A White House Alphabet

Smirne • Hutton A White House Alphabet

ISBN 978-1-950273-08-9

90000>

A publication of the White House Historical Association

9 781950 273089

The White House Historical Association

The White House has served as the home and office of the President of the United States for more than two hundred years. Its history fills thousands of books, but the best place to start to learn about the President’s House is with the twenty-six letters of the alphabet! You’ll find every letter here from A to Z!

A White House Alphabet Illustrated by John Hutton • Text by Arioth Harrison Smirne with Rocco Smirne the white house historical association

1

2

John Adams 1797–1801

George Washington 1789–97

11

3

12

James K. Polk 1845–49

21

Chester A. Arthur 1881–85

29

Warren G. Harding 1921–23

36

Lyndon B. Johnson 1963–69

Zachary Taylor 1849–50

22 & 24 Grover Cleveland 1885–89, 1893–97

30

Calvin Coolidge 1923–29

37

Richard M. Nixon 1969–74

4

Thomas Jefferson 1801–09

13

Millard Filmore 1850–53

5

James Madison 1809–17

14

James Monroe 1817–25

15

Franklin Pierce 1853–57

James Buchanan 1857–61

23

25

26

Benjamin Harrison 1889–93

William McKinley 1897–1901

Theodore Roosevelt 1901–09

31

32

33

Herbert Hoover 1929–33

38

Gerald R. Ford 1974–77

Franklin D. Roosevelt 1933–45

39

Jimmy Carter 1977–81

Harry S. Truman 1945–53

40

Ronald Reagan 1981–89

7

6

John Quincy Adams 1825–29

16

8

Andrew Jackson 1829–37

17

Abraham Lincoln 1861–65

Martin Van Buren 1837–41

18

Andrew Johnson 1865–69

Ulysses S. Grant 1869–77

10

9

John Tyler 1841–45

William Henry Harrison

1841

19

Rutherford B. Hayes 1877–81

27

20

James A. Garfield 1881

28

Woodrow Wilson 1913–21

William Howard Taft

1909–13

34

35 the white house has been the home and office to every president of the united states since john adams.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

1953–61

41

George H. W. Bush 1989–93

42

William J. Clinton 1993–2001

43

George W. Bush 2001–09

44

Barack Obama 2009–17

John F. Kennedy 1961–63

45

Donald J. Trump 2017–

I nt ro d u ct i o n The White House is the home and office of the President of the

United States. It is a big place full of special rooms, beautiful things,

and hard-working people who do important jobs. It takes every letter of the alphabet to tell all the stories found here!

Rocco Smirne is five years old. He has found every letter here from A—for Air Force One to Z—for Zip Code!

Rocco’s favorite picture is of Marine One, the

helicopter drawn for the letter H. Rocco and his mother created this book to share a White

House story for all twenty-six letters of the alphabet with you. They will take you to see

the Marine Band, the Queens’ Bedroom, the Oval Office, rooms that are all red, blue, and green,

and more. I hope you will have fun on your tour!

Stewart D. McLaurin

President, White House Historical Association

A White House Alphabet Illustrated by John Hutton • Text by Arioth Harrison Smirne with Rocco Smirne

Let’s visit the White House!

Every letter of the alphabet is found here!

the white house historical association

A

is for Air Force One, a special airplane that takes the president to meetings around the world.

B

is for Blue Room, a fancy room all in blue and gold where the president entertains guests. The Christmas Tree is of ten placed here in the middle of the room!

C

is for Commander in Chief, another name for the president of the United States!

D

is for Diplomatic Reception Room, where the president greets leaders of other countries.

E

is for East Room, the largest room in the White House.

Grand parties and special events happen here.

F

is for First Ladies. They make people feel at home at the White House and work hard to help make the world a better place.

G

is for Green Room, a special room with green walls, and green curtains, and green furniture!

People of ten enjoy tea and cake in this room.

H

is for Helicopter. A special helicopter called Marine One picks up the president right from his backyard at the White House, to travel to meetings in many places.

I

is for Inauguration, the ceremony that marks the beginning of each presidential term when the president takes the Oath of Of fice. It takes place every four years on January 20.

J K

is for the Kitchen Garden in the backyard of the White House. It is where healthy vegetables are grown for the president’s table.

is for Jackson Magnolia, one of two old trees with big white f lowers that grow just outside the back door of the White House. The tree is named for President Andrew Jackson.

L

is for Lincoln Bedroom, where the Lincoln Bed and furniture that belonged to President Abraham Lincoln many years ago are still used today.

M

is for Marine Band, which is also called the “The President’s Own.” The band performs grand music for the president and for White House events.

N

is for North Portico, the front porch built with tall stone columns over the front door of the White House. Sometimes, the president’s car parks right under the portico!

O is for Oval Of f ice, where the president works.

P

is for the Portraits of presidents that hang here!

Q

is for Queens’ Bedroom, a guest room where royalty from many countries have slept on visits to the White House.

R

is for Red Room, which is decorated with red curtains, red walls, and red furniture.

S

is for State Dining Room, a room that is used for fancy dinners, where the chef serves the best food.

T

is for Truman Balcony, an upstairs balcony added to the South Portico

by President Harry S. Truman.

The president has a good view of Washington from here.

U

is for United States Secret Service of f icers who work hard to protect the president every day.

V

is for Vermeil, which means silver dipped in gold! There are many vermeil bowls, plates, and other objects displayed in the Vermeil Room.

W

is for West Wing, where the president works. Many people with important White House jobs have of fices here too.

X

is for X-Ray machines that are used to check everything visitors bring into the White House in order to keep everyone safe.

Y

is for Yellow Oval Room, which has yellow walls and has been used as the family library and formal sitting room.

Z

is for Zip Code. If you write a letter to the president or first lady at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, be sure to add the zip code, 20500!

About the Authors Arioth Harrison Smirne is the director of special events at the White House Historical Association. She holds a degree in English Literature from the University of Virginia. She lives in Virginia with her co-author and son, Rocco, husband, and youngest son, Luca.

About the Illustrator John Hutton is a professor of art history at Salem College, where hehas taught since 1990 and is the author of How to Draw the Presidents. He lives in WinstonSalem, North Carolina.

the white house historical association is a nonprofit educational organization, founded in 1961 for the purpose of enhancing the understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment of the Executive Mansion. All proceeds from the sale of the Association’s books and products are used to fund the acquisition of historic furnishings and art work for the permanent White House collection, assist in the preservation of public rooms, and further its educational mission. board of directors:

Frederick J. Ryan Jr., Chairman; John F. W. Rogers, Vice Chairman and Treasurer; James I. McDaniel, Secretary; Stewart D. McLaurin, President

John T. Behrendt, Michael Beschloss, Teresa Carlson, Jean Case, Janet A. Howard, Knight Kiplinger, Martha Joynt Kumar, Anita McBride, Robert M. McGee, Ann S. Stock, Ben C. Sutton Jr., Tina Tchen, Gregory W. Wendt; liaison: David Vela; ex officio: Lonnie G. Bunch III, Kaywin Feldman, David S. Ferriero, Carla Hayden, Katherine Malone-France; directors emeriti: John H. Dalton, Nancy M. Folger, Elise K. Kirk, Harry G. Robinson III, Gail Berry West Vice President of Publishing and Executive Editor: Marcia Mallet Anderson; Editorial and Production Director: Lauren |McGwin Senior Production Manager: Elyse Werling; Production Manager: Kristen Hunter Mason; Editorial Assistant: Rebecca Durgin Original drawings by John Hutton are dedicated by the artist to Vievey, Milo, and Bode. Copyright Š 2020 by the White House Historical Association All rights reserved under international copyright conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized 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. Requests for reprint permissions should be addressed to Rights and Reproductions Manager, White House Historical Association, PO Box 27624, Washington D.C. 20038.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Control Number: 2020936888

ISBN 978-1-950273-08-9

Printed in Italy

1

2

John Adams 1797–1801

George Washington 1789–97

11

3

12

James K. Polk 1845–49

21

Chester A. Arthur 1881–85

29

Warren G. Harding 1921–23

36

Lyndon B. Johnson 1963–69

Zachary Taylor 1849–50

22 & 24 Grover Cleveland 1885–89, 1893–97

30

Calvin Coolidge 1923–29

37

Richard M. Nixon 1969–74

4

Thomas Jefferson 1801–09

13

Millard Filmore 1850–53

5

James Madison 1809–17

14

James Monroe 1817–25

15

Franklin Pierce 1853–57

James Buchanan 1857–61

23

25

26

Benjamin Harrison 1889–93

William McKinley 1897–1901

Theodore Roosevelt 1901–09

31

32

33

Herbert Hoover 1929–33

38

Gerald R. Ford 1974–77

Franklin D. Roosevelt 1933–45

39

Jimmy Carter 1977–81

Harry S. Truman 1945–53

40

Ronald Reagan 1981–89

7

6

John Quincy Adams 1825–29

16

Andrew Jackson 1829–37

17

Abraham Lincoln 1861–65

Andrew Johnson 1865–69

8

Martin Van Buren 1837–41

18

Ulysses S. Grant 1869–77

10

9

John Tyler 1841–45

William Henry Harrison

1841

19

Rutherford B. Hayes 1877–81

27

20

James A. Garfield 1881

28

Woodrow Wilson 1913–21

William Howard Taft

1909–13

34

35 this book belongs to:

Dwight D. Eisenhower

John F. Kennedy 1961–63

1953–61

41

George H. W. Bush 1989–93

42

William J. Clinton 1993–2001

43

George W. Bush 2001–09

44

Barack Obama 2009–17

45

Donald J. Trump 2017–

Smirne • Hutton White House Alphabet

ISBN 978-1-950273-08-9

90000>

A publication of the White House Historical Association

9 781950 273089

The White House Historical Association

The White House has served as the home and office of the President of the United States for more than two hundred years. Its history fills thousands of books, but the best place to start to learn about the President’s House is with the twenty-six letters of the alphabet! You’ll find every letter here from A to Z!

White House Alphabet Illustrated by John Hutton • By Arioth Harrison Smirne with Rocco Smirne the white house historical association