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East Wing

Demolished section of the White House

East Wing

Demolished section of the White House

FieldValue
imageWhite_House_East_Wing_from_the_N-E_in_1992.jpg
captionThe East Wing of the White House in 1992
coordinates
completion_date19021942
demolition_dateOctober 2025
statusdemolished

The East Wing was a portion of the White House complex in Washington, D.C. that was built in 1902, significantly expanded in 1942, and demolished in 2025. In the month prior to the demolition, site preparation began for a larger, replacement wing to include the proposed White House State Ballroom.

Situated on the east side of the Executive Residence, the building served as office space for the first lady and her staff, including the White House social secretary, correspondence staff, and the White House Graphics and Calligraphy Office, all of which have been relocated until the new East Wing is completed.

The East Wing was connected to the Executive Residence through the East Colonnade, a corridor with windows facing the South Lawn that housed the White House Family Theater and connected to the ground floor of the Executive Residence.

In 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt oversaw an expansion and remodeling of the East Wing, which included the construction of the Presidential Emergency Operations Center beneath the building.

History

Background

The White House East Entrance in 1899, before the first East Wing construction

President Thomas Jefferson added colonnaded terraces to the east and west sides of the White House, but no actual wings. Under President Andrew Jackson in 1834, running water was piped in from a spring and pumped up into the east terrace in metal pipes. These ran through the walls and protruded into the rooms, controlled by spigots. Initially, the water was for washing items, but soon the first bathing rooms were created, in the ground-level east colonnade. President Martin Van Buren had shower baths installed here.

The East Terrace was removed in 1866. For many years, a greenhouse occupied the east grounds of the White House.

Construction

The original East Wing shortly after its completion in 1902

The first small East Wing (and the West Wing) was designed by Charles Follen McKim and built in 1902 during the Theodore Roosevelt renovations, as an entrance for formal and public visitors. This served mainly as an entrance for guests during large social gatherings, when it was necessary to accommodate many cars and carriages. Its primary feature was the long cloak room with spots for coats and hats of the ladies and gentlemen.

The two-story East Wing was designed by White House architect Lorenzo Winslow and added to the White House in 1942 primarily to cover the construction of an underground bunker, the Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOC). Around the same time, Theodore Roosevelt's coatroom was integrated into the new building and became the White House Family Theater.

Operation

Floor plan of the White House with the East Wing on the right from 1942 until October 2025

Later, offices for correspondence, calligraphers and the social secretary were placed in the East Wing.

First Lady Rosalynn Carter, in 1977, was the first to keep her own office in the East Wing. The social office prepares all of the invitations and written correspondence for every event held at the White House.

Social and touring visitors to the White House usually entered through the East Wing's Visitors Office, continuing through the wood-paneled lobby, where portraits of presidents and first ladies hung. They continued through the Garden Room and along the East Colonnade, which had a view of the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden, past the theater to the Visitors' Foyer, and then on to the residence with entry made at the ground floor.

According to Anita McBride, former Chief of Staff to the First Lady under Laura Bush, "Betty Ford had the best quote for how special the East Wing is: 'If the West Wing is the mind of the nation, then the East Wing is the heart.

Demolition

Demolition of the East Wing on October 21, 2025
Another view of the demolition on October 22, 2025

In July 2025, the White House released renderings of the planned White House State Ballroom. Initially, the venue was expected to be able to host up to 650 people for events, but that capacity was later revised to 999 people. Clark Construction was awarded the $200 million contract, with work planned to begin in September 2025.

On July 31, President Donald Trump had said the new ballroom "won't interfere with the current building", wouldn't be "touching it", and would pay "total respect to the existing building, which I'm the biggest fan of."

The White House curator and her staff removed, catalogued, and stored the East Wing's art and furnishings and worked with the White House Historical Association to document the demolition and to use 3D scanning technology to capture the East Wing in detail prior to the demolition.

Demolition of the East Wing began on October 20, without review by the National Capital Planning Commission, which oversees federal construction. On October 21, with unannounced demolition already underway, the National Trust for Historic Preservation objected that a 90,000 ft2 ballroom would "overwhelm" the 55,000 ft2 White House and "permanently disrupt the carefully balanced classical design of the White House with its two smaller, and lower, East and West Wings."

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On October 22, a White House official told NBC that the "entirety" of the East Wing would eventually be "modernized and rebuilt". The official claimed that the construction plan had never been firm: "The scope and the size of the ballroom project have always been subject to vary as the process develops."

Later on October 22, Trump told reporters during an Oval Office event, "We determined that after really a tremendous amount of study with some of the best architects in the world, we determined that really knocking it down, trying to use a little section, you know, the East Wing was not much. It was not much left from the original" and "In order to do it properly, we had to take down the existing structure."

The next day, on October 23, photos from the Associated Press showed that the entire East Wing, including the East Colonnade and the White House Family Theater, had been demolished.

Tours of the White House, whose visitors normally entered through the East Wing, were discontinued in August and resumed on a limited scale in December, with visitors entering through the North Portico of the Executive Residence.

On November 10, Trump told Fox News that "I could've built the ballroom around it [the East Wing], but it would not have been—" He did not finish the sentence, later resuming: "I didn't want to sacrifice a great ballroom for an OK ballroom by leaving it [the East Wing] right smack in the middle."

In January 2026, a White House spokesman said that "an unstable colonnade, water leakage, mold contamination and other problems" made demolition and building a new structure "the lowest total cost ownership and most effective long-term strategy".

Reactions

The demolition of the East Wing drew criticism from politicians, historians, and White House alumni. Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer called the demolition a "vanity project", California governor Gavin Newsom compared the demolition to the perception of Trump's policies as "ripping apart the Constitution," while senator Elizabeth Warren criticized Trump for ignoring increasing living costs. Former White House official Elaine Kamarck condemned the demolition as "an abomination".

ACECO, the company in charge of the demolition, received many negative reviews. It took down its website and Instagram page.

In a Fox News interview on October 21, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt characterized the criticism of the demolition as "fake outrage". At the suggestion of Jesse Watters, she attributed Democrats' attitude to "jealousy". She noted that state visits to the White House required outdoor, temporary encampments, which she claimed to be undignified. She noted that President Obama, for instance, hosted state dinners there for India, in 2009, and for Italy, in 2016.

A YouGov poll released on October 22 showed that the majority of polled Americans disapproved of the decision to demolish the East Wing, with 53% disapproving and only 24% approving. At least one lawsuit attempted to stop the demolition, with the National Trust for Historic Preservation suing the Trump administration for unlawful demolition.

References

References

  1. Debusmann, Bernd Jr.. (August 1, 2025). "White House announces new $200m ballroom - a longtime Trump wish". BBC News.
  2. (October 22, 2025). "Trump plows past concerns over East Wing demolition — and envisions an even bigger ballroom than initially planned". CNN.
  3. Ahn, Ashley. "From the Roosevelts to the Kennedys: A Look Back at the White House East Wing. The East Wing had been a base for the first lady, an entryway for social functions and an emergency bunker.". [[The New York Times]].
  4. "East Wing". White House Museum.
  5. Jablow, Valerie. "Presidential Designs".
  6. (2025-10-23). "A Look Back at the History of the White House East Wing".
  7. Klein, Betsy. (October 23, 2025). "Melania Trump has been silent on demolition of the East Wing, home to first ladies for decades".
  8. "Little-known facts about our First Ladies".
  9. Bumiller, Elisabeth. (October 23, 2025). "Trump's Ballroom Project Claims 123-Year-Old East Wing". The New York Times.
  10. Keith, Tamara. (July 31, 2025). "Trump's dream of building a ballroom at the White House is becoming a reality". NPR.
  11. Kanno-Youngs, Zolan. (July 31, 2025). "White House Unveils Plan for Enormous Ballroom Long Sought by Trump". The New York Times.
  12. Philips, Zachary. (August 6, 2025). "Clark nabs $200M White House ballroom project".
  13. (October 20, 2025). "White House Starts Demolition on East Wing for Trump's New Ballroom—Despite Promises That Construction Wouldn't Interfere With Existing Structure". Yahoo! News.
  14. (October 20, 2025). "Construction begins on Trump's $250m White House ballroom". The Guardian.
  15. (2025-10-29). "The East Wing demolition was 'jarring.' But a White House history buff sees a silver lining".
  16. (October 22, 2025). "Trump says White House East Wing to be torn down".
  17. (October 21, 2025). "White House expands East Wing demolition as critics decry Trump overreach". The Washington Post.
  18. Mason. (October 21, 2025). "White House says it will submit ballroom plans for review, with demolition already under way". Reuters.
  19. Demianyk, Graeme. (October 22, 2025). "National Trust Calls For Halt To Trump's White House Demolition".
  20. (23 October 2025). "Trump's ballroom blitz sparks chorus of disgust: 'The perfect symbol'". The Guardian.
  21. Gutierrez, Gabe. (October 22, 2025). "Trump administration demolishing entire East Wing of the White House to add new ballroom".
  22. (October 21, 2025). "Trump's wrecking crew starts East Wing demolition for White House ballroom".
  23. Travers, Karen. (October 22, 2025). "Entire East Wing expected to be demolished as soon as this weekend, sources say". ABC News.
  24. (October 23, 2025). "White House East Wing demolished as Trump moves forward with ballroom construction, AP photos show". [[Associated Press]].
  25. (October 20, 2025). "Demolition begins to replace White House East Wing with Trump's ballroom".
  26. Johnson. (October 23, 2025). "Photos Show Donald Trump's East Wing Demolition Extended to White House Movie Theater". [[Deadline Hollywood]].
  27. Ramaswamy, Swapna Venugopal. (October 31, 2025). "White House to resume pared-down public tours in December". [[USA Today]].
  28. Greenwood, Amanda. (November 4, 2025). "Melania Trump Reopens White House Tours: How to Book". [[Newsweek (magazine)]].
  29. Moran, Lee. (November 11, 2025). "Trump Fesses Up On East Wing Demolition".
  30. (January 9, 2026). "White House says it wasn't economical to save East Wing during ballroom construction". [[AP News]].
  31. Montgomery. (October 21, 2025). "Washington furious over Trump's East Wing demo".
  32. Smith. (October 23, 2025). "Trump's ballroom blitz sparks chorus of disgust: 'The perfect symbol.'". [[The Guardian]].
  33. Burnett, Erin. (October 23, 2025). "Former White House Historian on new images of demolition: 'The founders would have been disgusted'". [[CNN]].
  34. Stanage, Niall. (2025-10-24). "5 takeaways from the demolition of the White House's East Wing". The Hill.
  35. Newsom, Gavin. "Ripping apart the White House just like he's ripping apart the Constitution.".
  36. Warren, Elizabeth. "Oh you're trying to say the cost of living is skyrocketing? Donald Trump can't hear you over the sound of bulldozers demolishing a wing of the White House to build a new grand ballroom.".
  37. Carbonaro. (October 21, 2025). "Demolition Company Tearing Down White House Flooded with Negative Reviews".
  38. Mallon. (October 23, 2025). "East Wing demolition triggers backlash; company involved takes down website". [[The Baltimore Sun]].
  39. Mallon. (October 23, 2025). "East Wing demolition triggers backlash: Reviews shut down amid public fury against company".
  40. Palmer. (October 22, 2025). "Leavitt Blames White House Bulldozers on Former President in Baffling Defense".
  41. Fortinsky. (October 23, 2025). "53 percent disapprove of White House East Wing demolition: Survey". [[The Hill (newspaper).
  42. Denicore, Mark. (October 23, 2025). "Plaintiffs' application for temporary restraining order with equitable relief. U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia".
  43. (12 December 2025). "Trump sued by preservation group over $300m White House ballroom project".
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