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White House Rose Garden facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

The White House Rose Garden is a beautiful garden located right next to the White House in Washington, D.C., United States. It's a very famous spot where the President of the United States often gives important speeches and holds special events. It's a place where history happens!

White House Rose Garden
The Rose Garden before its updates in August 2020. You can see the West Colonnade, designed by Benjamin Henry Latrobe and Thomas Jefferson, behind it.
Rosengarten des Weißen Hauses
Looking west towards the Oval Office from the Rose Garden, before the 2020 renovations.

What is the Rose Garden?

The Rose Garden is a special outdoor area on the west side of the White House. It's known for its lovely flowers, especially roses, which give the garden its name. It's not just a pretty place; it's also a very important space for the President and the First Family.

A Place for Important Events

The President uses the Rose Garden for many different activities. It's a popular spot for:

  • Announcements: The President often stands here to tell the country about new laws or important decisions.
  • Press Conferences: Reporters gather here to ask the President questions.
  • Ceremonies: Awards are given out, and special guests are welcomed.
  • Welcoming Leaders: When leaders from other countries visit, they are sometimes greeted in the Rose Garden.
  • Special Events: Sometimes, the First Lady hosts events for children or other groups in the garden.

The Rose Garden is designed to be a perfect outdoor stage. It has a flat lawn area where people can stand, and a raised platform for the President to speak from. The beautiful flowers and trees make it a lovely background for photos and TV broadcasts.

History of the Rose Garden

The area where the Rose Garden now sits has been part of the White House grounds for a very long time. However, it wasn't always a rose garden.

  • Early Days: In the early 1900s, President Theodore Roosevelt had a colonial garden in this spot.
  • First Rose Garden: The idea of a dedicated "Rose Garden" really took shape during President Woodrow Wilson's time, around 1913. His wife, First Lady Ellen Axson Wilson, helped create a more formal garden with roses.
  • Major Redesign: The garden as we mostly know it today was designed in 1962 by President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy. They worked with a landscape architect named Rachel Lambert Mellon. They wanted a garden that could be used for official events, not just for beauty. They added more roses, crabapple trees, and other plants.
  • Recent Updates: In August 2020, the Rose Garden was updated again. These changes aimed to improve the drainage, make it more accessible, and refresh the plants while keeping its historic look.

The Rose Garden is a living part of the White House, changing and growing, just like the country it serves. It's a place where important moments in American history continue to unfold.

Images for kids

  • White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C. Southwest rose garden LCCN2008675799

    1921 image of the Southwest rose garden that replaced the former west colonial garden.

  • -USAxAUS (48775179668)

    The Rose Garden arranged for a state dinner at night in 2019.

  • White House- West garden LOC hec.14660

    The west colonial garden during the Theodore Roosevelt era, around 1908.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Rosaleda de la Casa Blanca para niños

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