When Historic Preservation Alum Jon Pliska (MHP ’07) first embarked on a survey of the White House Grounds, it was expected to be a six-month assignment. For about three years, Jon had been working with the National Park Service’s (NPS) Historic American Landscape Survey—or HALS—as a contracted “landscape historian,” a cottage industry born from his bachelor’s degrees in history and biology, and raised during his time in graduate school at UMD. “There is a definitive path of study for architectural historians, yet there is really no equivalent for those interested in the actual land,” explains Jon. “Beneath every historic building is a piece of ground worth studying.” With the help and support of HISP program director Don Linebaugh, Jon honed this unique skill set through NPS internships, earning him both an excellent reputation and post-graduate employment throughout the Washington, D.C. region. And while the White House Grounds survey initially appeared straightforward, the intricate history of “the people’s garden” morphed the project into a massive, multi-year endeavor, nearly 600 pages of material, and enough interest for a book.
A Garden for the President is available now through the White House Historical Association (WHHA), and paints a compelling picture of America’s most famous front (and back) lawn. Through storytelling, recovered letters, photographs and more, Jon takes the reader on a historical tour of the White House Grounds and all that inhabited them over the centuries, from a massive conservatory (Buchanan) to a “Tennis Cabinet” (Theodore Roosevelt) and, in later years, a scandal-fraught putting green (more on that below). Here are just a few of the discoveries Jon uncovered for the book:
The Grounds’ Forgotten History: The project required a significant amount of digging and detective work, primarily because of the dearth of information documented through the centuries. “I was surprised how much of it was just suspect oral history or what is considered White House lore,” said Jon. “Things were poorly documented back then, it just wasn’t done—and it never occurred to anyone that this information might have some value in the future.”
First Farmer: John Quincy Adams commissioned a one-acre farm on the White House South Lawn in the 1820s, which he tended himself; Adams loved gardening but didn’t have the time to indulge in the practice until he became president. It is estimated that the farm, which produced a variety of fruits and vegetables, provided the lion’s share of food for the White House table for some 50 years during its operation. “You can still buy some of the same heirloom 19th-century seeds that would have been served at Abraham Lincoln’s table.”
The People’s Garden: The White House Grounds were open to public use until the end of the 19th century. This was in part because the White House was intended as “the people’s house,” but also because, at the time, there were very few parks in Washington. “Washington, D.C. was carved out of farm and marshland,” explains Jon. “During the 1800s, The National Mall housed slave auctions and a slaughterhouse. Unlike today, there were very few places for people to go for recreation and leisure.”
War Time: The White House was a symbol of strength for many during the wars fought throughout American history. During the Civil War, a regiment was assigned to camp on the White House Grounds whenever the Lincolns where there, an early form of secret service. There was a strong mutual affection between the young men and the Lincoln family; Mrs. Lincoln provided turkey dinners during holidays and the president arranged for them to vote during the 1864 election. Tad Lincoln often played with the soldiers, earning the fictitious title of “third lieutenant.” During the 1940s, FDR erected a model victory garden on the South Lawn to show Americans how they could grow food at home, which would allow commercial food products to be diverted to the war effort.
Operation Squirrel: The White House’s first putting green was installed in the 1950s during the Eisenhower administration, donated by the PGA. An avid golfer, Eisenhower’s staff had the NPS move the hole every two weeks. Before long, however, word that the NPS was trapping and releasing squirrels from the grounds to combat an overpopulation problem was picked up by the press, thanks to an overzealous senator from Oregon. Dubbed, “Operation Squirrel” by the media, the firestorm that ensued resulted in scores of letters to the White House (mostly from young children), a short-lived campaign to “save the squirrels” and a squirrel baby boom; by the 1980s, Lafayette Park had the highest concentration of squirrels ever recorded anywhere.
To learn more about A Garden for the President or to purchase a copy, visit the White House Historical Association’s online store. Jon will also be signing copies of the book at three public events: The National Press Club’s 39th Annual Book Fair & Author’s Night on November 18th ($10 admission fee), the University Club of Washington, D.C.’s 27th Annual Meet the Author Night and Book Fair on November 30th (free),and at the WHHA’s 2nd Annual White House Holiday Shopping Event on December 14 and 15 (free).