The Hidden White House: Harry Truman and the Reconstruction of America’s Most Famous Residence

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(as of Aug 21, 2025 16:40:07 UTC – Details)


The little-known story of the White House’s gutting and renovation during the Truman presidency: “Delightful and informative . . . plenty of entertaining drama.” —Publishers Weekly
In 1948, President Harry Truman, enjoying a bath on the White House’s second floor, almost plunged through the ceiling of the Blue Room into a tea party for the Daughters of the American Revolution. A handpicked team of the country’s top architects conducted a secret inspection of the troubled mansion and, after discovering it was in imminent danger of collapse, insisted that the First Family be evicted immediately. What followed would be the most historically significant and politically complex home-improvement job in American history. While the Trumans camped across the street at Blair House, Congress debated whether to bulldoze the White House completely, and the Soviets exploded their first atomic bomb, starting the Cold War.
Robert Klara reveals what has, until now, been little understood about this episode: America’s most famous historic home was basically demolished, giving birth to today’s White House. Leaving only the mansion’s facade untouched, workmen gutted everything within, replacing it with a steel frame and a complex labyrinth deep below ground that soon came to include a top-secret nuclear fallout shelter.
The story of Truman’s rebuilding of the White House is a snapshot of postwar America and its first Cold War leader, undertaking a job that changed the centerpiece of the country’s national heritage. The job was by no means perfect, but it was remarkable—and, until now, all but forgotten.
Includes photographs
“Captivating . . . From bathtubs to bomb shelters, Klara leaves no piece of crumbling sandstone unturned and is as astute a storyteller as he is a dogged researcher.” —Denise Kiernan, New York Times–bestselling author of The Last Castle
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00CQY9E5K
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Thomas Dunne Books
Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 26, 2024
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 8.5 MB
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 382 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1250022936
Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Best Sellers Rank: #141,210 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store) #8 in Architecture History & Periods #44 in History of Mid-Atlantic U.S. #104 in Biographies of US Presidents
Customer Reviews: 4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 622 ratings var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });