When President Harry Truman took office for his second term, the White House was falling apart.
The East Room floor was sagging 18 inches. The president’s bathtub was sinking into the floor. And the structure could no longer support the third level and steel roof that were added in 1927.
In 1948, the Trumans were forced to vacate to the nearby Blair House — the official state guest house of the president — while the White House underwent a massive four-year renovation that cost about $5.7 million, according to the White House Historical Association.
More than 70 years later, another major White House renovation is underway. On Tuesday, demolition work began on the facade of the White House’s East Wing to make way for President Donald Trump’s planned $200 million ballroom.
The new ballroom will be able to seat 650 people, the White House said, a more spacious alternative to the East Room, which seats 200.
In a statement, the White House called the new ballroom “a bold, necessary addition that echoes the storied history of improvements and additions from commanders-in-chief to keep the executive residence as a beacon of American excellence.”
Photos of the Truman renovation, taken by National Park Service photographer Abbie Rowe and preserved by the US National Archives, illustrate how massive the undertaking really was.
