White House

Both the official residence and offices of the President of the United States are in the White House, at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001. The current building is a replacement for the first Presidential residence, burned by the British in the War of 1812.

The White House proper has a West Wing and an East Wing; the Oval Office, or official office of the President, is in the West Wing. One of the mysteries of the District of Columbia, along with there being no "J Street" in the alphabetical grid in downtown Washington, is that there is no direct access between the White House and West Wing. Even the President must step into the open air to go between the buildings.

Immediately to the east is the United States Department of the Treasury building, which is joined by an underground tunnel, intended for shelter and emergency exit, in the Second World War. Immediately to the West is the Executive Office Building (EOB), officially called the Old Executive Office Building. The EOB was long called the State-War-Navy Building, and, in the 19th century, contained most offices of the national security establishment. The New Executive Office Building is a nondescript modern high-rise building a block north on 17th Street.

Directly across Pennsylvania Avenue, or more properly across a pedestrian area blocked off after the Alfred Murragh Building bombing in Oklahoma City, is Lafayette Park. Next to Lafayette Park and directly across from the EOB is Blair House, the official guest house of the United States. During the Truman Administration, President Truman occupied Blair House while the White House was undergoing renovation; there was an assassination attempt by Puerto Rican nationalists who attempted to shoot their way into Blair House, killing one White House policeman. Only one Secret Service agent was between the surviving attacker at the President.