Roosevelt Room

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Roosevelt Room

Clinton administration
Building	West Wing, White House
Location	Washington, D.C.
Country	United States
Coordinates	38°53′51″N 77°02′15″W / 38.8974°N 77.0376°W / 38.8974; -77.0376
Purpose	Meeting room
Named for	Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin D. Roosevelt

The Roosevelt Room is a meeting room in the West Wing of the White House, the home and main workplace of the president of the United States. Located in the center of the wing, near the Oval Office, it is named after two related U.S. presidents, Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin D. Roosevelt, who contributed to the wing's design.

Construction and modifications

Theodore Roosevelt hired architect

.

Decorations

The present Roosevelt Room is located where Theodore Roosevelt's first West Wing office was. When FDR reconstructed the West Wing he used the present room for staff meetings and larger meetings with members of Congress. Franklin Roosevelt kept an aquarium and hung several mounted fish in the room, and the room became known as the Fish Room. President

gave the room its present name, the Roosevelt Room, to honor Theodore Roosevelt who first built the West Wing, and FDR who expanded it.

The east wall of the room is a half circle, with a centered fireplace and doors on either side. Cast bronze bas-relief plaques with profile portraits of Theodore Roosevelt by

.

Traditionally paintings of both presidents Roosevelt have hung in the room. Even before President Nixon's formal naming of the Roosevelt Room a tradition existed of Democratic administrations hanging Alfred Jonniaux's portrait of FDR over the mantel with Theodore Roosevelt's equestrian portrait by Tade Styka titled Rough Rider hung on the south wall. Republican administrations would, in turn, hang Teddy Roosevelt's painting above the mantel and move FDR's portrait to the south wall. Bill Clinton decided to keep the landscape formatted Teddy Roosevelt portrait above the mantel and FDR's portrait on the south wall.

Current usage

The Roosevelt Room continues to be used for staff meetings, and is increasingly used to announce the appointment or nomination of new staff members. The room is also used as a preparation room by large delegations meeting with the president before entering the Oval Office.

Further reading

• Abbott James A., and Elaine M. Rice. Designing Camelot: The Kennedy White House Restoration. Van Nostrand Reinhold: 1998.
  ISBN 0-442-02532-7
  .
• Garrett, Wendell. Our Changing White House. Northeastern University Press: 1995.
  ISBN 1-55553-222-5
  .
• Kloss. William, Doreen Bolger, David Park Curry, et al. Art in the White House, A Nation's Pride, White House Historical Association and Harry Abrams: 1992.
  ISBN 0-8109-3965-7
  .
• Monkman, Betty C. The White House: The Historic Furnishing & First Families. Abbeville Press: 2000.
  ISBN 0-7892-0624-2
  .
• Seale, William. The President's House. White House Historical Association and the National Geographic Society: 1986.
  ISBN 0-912308-28-1
  .
• Seale, William, The White House: The History of an American Idea. White House Historical Association: 1992, 2001.
  ISBN 0-912308-85-0
  .
• The White House: An Historic Guide. White House Historical Association and the National Geographic Society: 2001.
  ISBN 0-912308-79-6
  .