Why Was the White House Painted White?

Myths and conjecture surround the reason that the White House was painted white. Was it an arbitrary decision of the architect or the best color to preserve the building materials? No one knows for certain.

The exterior walls are made of limestone, quarried from the local Aquia Creek Quarry in Stafford, Virginia. In 1798 the walls were painted to protect the sandstone from damage caused by water and freezing winters. One could assume that the color white was chosen by the architect, Hoban. He may have just liked white, or the home it was based on was painted white.

There is a Washington myth which claims that people started calling it the White House after the British burned it in 1814. This was during the War of 1812. It had to be painted to conceal the scorch marks.

However, there had been many references to it as the White House long before that, and it was originally painted white before this burning occurred. Perhaps at that time, white paint was the best kind of paint to preserve the limestone.

Creation of the White House

In December of 1790, George Washington signed an Act of Congress setting aside land for the federal government. It was not to exceed ten square miles and was to be on the Potomac River. 

President Washington and city planner Pierre L’Enfant picked the site which is now 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. A competition was held to find an architect for the President’s House. Among nine contestants, Irish-American architect James Hoban won. Hoban based his neoclassical design on a project in The Book of Architecture by James Gibbs.

Construction of the Building

Construction began in 1792 and its first residents were John and Abigail Adams. They moved into the house in 1800, when it was almost completed. It was constructed by both paid and slave laborers, along with some stonemasons brought over from Scotland.

Additions to the White House

There have been several additions to the White House, and some remodeling over the years. In 1826, Hoban added the South Portico and in 1902 the Gallery and Executive Office Wing were added. 

Harry S. Truman had the interior gutted and remodeled, except for the third floor between 1948 and 1952. It survived a second fire, which happened in the West Wing in 1929. The original exterior walls, however, are still the ones erected over 200 years ago.

Fun Facts About the White House

Although we don't know a lot about why the paint color for the White House was chosen, we do know a lot about the house and the people who have lived in it over the years. For example:

• President Theodore Roosevelt issued an Executive Order in 1901 which officially designated it the White House. Up until then it was called the President’s House, the President’s Palace, and the Executive Mansion.
• There are 6 levels, 132 rooms and 35 bathrooms in the White House. That includes 412 doors, 147 windows, 28 fireplaces, 8 staircases, and 3 elevators.
• The White House is 55,000 square feet, 70 feet high, and sits on 18 acres.
• The White House kitchen can serve dinner to 140 guests and hors d'oeuvres to more than 1000.
• A stove was added to the White House in 1850. Before then, food was cooked in fireplaces.
• The first telephone was installed in the White House during the term of Rutherford B. Hayes.
• Electricity was added during Benjamin Harrison’s term.
• The style is Georgian Neoclassical.
• 570 gallons of paint are needed to paint the White House's outside walls.
• The White House has a tennis court, basketball court, jogging track, swimming pool, movie theatre and bowling lane.

So, although we know a lot, the reason the White House was painted white may never be known. Perhaps white was chosen because it is a clean, bright and new looking color. It’s a good color to portray a new country, a new government, and its people.