First Lady Unveils Revamped White House Public Tour
WASHINGTON — First Lady Dr. Jill Biden on Monday unveiled the first significant changes to the White House public tour in decades, including better room access, an expanded route and new digital exhibits.
Among the highlights of the new, “reimagined” tour is the inclusion, for the first time, of the Diplomatic Reception Room that presidents traditionally use to welcome foreign dignitaries.
“Have any of you ever walked through a museum and wanted to touch one of the displays?” the first lady said during a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden on Monday.
“Come on, be honest. Okay, have you ever heard a recording from years ago, and suddenly it feels like you’re in that room, like the present and the past are coming together? Have you ever seen a picture of someone famous and it’s helped you to understand that person a little bit better?” Biden asked.
“Well, that’s what I had in mind when creating this updated White House tour, and today with you, we are unveiling a reimagined White House Tour experience,” she said.
Joining the first lady for the unveiling were Alysha Butler, the 2019 American History Teacher of the Year, Stewart McLaurin, president of the White House Historical Association, Kim Gilmore, chief historian at The History Channel.A&E Networks, and Charles Sams, director of the National Park Service.
In addition to the Diplomatic Reception Room’s inclusion, the White House visitor’s tour has been expanded so that guests can actually step into previously roped-off rooms like the library and the China room to see them better.
And, in a 21st Century twist for a building that was first lived in by President John Adams, each of the rooms will have digital exhibits adding context to what the visitors are experiencing.
In another change, a video message from the first lady will now greet guests at the start of the tour, while the president will address visitors via a video message in the East Room.
Right now, of course, those messages are being delivered by the Bidens. They’ll be swapped out in late January to feature the new president and presidential spouse.
The History Channel donated the funds, through the National Park Service, to pay for new exhibits. According to the White House, the cost of the new additions was about $5 million.
Reflecting on her 40 years as a teacher, the first lady said the new tour design is an acknowledgement “that we all learn in different ways.”
“Some of us learn something through hearing, some of us learn something through feeling something. So we’ve added dynamic, flexible and tactile tools of learning that let you follow your curiosity. Now you can do all the things that you always wanted to do in the museums,” she said.
“As you walk through this house, I hope you’ll feel the history here,” Biden said later. “It’s your history, and it lives in each of you, connecting you to those who have walked before you and to each other.”
The revamped public tour was two years in the making, the White House said.
The History Channel’s contributions to the project were made in partnership with ESI Design, which is known for its educational improvements to the Liberty Island and Ellis Island museums, facilities which, like the White House, are also cared for by the National Park Service.
The History Channel has previously produced short films for historic sites across the country including the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, the Statue of Liberty, the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center, among other historic attractions.
Of course, this isn’t the first time the first lady introduced a new way to see the White House. It was exactly a year ago that she introduced a new virtual tour of the White House, utilizing Google Street View technology.
Last year’s revamp of the virtual tour featured a Spanish translation narrated by White House social secretary Carlos Elizondo, as well as audio captions.
“Not everyone can make the trip to Washington, D.C., to tour the White House, so [the first lady] is bringing the White House to them,” said Elizabeth Alexander, the first lady’s communications director, in a statement last year..
More than 10,000 visitors take the 30-45 minute public tour of the White House each week.
Dan can be reached at [email protected] and at https://twitter.com/DanMcCue
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