Rose Garden moments revisited after Donald Trump paves it over
The iconic lawn adjacent to the Oval Office has hosted many historic events.
Joey GarrisonWASHINGTON ― For more than 60 years, the White House Rose Garden has showcased the prestige of the American presidency.
The iconic setting has hosted leaders of rival nations signing peace treaties, presidential press conferences, meetings with foreign heads of state, landmark bill signings, a wedding of a sitting president's daughter, swearing-in ceremonies of Supreme Court justices, turkey pardons and even a "beer summit."
Now the Rose Garden, situated outside the Oval Office along the West Wing, enters a new era after President Donald Trump ordered the garden's manicured grass be paved over. The controversial overhaul, recently completed, has turned one of the garden's most striking features into a stone patio, while maintaining rose bushes and other vegetation on the garden's periphery.
Trump told reporters on Aug. 3 he's heard "great reviews" about the renovated Rose Garden, arguing that "we had to do it" because the grass often turned wet and muddy after rainfall, making it difficult to host events.
Here's a look back at the history of the Rose Garden and some of its memorable moments.
The origins of the Rose Garden
Flower gardens on the west side of the White House's south lawn date back to the mid-1800s presidency of Ulysses S. Grant. The space later became known as a "colonial garden" following 1902 renovations led by first lady Edith Roosevelt, wife of President Theodore Roosevelt, according to the White House Historical Association.
The garden was first turned into a rose garden in 1913, when first lady Ellen Axson Wilson, married to President Woodrow Wilson, had the colonial garden demolished to make way for beds of rose hedges along allées that the president used for walks.
During World War II, President Franklin. D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill chatted from chairs in the garden in 1943 before they held a meeting with military leaders inside the White House.
The modern Rose Garden emerges under JFK
The modern Rose Garden was created under President John F. Kennedy when he and first lady Jacqueline Kennedy tapped architect Rachel Lambert "Bunny” Mellon to lead an overhaul.
"He wanted to start, in the greatest haste, to remake the area near his office at the west end of the White House, known as the Rose Garden, into an area both useful and attractive," Mellon later recalled. "Would I design it for him? It was a startling request to say the least."
Mellon said she envisioned source magnolia trees on four corners of a large lawn that would be flanked by a 12-feet wide border composed of small trees, roses and other flowers. The lawn would be 50 feet by 100 feet, which she said would be large enough to hold 1,000 people for ceremonies and receptions and small enough to be covered by a tent in the center of the garden.
She said on the opposite side of the steps leaving the Oval Office ‒ on the garden's east side ‒ would be a flagstone terrace. "Here the President wished to have a place where he could sit and entertain his guests or, perhaps, hold a small luncheon," Mellon recounted.
A place to honor civilians and championship teams
The Rose Garden became a go-to place for presidents to honor civilians and recognize championship-winning sports teams in both the collegiate and professional ranks.
During his first term, Trump awarded golfer Tiger Woods and others the Presidential Medal of Freedom during a 2019 ceremony at the Rose Garden.
In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson hosted a Rose Garden ceremony to give the Federal Aviation Agency's Gold Medal Award to Jerrie Mock, the first woman to fly around the world.
Richard Nixon's daughter gets married at the Rose Garden
Tricia Nixon, the daughter of President Richard Nixon, held her wedding in the Rose Garden on June 12, 1971 ‒ the first time a wedding was held at the garden.
More recently, President Joe Biden's granddaughter Naomi Biden held her wedding on the White House grounds in 2022. Biden's ceremony was held on the South Lawn of the White House, however, not the Rose Garden.
A place to host dignitaries
The Rose Garden is often a place that presidents have used to host presidents, prime ministers and other dignitaries of other countries.
In this photo, former President Gerald Ford in 1976 is seen giving Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau a book marking the 200th anniversary of the founding of the United States.
Carter meets with Anwar Sadat
President Jimmy Carter appeared with Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in the Rose Garden in April 1980 after two days of talks, shortly after a peace treaty between Israel and Egypt facilitated by Carter went into effect.
Ronald Reagan's slap shots
Ronald Reagan twice during his presidency picked up a hockey stick and hit a puck on a special surface placed on the Rose Garden lawn.
The first time came in 1983 while hosting players from the U.S. Olympics hockey team and the NHL's Washington Capitals.
"And for the press that keeps asking questions in photo opportunities," Reagan joked as he slapped a puck toward reporters.
Reagan took another swing during a similar event four years later in 1987.
Bush meets with Yeltsin after fall of Soviet Union
Presidents have often turned to the Rose Garden to hold outdoor press conferences, particularly after holding bilateral meetings with other world leaders.
President George H. W. Bush in 1992 hosted Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the Rose Garden, where they announced an agreement to reduce stockpiles of long-range missile warheads less than a year after the fall of the Soviet Union.
Clinton hosts signing ceremony for Israel-Jordan accord
In 1994, President Bill Clinton hosted King Hussein of Jordan and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in the Rose Garden as the two nations signed a peace treaty that ended decades of conflict.
"Today we gather to bear witness to history," Clinton said in his remarks. "As this century draws to a close, a new era of peace opens before us in ancient lands as brave men choose reconciliation over conflict. Today our faith is renewed."
Clinton addresses nation after impeachment acquittal
Clinton in December 1998 used the Rose Garden to tell the American people he was "profoundly sorry" for his actions in the Monica Lewinsky affair as the House of Representatives prepared to impeach him over the scandal.
A few months later, Clinton returned to the Rose Garden on Feb. 12, 1999 to address the nation after the Senate voted to acquit him on all impeachment charges.
"Now that the Senate has fulfilled its constitutional responsibility, bringing this process to a conclusion, I want to say again to the American people how profoundly sorry I am," Clinton said.
George W. Bush signs surveillance law amid 'War on Terror'
During a Rose Garden ceremony in 2008, President George W. Bush signed controversial legislation revising the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act to allow the government eavesdrop on Americans' phone calls without obtaining a warrant.
It was one of several actions Bush took in the years after the 9/11 terroist attacks to empower U.S. intelligence agencies.
"One of the important lessons learned after 9/11 was that America's intelligence professionals lacked some of the tools they needed to monitor the communications of terrorists abroad," Bush said at the event.
Presidential dogs at the Rose Garden
The Rose Garden's lawn has long been a popular place for presidents to take their dogs outside for some fresh air.
Dogs who frolicked on the green space included George W. Bush's Barney, Barack Obam's Beau and most recently, Joe Biden's Commander.
Barack Obama hosts 'beer summit'
Six month after his 2009 inauguration, Obama hosted what became known as the "beer summit" in the Rose Garden.
The unusual gathering was organized by Obama to cool tensions after Cambridge, Massachusetts Police Sgt. James Crowley arrested prominent Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates, who is Black, at his home in response to a 911 call about a reported break-in.
Law enforcement groups had objected to Obama saying the Cambridge police had acted "stupidly." The three men drank Bud Light beers while then-Vice President Biden had a non-alcoholic beer.
Rose Garden turkey pardons
The Rose Garden is typically where presidents playfully issue pardons to turkeys ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.
In 2017, Trump pardoned one turkey by the name of Drumstick.
"I'm pleased to report that unlike millions of other turkeys at this time of the year, Drumstick has a very, very bright future ahead of him," Trump said.
Trump hosts COVID era press conferences
Amid the COVID pandemic in 2020, Trump held press conferences outdoors in the Rose Garden to reduce the spread of the virus.
Reporters sat in seats spread out across the lawn during the often-lengthy affairs. Many in the press asked questions while wearing face masks.
Melania Trump pushes Rose Garden changes
First lady Melania Trump led several changes to the Rose Garden during Trump's first term in office.
The moves included relocating 10 crabapple trees to another portion of the garden, removing the garden's sitting area, adding a limestone walking path alongside the central lawn and installing an inner border next to the boxwood shrubs and flowers.
Joe Biden addresses nation after Trump's election win
Two days after Trump's 2024 election victory assured his return to the White House, Biden committed to a peaceful transfer of power during a speech in the Rose Garden.
Biden had warned that a second Trump presidency threatened American democracy. Four years after defeating Trump in the 2020 election, Biden was forced to pass the torch to him after the former president completed a comeback by defeating Vice-President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee.
"Setbacks are unavoidable, but giving up is unforgivable," Biden said in his remarks.