The Presidential Townhouse is a U.S. government-owned building located at 716

Jackson Place Jackson Place is a Washington, D.C. street located across from the White House and forming the western border of Lafayette Square between Pennsylvania Avenue and H Street, NW, beginning just south of Connecticut Avenue. History The block is s ...

NW in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, reserved for the exclusive use of former

presidents of the United States The president of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States, indirectly elected to a four-year term via the Electoral College. The officeholder leads the executive branch of the federal government and ...

during visits to the capital. Located across Pennsylvania Avenue from the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

, it adjoins several other government-owned townhouses used for official purposes, including

Blair House Blair House, also known as The President's Guest House, is an official residence in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. The President's Guest House has been called "the world's most exclusive hotel" because it is primarily used ...

, often used by visiting

heads of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and ...

. Purchased by the government in the late 1950s and used for various purposes, the Presidential Townhouse was established in 1969 by order of President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

. The furnishings were very sparse until it was refurbished using private funds during the administration of President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

(2001–2009). The five-story building includes two dining rooms, several bedrooms, and space for a

Secret Service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. For ...

detail in the basement. Ongoing maintenance of the townhouse is funded by the Former Presidents Act, which provides for office support and Secret Service protection of former presidents. The townhouse was constructed in the late 1860s. It was once the home of Supreme Court justice

Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. (March 8, 1841 – March 6, 1935) was an American jurist and legal scholar who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1902 to 1932.Holmes was Acting Chief Justice of the Un ...

In 2021, the

Office of the National Cyber Director The Office of the National Cyber Director is an agency in the United States Government statutorily responsible for advising the President of the United States on matters related to cybersecurity. It was established in 2021. History The position of ...

began using the house.

References

{{Richard Nixon Buildings of the United States government in Washington, D.C. Presidency of the United States Official residences in the United States Presidential residences in the United States Federal architecture in Washington, D.C.

See also

References