a Christmas tree in the
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Executive Mansion in 1889 to President William Howard Taft’s first use of an automobile for presidential transportation in 1909. The 2019 ornament continues this tradition, but the design is distinctly different from any previously produced by the Association. In three-dimensional form, the 2019 ornament recognizes Eisenhower as the first commander in chief to use a helicopter for presidential transportation. Selecting both Army and Marine helicopters, President Eisenhower frequently lifted off and landed on the South Lawn of the White House, initiating a scene that has remained iconic for nearly every subsequent administration. Throughout 2019, the Association will engage in collaborations featuring
the presidential use of helicopters, and a future issue of this quarterly journal will tell that story in greater detail. In addition to their decorative appeal and educational role, the annual White House Christmas Ornament is a fund-raiser that is essential to the ability of the White House Historical Association to provide educational resources, public programs, and support for the conservation and preservation of the White House. The Association is a private, nonpolitical, and nonprofit organization. We receive no government funding or support but are wholly dependent on the generosity of Americans who support our mission through the purchase of these ornaments, our other educational materials, and traditional philanthropy. Although the 2018 holidays are still recent memories, we hope you will remember this Presidents’ Day to look for the new Eisenhower ornament. The ornament will be available for purchase directly from our website (shop.whitehousehistory.org) as soon as it is unveiled, and corporate and bulk purchases can be arranged through our retail team.
W H I T E H O U S E H I S T O R I C A L A S S O C I AT I O N
STEWART D. M C LAURIN PRESIDENT, WHITE HOUSE HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION
white house history quarterly
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C L O C K W I S E F R O M T O P : N AT H A N P FA U / W I K I P E D I A / A P P H O T O / G E T T Y I M A G E S
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The VCH-34 presidential helicopter, which carried President Eisenhower, on display at the U.S. Army Aviation Museum. President Eisenhower arrives via a U.S. Marine Corps helicopter on board the U.S. Navy heavy cruiser USS Des Moines, December 15, 1959. President Eisenhower and his guest Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev board a U.S. Marine Corps helicopter on the White House lawn for a sightseeing tour over the Nation’s Capital, September 15, 1959. British former Prime Minister Winston Churchill joins President Eisenhower for a helicopter flight from Gettysburg to the White House.
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