State, War, and Navy Building
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark
Eisenhower Executive Office Building in 1981
Location	1650 17th Street, NW,Washington, D.C., 20006, United States[1]
Coordinates	38°53′51.24″N77°2′20.93″W / 38.8975667°N 77.0391472°W /38.8975667; -77.0391472
Built	1871–1888; 138 years ago (1888)
Architect	Alfred B. Mullett
Architectural style	French Second Empire
NRHP reference No.	69000293
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	June 4, 1969; 56 years ago (June 4, 1969)[2]
Designated NHL	November 11, 1971; 54 years ago (November 11, 1971)[3]

TheEisenhower Executive Office Building (EEOB), formerly known as theOld Executive Office Building (OEOB), and originally known as theState, War, and Navy Building (SWAN Building), is aUnited States government building that is now part of theWhite House compound in the U.S. capital ofWashington, D.C. The building houses various agencies that comprise theExecutive Office of the President, such as theWhite House Office, theOffice of the Vice President, theOffice of Management and Budget, and theNational Security Council.^[4] Opened in 1888, the building was renamed in 1999 in honor ofDwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th U.S. president and afive-starU.S. Army general who wasAllied forces commander duringWorld War II.

The building is located on 17th Street NW, betweenPennsylvania Avenue and State Place and West Executive Drive. It was commissioned by PresidentUlysses S. Grant, and built between 1871 and 1888on the site of the original 1800 War/State/Navy Building^[5] and the White House stables, in the FrenchSecond Empire style.

As its original name suggests, it was initially built to house the staff of three governmentcabinet departments. The building's elaborate architectural style received substantial criticism when it was first completed; it has since been designated as aNational Historic Landmark.

This sectionmay beconfusing or unclear to readers. Please helpclarify the section. There might be a discussion about this onthe talk page.(June 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The first executive offices were constructed between 1799 and 1820 on the former site of theWashington Jockey Club, flanking theWhite House.^[6] In 1869, following theCivil War, Congress appointed a commission to select a site and submit plan and cost estimates for a new State Department Building, with possible arrangements to house the War and Navy departments.^[6]

The building, originally called theState,War, andNavy (SWAN) Building because it housed these three departments, was built between 1871 and 1888 in the FrenchSecond Empire style.^[7]

It was designed byAlfred B. Mullett,Supervising Architect of the Department of Treasury, which had responsibility for federal buildings. Patterned after French Second Empire architecture that clashed sharply with theneoclassical style of the other Federal buildings in the city, it was generally regarded with scorn and disdain. WriterMark Twain referred to this building as "the ugliest building in America."^[8] PresidentHarry S. Truman called it "the greatest monstrosity in America."^[9] HistorianHenry Adams called it Mullett's "architectural infant asylum."^[10] Mullett later resigned. Beset by financial difficulties, litigation, and illness, in 1890 he died by suicide.^[11]

The exterior granite was cut and polished on the island ofVinalhaven, Maine, under a contract with Bodwell Granite Company.^[12] Much of the interior was designed byRichard von Ezdorf, using fireproof cast-iron structural and decorative elements. These included massive skylights above each of the major stairwells, and doorknobs with cast patterns indicating which of the original three occupying departments (State, Navy, or War) occupied a particular space. The total cost to construct the building was $10,038,482 when construction ended in 1888 ($350 million in2024), after 17 years.^{[citation needed]}

The original tenants quickly outgrew the building and finally vacated it completely in the late 1930s. Becoming known as the Old Executive Office Building, it housed staff members of theExecutive Office of the President. The building was considered inefficient and was nearly demolished in 1957. In 1969, the building was designated as aNational Historic Landmark.^[13]

In 1981, plans began to restore all the "secretary of" suites. The main office of the Secretary of the Navy was restored in 1987 and is now used as the ceremonial office of thevice president. Shortly after theSeptember 11 attacks, the 17th Street side of the building was vacated and has since been modernized. The building continues to house various agencies that compose the president'sexecutive office, such as theOffice of the Vice President, theOffice of Management and Budget, and theNational Security Council.^[14] Its most public function is that of the Vice President's Ceremonial Office, which is used chiefly for special meetings and press conferences.^[15]

Many celebrated national figures have participated in historical events that have taken place within the Old Executive Office Building. PresidentsTheodore Roosevelt,William Howard Taft,Franklin D. Roosevelt,Dwight D. Eisenhower,Lyndon B. Johnson,Gerald Ford, andGeorge H. W. Bush all had offices in this building before becoming president. It has housed 16secretaries of the Navy, 21secretaries of war, and 24secretaries of state.Sir Winston Churchill once walked its corridors andJapanese emissaries met there with Secretary of StateCordell Hull after thebombing ofPearl Harbor.

Presidents have occupied space in the EEOB as well.Herbert Hoover worked out of theSecretary of the Navy's office for a few months following a fire in theOval Office onChristmas Eve 1929. President Dwight D. Eisenhower held the first televised presidential news conference in the building'sIndian Treaty Room (Room 474) on January 19, 1955.^[16] PresidentRichard Nixon maintained a private "hideaway" office in room 180 of the EEOB during his presidency, from where he preferred to work, using theOval Office only for ceremonial occasions.^[17]

Vice PresidentLyndon B. Johnson was the first in a succession of vice presidents who have had offices in the building.^[15] The first wife of a vice president to have an office in the building wasMarilyn Quayle, wife ofDan Quayle, vice president to George H.W. Bush.^{[citation needed]}

The Old Executive Office Building was renamed the Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building when PresidentBill Clinton approved legislation changing the name on November 9, 1999. PresidentGeorge W. Bush participated in a rededication ceremony on May 7, 2002.^[18]

A small fire on December 19, 2007, damaged an office of the vice-president's staff and included the VP ceremonial office.^[19] According to media reporting, the office of the vice president's Political Director, Amy Whitelaw, was heavily damaged in the fire.^[20]

The building underwent major modernization from 2008-2014, updating all building systems while preserving historic character. The project earned a GSA Honor Award in 2014.^[21]

During thesecond Trump administration, the president showed a mock-up of the building painted white during a television interview.^[22] With a slate gray exterior, he considered the building ugly especially with its close proximity to theWhite House.^[14]

• 
  The Navy Department Library, 1915
• 
  An overhead view looking northeast,c. 1920
• 
  The Eisenhower Executive Office Building north façade
• 
  Executive Office Building façade detail
• 
  Charles Evans Hughes with the EEOB in the background
• 
  A hallway with decorative elements
• 
  A skylight above a staircase
• 
  Afisheye view of the Façade, 2017
• 
  Detail of the northwest corner
• 
  Pauline Wayne,President Taft's pet cow in front of the building
• 
  The front façade on Pennsylvania Avenue, 2018
• 
  Pictured is the South Court Auditorium, which has been used for policy announcements or briefings.
• 
  The two ten-pin bowling lanes of the Truman Bowling Alley

• Architecture of Washington, D.C.
• Treasury Building (Washington, D.C.)

Wikimedia Commons has media related toEisenhower Executive Office Building.

• Old Executive Office Building, from the National Park Service
• Virtual tour on the White House Web site
• General Services Administration page on the Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building

• 1888 establishments in Washington, D.C.
• Alfred B. Mullett buildings
• Buildings of the United States government in Washington, D.C.
• Government buildings completed in 1888
• National Historic Landmarks in Washington, D.C.
• Office buildings completed in 1888
• Office buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.
• President's Park
• Second Empire architecture in Washington, D.C.
• Ulysses S. Grant
• Vice presidency of the United States

• Pages using gadget WikiMiniAtlas
• Articles using NRISref without a reference number
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use American English from January 2026
• All Wikipedia articles written in American English
• Use mdy dates from January 2025
• Coordinates on Wikidata
• Wikipedia articles needing clarification from June 2017
• All Wikipedia articles needing clarification
• All articles with unsourced statements
• Articles with unsourced statements from June 2024
• Articles with unsourced statements from February 2017
• Commons category link from Wikidata