White House Ballroom - History
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on 03 August 2025 said "For 150 years, presidents, administrations and White House staff have longed for a large event space on the White House complex that can hold substantially more guests than currently allowed." President Donald J. Trump repeatedly claimed that For 150 years, Presidents, Administrations, and White House Staff have longed for a large event space on the White House complex that can hold substantially more guests than currently allowed. Trump expressed his commitment to solving this problem on behalf of future Administrations and the American people.
Donald Trump on 12 September 2025 stated: "They just started construction of the new ballroom for the White House, which is something they've been trying to get for about 150 years." Trump wrote in June 2025 on his Truth Social platform. “For 150 years, Presidents, and many others, have wanted a beautiful Ballroom, but it never got built because nobody previously had any knowledge or experience in doing such things — But I do, like maybe nobody else, and it will go up quickly, and be a wonderful addition, very much in keeping with the magnificent White House itself."
The "150 years" claim is frequently made, suggesting that the Trump initiatige is merely implementing a plan formulated around the time of Abraham Lincoln, and that every president since then had simply been devoid of the greatness required to implemnt this plan.
The earliest known proposal for a White House ballroom was made by Donald Trump in 2010 to then-President Barack Obama's administration. This was well before he launched his presidential campaigns. After seeing a state dinner held in tents on the White House lawn, Trump called Obama's senior advisor, David Axelrod, to offer to build a permanent ballroom. According to Trump, the project would have cost around $100 million. The proposal was not accepted.
The idea of a ballroom in the White House in some form first arose in the early 20th century. Around 1890, Caroline Harrison, the wife of Benjamin Harrison. proposed two immense wings on either side, plus a vast greenhouse across the lawn.
Charles Follen McKim is one of the most celebrated American architects of the late nineteenth century. McKim was a prominent member of the McKim, Mead & White firm and was known for his Beaux-Arts style, which was influential in the American Neoclassical revival. Theodore Roosevelt in 1902 undertook a major renovation of the White House in 1902. Before the 1902 remodel, the State Dining Room could only comfortably seat 30 to 40 guests. President Theodore Roosevelt commissioned the expansion to accommodate larger gatherings. McKim doubled the size of the room by removing the west staircase and extending the space northward. The room currently seats up to 140 guests, making it the second-largest room in the White House residence.
McKim suggested including a grand ballroom. However, Roosevelt rejected the idea, feeling it was too extravagant for a “republican” executive mansion. Instead of a grand, new ballroom, the 1902 renovation under President Theodore Roosevelt focused on creating more functional space for both family and official use. But there doesn't seem to be any evidence of such a ballroom in McKim’s 1902 materials. Instead, the renovated East Room continued to serve as the main space for dances, receptions, and concerts. Large dances and receptions continued to use the East Room, which McKim refitted in a bright neoclassical style.
Supposedly William Howard Taft revived the notion of a dedicated ballroom. In 1909, during William Howard Taft's presidency, the West Wing of the White House was expanded and doubled in size based on plans by architect Nathan C. Wyeth. This expansion included the construction of the first Oval Office, which echoed the shape of the oval rooms in the White House Residence. It is said that in 1909, plans were sketched for a large addition on the west side of the White House that would have included a ballroom, but Congress balked at the cost, and the idea was again dropped. No credible evidence suggests President William Howard Taft revived the notion of a dedicated ballroom at the White House. While Taft initiated notable expansions and renovations, such as creating the Oval Office, records indicate no plans for a dedicated ballroom during his presidency.
Calvin Coolidge discovered how leaky the roof was during a rain storm and, in 1927, had the roof and attic replaced with a full third floor using steel girders. Although this provided better accommodations for servants and guests, Franklin Roosevelt (1930s–40s): Some discussions reappeared during FDR’s time, especially with the need for large ceremonial spaces, but the war years and budget constraints kept the idea from advancing. In 1948, President Harry S Truman added a much-discussed balcony to the South Portico at the second-floor level. Not long after the Truman Balcony was constructed, the main body building was found to be structurally unsound.
In the end, no dedicated ballroom was ever built. Instead, the East Room — the largest room in the White House — remained the de facto ballroom and is still used for state dinners, receptions, and dances.
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