Subscribe Online
Editorial Archives
Current Features
Current News
Columns
New Products
Advertiser Info
Industry Links
FREE Product Info
Classifieds
Buyers Guide
Special to our site...
NEW! Showrooms
Economics Week
in Review
Industry Research
Radiant Heat Report
History of Plumbing
Calendar of Events
Books
Contact Us
List Rental
Feedback
Home
|
Posted on: 07/12/2000; Publication date: July 2000
White House Plumbing
c Plumbing & Mechanical 1990
President George Bush can take modern conveniences for granted. The
White House is like a super hotel that contains all the high-tech appliances
available. It's part of the perks that go along with being the leader of the free
world. And among the least of his worries is whether the plumbing works.But the President's home at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue hasn't always been a
posh address. In fact, many presidents had to tolerate primitive living conditions,
including poor plumbing and heating. The White House had a reputation for being behind the times in domestic
improvements. Congress in part can be blamed for that situation, because
although the White House is a private residence for the President and his family,
it is public property, and appropriations decisions were made on Capitol Hill.
Frequently, the necessary expenditures weren't allotted, and the building
decayed rapidly in the first half of the 20th century. Before its major renovation
during the Harry S. Truman administration in 1948, it was in such rough shape
that officials discussed tearing it down and replacing it with a completely new
building.
|
|
White House History
Every president except George Washington has
lived in the White House. Although the "Father of Our Country" didn't reside
there, he was instrumental in the location of the site as well as in the
establishment of the Federal City in the District of Columbia, which would be
named after him following his death in 1799. Originally named "The President's
House," it was known as such until the Civil War (1861-65), when it assumed the
name, "Executive Mansion." Theodore Roosevelt (1901-09) established
the title, "White House," by Executive Order.The residence was built on a hill overlooking the Potomac River. A contest was
held for the design of the building. Irish architect James Hoban, who is called
the first architect of the White House, won the $500 prize. The design is said to
have been based on that of the Duke of Leinster's palace in Dublin. The cornerstone of the White House was laid on Oct. 12, 1792 - the 300th
anniversary of Columbus' discovery of the Western Hemisphere. But it wasn't
until November 1800 that second President John Adams (1797-1801) and
his wife Abigail moved in. When the Adamses arrived, much of the house was
disheveled from ongoing construction-most notably the East Room. Since
there was no plumbing of any sort, servants had to lug water into the house from
a spring in Franklin Park, five city blocks away. There were no bathrooms, and an
agitated Mrs. Adams complained that "we had not the least fence, yard or other
convenience without, and the great unfinished audience room, I made a drying
room of - nor were there enough lusters or lamps, so candles were stuck here
and there fore light - neither the chief staircase nor the outer steps were
completed, so the family had to enter the house by temporary wooden stairs and
platform." When the British raided Washington on Aug. 24, 1814, they torched the White
House, and the blaze gutted the interior and damaged part of the exterior. Dolly
Madison was able to salvage some items, including the Declaration of
Independence and the famous Gilbert Stuart portrait of George Washington. Reconstruction commenced in the spring of 1815, again under Hoban's
guidance. Except for the East Room and the North and South Porticoes,
restoration was finished in December 1817. There have been several alterations since the White House was rebuilt after the
1814 fire. The first significant alteration was a $500,000 project in 1902 during
the Theodore Roosevelt administration. The principal innovation was the
construction of the West Wing, where the executive offices were moved and
where they remain today. Separating the residence and business quarters,
allowed for the second floor to be used solely as a domicile. Because there was a restricted amount of money available for this renovation, as
well as limited time and the crude equipment of 1902, it was impossible to do all
of the work that needed to be done. Nevertheless, plumbing was a central part
of the plan, as bathrooms were installed and pipes and electrical wiring replaced
as part of the first floor refurbishment. In order to safeguard the attic from fire,
workers installed a new standpipe with fire hose that ascended into the attic and
out to a place where the city fire department could easily use it in case of fire. The ensuing report explained, "In the house proper, more than one half of the
lower floors is given up to dressing rooms, with toilet rooms attached,
conveniences heretofore entirely lacking. The removal of the pipes from the
corridor gives a spacious passageway dignified by the fine architectural features
constructed by Hoban." In 1927, a new steel-trussed roof and fire-resistant third floor were installed
during the Calvin Coolidge administration (1923-29). However, these
improvements provided only temporary relief and the house had deteriorated
rapidly by the time Truman authorized major reconstruction in 1948. One
account notes that the President's decision was prompted by his noticing that
his bathtub was settling into the floor.
|
|
Reconstruction 1948-52
By 1948, it was apparent that the weary White
House was in serious disrepair and that if it didn't get a much-needed facelift, it
would have to be demolished. So President Truman (1945-1953) authorized
the formation of a committee to oversee the rebuilding process.The Commission on Renovation of the Executive Mansion was faced with the
immediate responsibility of deciding between several possible plans for
reconstruction-none of them simple, all of them costly and all requiring much
time. Comprising the committee were R. E. Dougherty, president of the American
Society of Civil Engineers; Douglas W. Orr, president of the American
Institute of Architects; and W. E. Reynolds, commissioner of Public Buildings.
Lorenzo S. Wilson, White House architect, and Howell G. Crim, chief
White House usher, acted as advisors. John McShain was the general
contractor for the project. During the renovation, the Trumans lived at the government-owned Blair House
across the street. It took nearly all of Truman's second term in office to complete
the work. The $5.7 million project was the most extensive the building had undergone in
the 150 years it had been in existence. Architectural Digest noted in a
pre-construction article that had there not been the addition of so many pipes
and wires through the years, the structure would have been in satisfactory
condition. "Today there is scarcely a beam in the entire building that has not been bored or
cut through dozens of times to accommodate water and sewer pipes, gas pipes,
heading pipes, electric and telephone wires, automatic fire alarm and guard
signal systems, elevators, a fire extinguishing system and other mechanical
innovations. In the very structure of the building itself, generations of architects
and builders have concealed the completed mechanical equipment of a modern
office building, none of which was provided or even contemplated by the original
builders." A commission survey revealed that the plumbing system was "largely makeshift
by modern standards [and] unsanitary," and recommended that it be abandoned
"except to such extent as a few of the bathroom fixtures may be found suitable
for reinstallation in areas of subordinate importance." The preservation of existing mechanical, electrical and communications facilities
were described as "impracticable," and recommendations for the plumbing
system were outlined. The new system included new piping and fixtures, except
those fixtures found to be in good condition.
After the reconstruction, the mechanical area was enlarged to 160,000 cubic
feet and included a transformer room, an electrical repair shop, a carpenter shop
and compressor rooms for the air-conditioning system. In the basement are
storage rooms, laundry, engineers' offices, dentist's office, control room, water
softener, men's and women's locker rooms and lavatories, incinerator and
elevator machinery. While the exterior and much of the interior of the White House was constructed
of materials which are expected to last for 300 years, the plumbing fixtures were
installed with the idea that they could be replaced without major reconstruction in
about 20 years. This was on the theory that the plumbing fixtures are constantly
being improved in appearance and mechanical operation. The plumbing fixtures are of high-quality standard construction. Because all
piping above the basement is concealed in places where its renewal would be
difficult and expensive, durable brass pipe was used to minimize the necessity
for repairs. All hot and cold water lines are red brass, while the heating, vent and
waste lines are brass and copper tube. The hardware is solid brass and bronze. Since there were "objections to flushing
valve water closets due to noise in flushing," low noise flushing valve outfits
were installed. Drainage piping below the basement floor is extra-heavy cast iron. Lavatories are of vitreous china with combination supply fixtures. Those on the
second floor are fitted with drinking water faucets combined with the supply
fixtures. Showers are provided in the bathrooms on the second and third floors.
The second floor showers are in separate enclosures; those on the third floor
are over the bathtubs. Each shower fixture is fitted with an automatic water
temperature regulator. The bathrooms were fitted with shower cabinets as well as bathtubs. The shower
cabinets have glass doors. Before the renovation, no baths connected with the
guest rooms, and overnight visitors had to walk across a hall. Now all guest rooms
have adjoining baths and separate baths have been provided for the servants. Andrew Tully described the Truman bathroom in the May 1952 issue of The
Plumbing News: "If they offered me any room in the house, I'd take Mr. Truman's
bathroom. In the first place, it's big-a spacious grotto of cool, gleaming, green
and white tile, where a guy could set up housekeeping if things get tough. Then
there are the fixtures - all white É and a tribute to 20th century plumbing. Take
the bathtub, for instance. None of those squat little bushel-basket-like jobs you
see in some modern homes. Our President's tub is a good seven feet long -
the kind in which a man can stretch out in when he comes home from the office,
all tired out from working over a hot Republican. "A good seven or eight feet away on the opposite wall is the widest wash basin I
ever saw. My four kids could all wash their hands there and never rub elbows. In
the middle of the two water faucets is a third tap - for ice water. Of course,
there's a shower stall with a glass door. This is a couple blocks across the room in
another direction. All around the room are little sets of tile shelves."
|
|
The Great Bathtub Debate
The question of which President was the first
to introduce a bathtub into the White House has produced several answers,
most of which could probably be construed as correct, depending on your
viewpoint. Most often given credit for the first tub is President Millard Fillmore
(1850-53), widely believed to have had it installed in 1851. At the core of the
debate surrounding Fillmore is a story by prominent journalist H.L. Mencken,
which appeared in the Dec. 28, 1917, edition of The New York Evening Mail.
Mencken recanted the Fillmore tub tale as fiction 10 years later when it was being
hyped and embellished in newspapers, journals and reference books.The story related the origin of a mahogany and sheet lead tub built in 1842 by
Adam Thompson of Cincinnati, Ohio. Fillmore was said to have inspected the
tub while stumping through town as Vice President in 1850, and was so
impressed that he ordered it for the White House after succeeding Zachary
Taylor to the Presidency later that year. Mencken later explained that he concocted the tale as a diversion for a country
that was suffering the horrors of World War I. That admission led to the story
being subsequently referred to as "The Mencken Hoax." However, the article
continued to be printed as fact long after the author's confession: - James Madison (1809-17) is said to have had a bathtub installed in
1814, but that the water had to be heated on a stove and carried in a
bucket. And the bathtub didn't get much use because of the fire set by
the British.
- James Monroe (1817-25) reportedly purchased the first tub - a tin
cylinder - for $20 or $30. An 1825 inventory list included "wash bins
and close stools" (commodes or boxed-in chamber pots) and "one
elegant mahogany gilt mounted close stool." A basement "wash room"
is also mentioned, leading to speculation that the laundry was scrubbed
during the day and the President in the evening.
- Andrew Jackson (1829-37) in 1834 conducted a $45,000
modernization of the White House, which included the introduction of
"fresh spring waterÉthe warm, cold and shower baths and have been
repaired and greatly improved."
- Martin Van Buren (1837-41) was criticized by Congressman Charles
Ogle as "the first President who made the discovery that the pleasures
of the warm or tepid bath are the proper accommodations of a palace
life. For it appears that our former Presidents were content with the
application, when necessary, of a simple shower bath."
- Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865) was credited by the Portsmouth Ohio
Times in 1932 to "hold the distinction of being the first President of the
United States to splash his way to cleanliness in a White House
bathtub, the first bathtub having been installed in the White House
during his presidency." The newspaper did not specify from which
source it received its information, citing only a water consumption
report.
- Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-81), whose wife Lucy was believed to
have first insisted on a bathtub. Lending credibility to the claim is Mrs.
Hayes' reputation for having a stern will. She was known as "Lemonade
Lucy" because she banned liquor from the White House.
- Chester A. Arthur (1881-85) was given due by White House Chief
Usher Ike Hoover in a 1934 Saturday Evening Post article. It read,
"Plumbing was introduced by Arthur É Arthur's two bathrooms were
converted from virtually public baths into private ones."
Actually the first bathtub at the White House was the Potomac River. Just who
discontinued the practice of outdoor bathing and when, is a source of
contention. According to an essay by Norman J. Radder, longtime executive
director for the Plumbing and Heating Industries Bureau (now the
Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Information Bureau), the first mention of a private
bathroom was during the Monroe administration, but Radder wasn't sure about
the existence of a tub. John Quincy Adams (1825-29) held the key to Radder's skepticism about
the Monroe tub. Radder wrote: "Monroe's tub must have scared [Adams], for we
read that the poor man, 'weather permitting,' rose and took his plunge in the
Potomac between daybreak and sunrise. This had its hardships. On one
occasion, someone made off with his clothes and he had to shout until he
attracted the attention of a small boy, who ran to the White House for more." Saturday Evening Post Washington editor Beverly Smith in a 1952 article
maintained that only the first installed tub should be considered, which
eliminates Adams, Jefferson, Madison and Monroe. "Therefore, the spotlight
turns É to the most unlikely man: Old Hickory [Jackson]," Smith deduced.
"Major [William] Noland, his building commissioner, showed special interest
and pride in bathing facilities; he referred specifically to 'warm, cold and shower
baths,' so I hereby guess that the first regular bath, properly so-called, was
installed somewhere between 1829 and 1833 by the rough, tough,
tobacco-chewing Tennessean." Other Presidential bathtub anecdotes worth mentioning: - William Howard Taft (1909-13), who at 330 pounds was too hefty to
fit into a standard-sized tub, had a custom tub built for his extra-large
frame. After it was manufactured, four men fit inside the tub for a
photograph.
- President Truman's bathtub had a hidden message carved in glass on
the backside which read: "In this tub bathes the man whose heart is
always clean and serves his people truthfully." The author was a glass
carver who was commissioned to design the glass panels of five tubs.
|
|
Tapping The White House
The early White House lacked running water.
The idea was conceived during the Madison administration before the house
burned, but water wasn't actually piped in until the Jackson administration. In
1829 (when Jackson took office), the Committee on Public Buildings had
decided not to pipe running water to the White House, opting to concentrate
funds on the North Portico. During that period, most hotels and private mansions
had indoor plumbing, particularly in the bathrooms and kitchens. Springs,
cisterns and wells fed the system.By 1831, the Commissioner of Public Buildings purchased a bubbling spring at
Franklin Square in order to pipe water up to the White House in "trunks" or
wooden pipes made of drilled-out logs. As the ponds were dug and the laying of
pipe got under way, the engineer decided to substitute iron pipe for the wooden
trunks. This was for fire protection, not convenience to the household. A fire
engine, purchased by Monroe, was kept with the White House coaches. By the time ground was broken in the spring of 1833, water was still provided by
two original wells located in the breezeways between the house and wings.
Laborers dug three reservoirs: one at the Treasury, one at the State
Department, and a third at the White House. At the reservoirs, stonemasons set
bulky platforms or "pedestals" where the pipes came to the surface. Water
flowed freely through the pipes, which by means of grading were kept on a
decline to the pedestals, where the water formed spout-like fountains that shot
directly into the pools. Situated on pedestals were pumps made of iron and
trimmed with brass, protected by wood pumphouses. The system was largely functional by the end of May 1833. The motion
produced by the splashing fountains kept the water in the reservoirs from
stagnating. A deep bed of clean sand was the filter through which the water
passed in its movement within the pool. The pipes from the pools to the building
were buried in the ground. Since the pipes had to carry water to great heights
inside the house, the hand pumps provided the necessary pressure. A pump
attendant who took care of all reservoirs worked the handles at intervals, filling
the pipes as well as the small tin cisterns that had been installed to serve each
hydrant. These pipes were unearthed in 1928, as described in the Washington Sun: "Workmen engaged in street widening operations about Franklin Park have
uncovered what engineers declare to be perhaps the last vestige of the original
water supply system for the White House. A cistern with a tunnel leading toward
the White House was uncovered near the corner of 13th and I Streets. The
cistern was built of well-made brick masonry, with a subterranean tunnel leading
down 13th Street." During Van Buren's tenure, the shower baths in the East Wing were improved
and several copper bathtubs were added to the two already put there under
Jackson. Portable tubs had long been used for bathing in the bedrooms and
dressing rooms upstairs. Servants carried the water in buckets up the little
service stair from the water heaters in the kitchen. There would be no running
water upstairs for many years to come. The bathing room below was spruced up
with compartments and wardrobes in the interest of privacy and convenience. It
was probably used only by the President and other men of the family, with the
women continuing to use tin tubs in the bedrooms. Declining the traditional President's bedroom to the south, Andrew Johnson
(1865-69) chose a north-side chamber on the opposite side of the guest room
from his wife's. Between this and the guest room was a small room containing
various bathtubs but no plumbing. Johnson had this made into a fully-equipped
bathroom with a barber's chair. Records show that by 1876, water to several tubs
and water closets was supplied by pipes connected to a 2,000-gallon water tank
in the attic. In April 1882, during the Arthur administration, plumbers began removing old
pipes from within the walls and replacing them. New septic fields were created.
The easternmost room of the West Wing was converted to a lounge for the use
of men guests after dinner, and connected to the main conservatory above by a
small stair. Other bath and toilet rooms were remodeled with new tile, wallpaper
and fixtures. In the family quarters there were two such rooms, one on the
northwest and one large one on the north side that had been partitioned into
various compartments opening into the service hall. The President's office had
one, but another had been built off the attic stair landing for the use of the
private secretary. Only two bathrooms served Teddy Roosevelt's family quarters. One was for the
Presidential bedchamber; the other, a "family bathroom" for everyone else,
including guests, had three doors in addition to having partitions only head-high,
making compartments for lavatories, toilets and bathtubs. All rooms of the
second floor opened off the long hallway and each of the seven bedrooms had
its own bath, complete with white ceramic tile and nickel plate. President and Mrs. Woodrow Wilson (1913-21) used the two rooms of the
Presidential Suite almost as a separate apartment. In the smaller of the rooms,
the sitting room, they ate their breakfast and occasionally lunch or dinner. It was
an awkward, crowded room; the bathroom and closet, added in the renovation of
1902, threw the mantelpiece off center. A swimming pool, new bathrooms and a variety of other conveniences and
improvements were continually added, as the third floor became increasingly
important to the functioning of the second.
|
|
