President's Park
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
President's Park inWashington, D.C., including (left to right in center):The Ellipse, theWhite House, andLafayette Square
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Location	Washington, D.C., U.S.
Coordinates	38°53′46″N77°2′12″W / 38.89611°N 77.03667°W /38.89611; -77.03667
Area	77.48 acres (313,536 m²)
Built	1791
Architect	L'Enfant, Pierre C.; Downing, A.J.
Visitation	714,224 (2022)[2]
Website	President's Park (White House)
NRHP reference No.	80000347[1]
Added to NRHP	May 6, 1980

President's Park, located in downtownWashington, D.C., encompasses theWhite House and includes theEisenhower Executive Office Building, theTreasury Building, and grounds; theWhite House Visitor Center;Lafayette Square; andthe Ellipse.^[3] President's Park was the original name of Lafayette Square.

President's Park is administered by theNational Park Service.^[4]

The park is officially referred to as President's Park orThe White House and President's Park.^[5]

In 1790, under theResidence Act,Philadelphia was designated as the nation's temporary capital while the permanent capital was constructed inWashington, D.C. Contests were held to solicit designs for both theUnited States Capitol and what was then called the President's House.James Hoban's design was selected, and he supervised the construction.

In 1800, the new national capital in Washington, D.C., was finalized and opened.

TheWhite House was later expanded with the addition of theWest Wing andEast Wing, which now houses the office of thepresident andpresidential staff. The White House grounds include theSouth Lawn,Rose Garden,Jacqueline Kennedy Garden, andNorth Lawn.

To the west of the White House, across from the West Wing is theEisenhower Executive Office Building, formerly the Department of State, War, and Navy, and to the east is theTreasury Building.

Lafayette Square is a 6.97 acre (28,191 m²) public park located directly north of the White House onH Street, bounded byJackson Place on the west,Madison Place on the east, andPennsylvania Avenue to the south. The square and the surrounding historic townhouse structures were designated aNational Historic Landmark District in 1970. Planned as part of the pleasure grounds surrounding the Executive Mansion, this square was originally called "President's Park", which is now the name of the largerNational Park Service unit.

In 1804, the park was separated from the White House grounds, when third PresidentThomas Jefferson had Pennsylvania Avenue cut through east–west. In 1824, the park was renamed in honor of theMarquis de Lafayette, theFrenchman and military officer who fought in theAmerican Revolutionary War, 1775–1783.

Lafayette Square has been used as a racetrack, a graveyard, a zoo, a slave market, an encampment for soldiers during theWar of 1812, and many political protests and celebrations.Andrew Jackson Downing landscaped Lafayette Square in 1851 in the picturesque style.

President's Park South, commonly calledThe Ellipse, is a 52 acres (21 ha) park located just south of theWhite House fence. The entire park is open to the public, and features monuments within walking distance, including theWashington Monument, theLincoln Memorial, theJefferson Memorial, and others.

The park was conceived in 1791, the first plan for the park was drawn up byPierre (Peter) Charles L'Enfant. During theCivil War between 1861 and 1865, the grounds of the Ellipse and the not yet completeWashington Monument were used as corrals for horses, mules, and cattle, and as campsites forUnion Army troops. In 1867, theArmy Corps of Engineers began landscaping work on the Ellipse, and worked on it to the late 1880s.

The White House Visitor Center is located in the north end of theHerbert C. Hoover Building, which also houses theDepartment of Commerce, located offThe Ellipse between 14th and 15th Streets onPennsylvania Avenue NW,

Since theSeptember 11 attacks, the visitor center no longer serves as a starting point for those going on a reserved tour of theWhite House. The exhibits provide an alternative visitor experience for those not able to go on a tour. The themes of the six permanent exhibits are first families, symbols and images, White House architecture, White House interiors, the working White House, and ceremonies and celebrations. Other exhibits change throughout the year.

• Moser, Edward P.The White House's Unruly Neighborhood: Crime, Scandal and Intrigue in the History of Lafayette Square (McFarland, 2020)online review.
• The National Parks: Index 2001–2003. Washington:U.S. Department of the Interior.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toPresident's Park, Washington, D.C..

• Official website
• The White House
• White House Historical Association
• "The Shape and History of The Ellipse in Washington, D.C." by Clark Kimberling

• President's Park
• Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette
• National Park Service areas in Washington, D.C.
• Parks on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.
• White House

• Pages using gadget WikiMiniAtlas
• Articles using NRISref without a reference number
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Coordinates on Wikidata
• Commons category link is on Wikidata
• Official website different in Wikidata and Wikipedia