George H.W. Bush Among a Long Line of American Presidential Military Heroes-- Part 1: George Washington Was the First

From the December 3, 2018, Chicago Sun-Times by Neil Steinberg.

The first president of the United States was a military man.  George Washington not only led the Continental Army during the American Revolution, but also fought in the French and Indian War.  As a matter of fact, 26 of our 44 presidents served the country in uniform in some capacity.

With the death Friday of George H.W. Bush, the most recent military president, this is a good time to take a look at the link between the armed forces and the Oval Office.

Washington was followed by two decades of non-veterans.  Washington left office in 1797, and the next military man to be sworn in was James Monroe in 1817, who had dropped out of William & Mary College to fight in the American Revolution in 1775 and was wounded in the Battle of Harlem Heights.

James Madison, while not in the military, saw more combat than many who were in the military and this will be discussed later.

--Cooter

The Oval Office-- Part 3

A ROOM WITH A VIEW

1880--  THE RESOLUTE DESK is given to Rutherford B. Hayes by Queen Victoria of England as a thank-you for the safe return of the HMS Resolute, which provided the wood for the desk.

1902--  THEODORE ROOSEVELT builds the West Wing, fitting it with a rectangular office that predates the Oval Office.

1929--  HERBERT HOOVER'S OVAL OFFICE is destroyed by a fire on Christmas Eve.  The blaze started in another room.


1934--  FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT  moves the Oval office to the southeast corner of the White Houseand installs the famous trapdoor in the Resolute desk.  (I'll have to find out some more on that trapdoor.)

Gonna Have to Find Out Some More About the Resolute Desk.  --Cooter

The Oval Office-- Part 2

William Howard Taft made it into an oval in honor of a symbolic feature of George Washington's Philadelphia residence where the first president would stand surrounded by a circle of guests, allowing him to democratically greet each visitor from the same distance.  The office was moved to its current location in the southeast corner of the White House in 1934.

Presidents have made their mark on the Oval Office (except Jimmy Carter, who kept Ford's decor).  LBJ installed a bank of televisions.  The Resolute desk has been used by 21 of the past 24 presidents.  President Truman had his famous "The Buck Stops Here (reverse said "I'm From Missouri")" on this desk.  This is also where Nixon made his secret tapes amd Clinton had his Monica Lewinsky trysts in adjoining rooms.

The Oval Office is where presidents bring the country together as Reagan did after the Challenger disaster and Bush did after 9-11.

A Room With a View Next.  --Cooter

The Oval Office-- Part 1

From the Nov. 24, 2008, Time Magazine's A Brief History Of: The Oval Office.

Always an interesting bit of history based on something currently happening.  This one was President Obama taking over it.

INSIDE THE OFFICE:

FLAGS:  The U.S. and presidential flags hand for all presidents.
TABLE: Personal items
DESK: Traditionaly, the 1880 HMS Resolute desk
RUG:  Each president has their own.  The last Bush's looked like a sun.
FLOORING:  Originally made of cork, later linoleum, now wood.

One of the best-known rooms in the world and an enduring symbol of the presidency.  Before the 1930s, the Oval Office was in a different part of the White House and before that, wasn't even oval.

In 1902, President Theordore Roosevely built a rectangular room on the ground floor of the new West Wing, replacing offices on the second floor of the White House. 

Glad It's Oval Now.  The Rectangle Office Just Doesn't Have the Sound.  --Cooter