Interesting Facts You Probably Didn't Know About The White House (25 pics)

1

Actually, there is an entire strip mall underneath the White House with a flower shop and even a bowling alley (added by Nixon)

2

Before Theodore Roosevelt it wasn't called the White House. It was called the Executive Mansion

3

It was never built with a handicapped president in mind so when Franklin Roosevelt entered office the whole place had to be redone with ramps and elevators for his wheelchair

4

It didn't have running water until 1833 when it was installed by Andrew Jackson

5

The water wasn't piped to the first family's second floor bathroom until 20 years later in 1853

6

FDR installed an indoor pool in 1933 to help him with his polio stricken legs. Although successive presidents like Truman and JFK used it, Nixon ended up laying a floor on top of it and using it as a press briefing room. And that is still what it is today

7

Ulysses S Grant added a billiard room in the 1870s

8

President Truman called it the Great White Jail and the Glamorous Prison. Apparently being the top dog can get pretty lonely

9

Based on the size of the State Dining Room and the chef's resources, 140 people could have dinner at the same time

10

The White House was the biggest home in the United States until the 1860s

11

The original plans drawn up by George Washington and the DC city planner were significantly more elaborate

12

There are 6 floors with 3 elevators

13

As we said, George Washington played a role in the White House design but he never actually lived there as it wasn't completed during his presidency

14

John Adams, the second president, was the first one to inhabit the mansion

15

When President Truman almost witnessed the tub crash through the ceiling he decided the White House needed renovation (being over 100 years old). It cost nearly $54 million but saved the White House from being condemned (it was actually declared structurally unsound before that)

16

Dwight D. Eisenhower had a putting green placed outside his office every morning

17

You can choose from one out of 35 different bathrooms

18

In 1939 the British King and Queen had a sleepover at the White House with FDR. This was the first time a British monarch had visited America

19

President Bill Clinton had a jogging track installed during his publicly documented struggles with weight and health

20

In 1942 the White House received a movie theatre in what used to be the cloak room

21

It takes 560 gallons of paint to cover the exterior

22

The design for the White House was chosen in a contest. The winner was Irishman James Hoban

23

His design was influenced by the Leinster House in Dublin

24

Because the British burned it in 1814, very little of the original house remains