View source for White House Visitors Office

[[File:White HouseTour.jpg|thumb|right|300px|A June 1994 tour group exits the [[White House]].]]
The '''White House Visitors Office''' is responsible for public tours of the [[White House]], for maintaining a facility where the public can obtain information about the White House, and for other White House events such as the [[White House Easter Egg Roll]], Holiday Open Houses, Spring and Fall Garden tours, [[State Arrival Ceremony|State Arrival Ceremonies]] and other special events.

The '''White House Visitor Center''', which is managed and operated by the [[National Park Service]], is located within [[President's Park]] at the north end of the [[Herbert C. Hoover Building]] (the [[United States Department of Commerce|Department of Commerce]] [[headquarters]]) between 14th Street and 15th Street on [[Pennsylvania Avenue (Washington, D.C.)|Pennsylvania Avenue NW]], in the [[Federal Triangle]]. Since September 11, 2001, it no longer serves as a starting point for those going on a reserved tour of the White House. Instead, the various exhibits within it provide an alternative visitor experience for those not able to go on a tour. The themes of the six permanent exhibits are "[[First Family of the United States|First Families]]", "Symbols and Images", "White House Architecture", "White House Interiors", "Working White House", and "Ceremonies and Celebrations". Other exhibits change throughout the year. It houses a small bookstore operated by the [[White House Historical Association]].

The visitors office is located in the [[East Wing]] of the White House and employed seven people at the start of the 2000s.<ref name="patterson">{{cite book | last=Patterson | first=Bradley H. Jr. | title=The White House Staff: Inside the West Wing and Beyond | publisher=[[Brookings Institution Press]] | year=2001 | isbn=0-8157-6951-2}} p. 400</ref> Its role has been unique in that, up to 2001, the White House was the only home of a [[head of state]] that was regularly open to the public at no cost.<ref name="patterson"/> 
The director of the White House Visitors Office has been termed in media accounts as "the most powerful person in Washington that you've never heard of."<ref name="neverheard"/>

==Early history==
Historically, the [[White House]] has offered tours to the general public. During the [[Calvin Coolidge]], [[Herbert Hoover]], and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] administrations, the general public could see the ground floor hallways and the [[East Room]].<ref name="nyt051152">{{cite news | url=https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FB0E1EF73B5E107A93C3A8178ED85F468585F9 | title=What a Tour of the New White House Includes | author=Furman, Bess | newspaper=The New York Times | date=1952-05-11}}</ref> Those who had been given a special card given by a [[United States Senator|United States senator]] could additionally see the three state parlors on the first floor—[[Green Room (White House)|Green Room]], [[Blue Room (White House)|Blue Room]], and [[Red Room (White House)|Red Room]]—as well as the [[State Dining Room]].<ref name="nyt051152"/>

The White House was closed during U.S. participation in [[World War II]].<ref name="nyt051152"/> Upon reopening in November 1946, the [[Truman administration]] decided to open all the aforementioned areas to all tour visitors, no senator needed.<ref name="nyt051152"/> But as would always be the case, the real working areas of the White House, such as the [[Oval Office]], were not included on tours, nor were upper floor residential areas. A schedule was established: tours took place between 10:00 and noon, Tuesday through Saturday, with desiring visitors lining up outside the East Gate.<ref name="nyt020848">{{cite news | url=https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F40B16FA3455157B93CAA91789D85F4C8485F9 | title=Doing the Capitol: Visitors Flock to Washington to Watch Congress in Action and See the Sights | author=Copeland, George H | newspaper=The New York Times | date=1948-02-08}}</ref> About a half million people a year visited, until the operation was shut down in November 1948 for a major renovation of the entire structure.<ref name="nyt051152"/>

Tours were restarted in April 1952.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=FB081EFA3B58107A93CBA9178FD85F468585F9 | title=White House Tours to Resume April 22: Public Inspection of Lower Mansion to Be Allowed After More Than Three Years | newspaper=The New York Times | date=1952-04-09}}</ref> In charge of them at that time was the [[Chief Usher of the White House|chief usher of the White House]].<ref name="nyt051152"/>

Tours were suspended following the November 22, 1963, [[assassination of John F. Kennedy]], but based upon the request of [[Jacqueline Kennedy]], were resumed seven days later.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F60715F63D5B1A7B93CAAB178AD95F478685F9 | title=White House Tours to Reopen | agency=[[United Press International]] | newspaper=The New York Times | date=1963-11-28}}</ref>

==Tickets and methods==
[[File:WhiteHouseTourEarlyMorningLine.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The line to get same-day tour tickets stretched a long way around in June 1994, with the [[Washington Monument]] looming in the early morning distance.]]

In 1976 during the [[United States Bicentennial]], long waits in line and a whole morning spent were commonplace due to large numbers in Washington, and a color-coded ticket distribution system was put in place.<ref name="nyt052977">{{cite news | url=https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F4081EF9395A167493CBAB178ED85F438785F9 | title=White House Tours to Require a Ticket | agency=Associated Press | newspaper=The New York Times | date=1977-05-29}}</ref> The system was put in place for good beginning in May 1977.<ref name="nyt052977"/>

White House tours were often in high demand. By 1981,<ref name="nyt083081"/> a director of the White House Visitor Center was in charge of the operation. During the early 1980s, as many as 6,000 visitors were accommodated each day, with just as many turned away.<ref name="nyt083081">{{cite news | url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=travel&res=9E04EFDE133BF933A0575BC0A967948260 | title=White House Tour Leader Courted and Criticized | author=Gamarekian, Barbara | newspaper=The New York Times | date=1981-08-30}}</ref> Special pleas for tours coming from Washington officials had to be dealt with frequently.<ref name="nyt083081"/> In 1981, there was a dispute between [[First Lady of the United States|First Lady]] [[Nancy Reagan]] and [[New York (state)|New York]] [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. representative]] [[Thomas Downey]] over his free tickets privileges having been suspended.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F40812FA3A5C0C738EDDAF0894D9484D81 | title=Truce, Of Sorts, On White House Tours | author=Weisman, Steven R | newspaper=The New York Times | date=1981-06-20}}</ref> During the [[early 1980s recession]], White House tours remained fully booked even when other Washington attractions saw declining attendance;<ref name="nyt090282"/> the Visitor Center continued to process well over one million visits a year.<ref name="nyt090282">{{cite news | url=https://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F10D1EFD3F5C0C718CDDA00894DA484D81 | title=White House Remains Ever Popular | newspaper=The New York Times | date=1982-09-02}}</ref> White House Visitors Office personnel are constantly caught between trying to satisfy demands and expectations for tours and events, and preserving the dignity of the presidential office and setting.<ref name="patterson"/>

The White House Visitor Office is also in charge of assorted White House special events, such as the annual [[White House Easter Egg Roll]], in the [[South Lawn (White House)|South Lawn]], the [[State Arrival Ceremony]] for visiting [[heads of state]], and a national [[Christmas]] celebration.<ref name="nyt083081"/><ref>{{cite news | url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=doc&p_docid=0EB29BE9A1C8620C&p_docnum=3& | title=O'Neill is Weighing an Invitation For Post as Bicentennial Spokesman | author=Naedele, Walter F | newspaper=[[The Philadelphia Inquirer]] | date=1986-11-18}}</ref>

The Egg Roll in particular is an important function of the office; as one former director of the office stated, "It's the single most high-profile event that takes place at the White House each year, and the White House and the first lady are judged on how well they put it on."<ref name="nyt-apr17">{{cite news | url=https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/04/11/us/politics/white-house-easter-egg-roll-trump.html?_r=0&referer=http://m.motherjones.com/m/kevin-drum | title=The Latest Test for the White House? Pulling Off Its Easter Egg Roll | first=Julie Hirschfeld | last=Davis | newspaper=The New York Times | date=April 11, 2017}}</ref>  [[Carol McCain]], director of the White House Visitors Office from 1981 to 1987, added participatory activities and doubled the size of the crowds attending the Easter Egg Roll.<ref name="wapo123086">{{cite news | url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost_historical/access/123419722.html?dids=123419722:123419722&FMT=AI&FMTS=ABS:AI&fmac=&date=Dec+30%2C+1986&author=By+Donnie+Radcliffe+Washington+Post+Staff+Writer&desc=Christmas+Card+Presidents | archive-url=https://archive.today/20130201050903/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost_historical/access/123419722.html?dids=123419722:123419722&FMT=AI&FMTS=ABS:AI&fmac=&date=Dec+30,+1986&author=By+Donnie+Radcliffe+Washington+Post+Staff+Writer&desc=Christmas+Card+Presidents | url-status=dead | archive-date=February 1, 2013 | title=Christmas Card Presidents | author=Radcliffe, Donnie | newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] | date=1986-12-30 | author-link=Donnie Radcliffe}}</ref> Later, director Ellie Schafer and First Lady [[Michelle Obama]] changed the Egg Roll procedure to have a lottery system for gaining access and to allow more people to participate.<ref name="neverheard">{{cite news | url=https://capitolfile-magazine.com/ellie-schafer-is-the-most-powerful-person-in-washington-that-youve-never-heard-of | title=The Most Powerful Person in Washington That You've Never Heard Of | first=Kelley | last=McCormick | magazine=[[Capitol File]] | access-date=September 6, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170427231008/https://capitolfile-magazine.com/ellie-schafer-is-the-most-powerful-person-in-washington-that-youve-never-heard-of|archive-date=April 27, 2017}}</ref>  The lack of a director of the office in time for the April 2017 Egg Roll was seen as symptomatic of the disorganization of the incoming [[Donald Trump]] Administration of that time.<ref name="nyt-apr17"/>

In April 1995 the current White House Visitor Center facility was opened in the [[Herbert C. Hoover Building]], two blocks from the White House.<ref name="nyt040295">{{cite news | url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CEFDA1F31F931A35757C0A963958260 | title=A Visitors' Center For White House Tours | author=Molotsky, Irvin | newspaper=The New York Times | date=1995-04-02}}</ref> The daily tour ticket distribution place was moved there,<ref name="nyt080397">{{cite news | url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9500E3D71F3DF930A3575BC0A961958260 | title= White House Access, for Just $5 | newspaper=The New York Times | date=1997-08-03}}</ref> with exhibits meant to spend the time until one's tour slot had come about.<ref name="nyt040295"/> The yearly run rate for visitors was now at 1.25 million, with as always demand exceeding supply.<ref name="nyt040295"/> By 1997, [[ticket scalping]] was a persistent problem, with scalpers getting from $5 to $50 a throw.<ref name="nyt080397"/>

Early in the [[George W. Bush administration]], White House officials cracked down on commercialized tours trying to get into the building as well as people late getting to their tour slot.<ref name="nyt051301">{{cite news | url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9506E5D71F3BF930A25756C0A9679C8B63 | title= Rules on Visitors Recast By Bush's White House | author=Sciolino, Elaine | newspaper=The New York Times | date=2001-05-13}}</ref> Comparison were made against the more lenient policies of the [[Clinton administration]].<ref name="nyt051301"/>

On July 22, 2012, the main White House Visitor Center facility closed for an extensive renovation process with the goal of including new exhibit galleries, interactive exhibits and improved visitor services. On July 28, a temporary visitor center opened near the Ellipse Visitor Pavilion at the intersection of 15th and E Street and it remained open until the main visitor center reopened on September 13, 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.downtowndc.org/news/white-house-visitor-center-renovation|title=White House Visitor Center Renovation|date=July 18, 2012|access-date=August 3, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nps.gov/whho/white-house-visitor-center-will-reopen-saturday-september-13-2014.htm|title=White House Visitor Center Reopens Saturday, September 13, 2014|access-date=September 11, 2014}}</ref>

==In the wake of September 11==
[[File:WhiteHouseVisitorCenterWithLauraBush.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Interior of the White House Visitors Center, April 2007. [[First Lady of the United States]] [[Laura Bush]] stands next to 51 State Eggs decorated by artists from each state and D.C.]]
Tours were suspended in the wake of the September 11 attacks due to [[terrorism]] concerns. In September 2003 they were resumed on a limited basis for groups making prior arrangements through their congressional representatives and submitting to [[background check]]s. They were again suspended in March 2013 during the [[Obama administration]], due to the effects of the [[Budget sequestration in 2013|ongoing budget sequestration]], but were resumed again in November 2013.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2013/11/05/as-white-house-tours-resume-the-obamas-surprise-visitors-with-a-personal-welcome/ | title=As White House tours resume, the Obamas surprise visitors with a personal welcome | author=Eilperin, Julie | newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] | date=November 5, 2013}}</ref>

Presently, a tour of the White House must be arranged through a member of [[United States Congress|Congress]]. Reservations may be made a maximum of six months ahead of time, and the White House encourages tours be submitted as close to six months in advance as possible as tours are filled on a first-come, first-served basis. The approval and reservation system was modernized under the Obama administration.<ref name="neverheard"/>

Anyone aged 14 or older who is offered a tour must undergo a background check. This requires providing personal information, including name, date of birth, [[Social Security number]], and country of [[citizenship]].

Tours are available from 7:30&nbsp;a.m. to 11:30&nbsp;a.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 7:30&nbsp;a.m. to 1:30&nbsp;p.m. Fridays and Saturdays (excluding federal holidays or unless otherwise noted).<ref>whitehouse.gov</ref> Tour hours will be extended when possible based on the official White House schedule. They are [[Self-guided tour|self-guided]] and free of charge. Tours are subject to last-minute cancellation.

The process used to screen potential visitors for tours has come under fire due to concerns of [[identity theft]] that can affect potential visitors.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.wbaltv.com/White-House-Tours-Could-Lead-To-Identity-Theft/8955836 | title = White House Tours Could Lead To Identity Theft | publisher = WBAL-TV | date = 2007-11-20 | access-date = 2016-10-11}}</ref> Concerns include that those who apply to be visitors must provide their personal information to congressional offices, who request this information via e-mail, and in turn, send the information via e-mail to the White House. The e-mail format that is used in this process is susceptible to interception.

==Directors of the White House Visitors Office==
{{Expand list|date=June 2017}}
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Term !! Ref.
|-
| [[Michael J. Farrell]]
| 1974–1977
| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov/library/guides/findingaid/farrellfiles.asp|title=Michael J. Farrell Files|website=www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov|access-date=11 September 2018}}</ref>
|-
| [[Nancy Willing]]
| 1977–1979
| <ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1977/03/17/archives/white-house-stopping-all-afternoon-tours.html | title=White House Stopping All Afternoon Tours | agency=[[UPI]] | newspaper=The New York Times | date=March 17, 1977 | page=31}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/394705709/?terms=%22White%2BHouse%2BVisitors%2BOffice%22%2Bdirector | title=Tourists keep coming to visit White House | agency=[[UPI]] | newspaper=[[Times-News (Idaho)|The Times-News]] | location=Twin Falls, Idaho | date=May 29, 1979 | page=1 | via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref>
|-
| [[Carol McCain]]
| 1981–1987
| <ref name="nyt083081"/><ref name="wapo123086" /><ref name="pi021987">{{cite news | url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=doc&p_docid=0EB29C3F6146FFAA&p_docnum=2 | title=Bicentennial Group Adds, Loses Staff | author=Naedele, Walter F | newspaper=[[The Philadelphia Inquirer]] | date=February 19, 1987}}</ref>
|-
| [[Debra Romash]]
| 1989–1992
| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.lafayette.edu/2012/05/18/alumni-who-have-served-in-the-office-of-president-or-vice-president/|title=Alumni Who Have Served in the Office of President or Vice President · News · Lafayette College|website=news.lafayette.edu|access-date=11 September 2018}}</ref>
|-
| [[Melinda N. Bates]]
| 1993–2001
| <ref name="nyt-apr17"/>
|-
| [[Clare Pritchett]]
| 2001–2004
| <ref name="nyt051301"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/administration/whbriefing/stafflista.html|title=2004 White House Office Staff List - Alphabetical|website=www.washingtonpost.com|access-date=11 September 2018}}</ref>
|-
| [[Sara Armstrong]]
| 2004–2007
| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/government/sarmstrong-bio.html|work=[[whitehouse.gov]]|title=Sara Armstrong, Former Director of the White House Visitors Office|via=[[NARA|National Archives]]|access-date=11 September 2018}}</ref>
|-
| Amy Allman
| 2007–2009
| <ref>{{cite web | url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/government/aallman-bio.html | work=[[whitehouse.gov]] | title= Amy Allman, Director, White House Visitors Office | via=[[NARA|National Archives]] | access-date=2008-06-16}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.opensecrets.org/revolving/rev_summary.php?id=76600|title=Revolving Door:  Amy Allman Dean Employment Summary - OpenSecrets|website=www.opensecrets.org|access-date=11 September 2018}}</ref>
|-
| [[Ellie Schafer]]
| 2009–2016
| <ref name="sfgate-es">{{cite news | url=http://blog.sfgate.com/politics/2009/01/28/san-franciscan-in-the-white-house/ | title=San Franciscan in the White House | publisher=sfgate.com | date=2009-01-28 | access-date=2009-01-30 | first=Rachel | last=Gordon}}</ref><ref name="nyt-apr17"/>
|-
| Daniel Fisher
| 2017–2019
| <ref>[https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/presidential-actions/president-donald-j-trump-announces-appointments-executive-office-president/ www.whitehouse.gov]</ref>
|-
| [[Dana Hurtik]]
| 2019–2021
| <ref>[https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/July-1-2020-Report-FINAL.pdf www.whitehouse.gov] </ref>
|-
|}

==See also==
*[[White House visitor logs]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090122020351/http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/tours_and_events/ Historical tour of the White House]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090122020351/http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/tours_and_events/ Visiting the White House]
*[http://www.nps.gov/whho/planyourvisit/white-house-tours.htm FAQs about White House tours]

{{coord|38.8799|-76.9846|display=title}}
{{Federal Triangle}}
{{White House}}
{{EOP agencies}}

[[Category:Buildings and structures in Federal Triangle]]
[[Category:President's Park]]
[[Category:White House]]
[[Category:National Park Service visitor centers]]
[[Category:Executive Office of the President of the United States]]
[[Category:Tourism in Washington, D.C.]]