Moving to the White House

John Adams became the first US president to move into the White House on November 1st, 1800, even though construction work was still underway and most of the building was unfinished.

There was a reason for his determination to get in as quickly as possible: he clearly wanted to be the first president to live in the White House and there was an election coming up just a week later – an election that he lost.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explore why his wife hated the White House; look into why so many presidents finish their presidency in debt; and discuss why there are so many fun rooms in the White House, including a bowling alley, music room and even a cinema…  

Further Reading:

• ‘How the Declaration of Independence wooed Americans away from Britain’ (National Geographic, 2002): https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/history-and-civilisation/2022/06/how-the-declaration-of-independence-wooed-americans-away-from-britain 

• ‘Adams moves into the White House, Nov. 1, 1800’ (Politico, 2018): https://www.politico.com/story/2018/10/31/president-adams-moves-into-the-white-house-nov-1-1800-949132 

• ‘At home in the White House: how different presidents adapted to life in office’ (Prospect, 2017): https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/other/at-home-in-the-white-house-how-different-presidents-adapted-to-life-in-office 

• ‘The White House: A Journey Through Time!’ (The Time Travel Artist, 2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsJU0CMibEg 

#1800s #Architecture #US 

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The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

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