4 September, 2025 careerofbusiness.com 0 Comments 1 category
rose garden then and now
The White House Rose Garden then and now.

Library of Congress, Erin Scott/Reuters

  • Ellen Wilson, the wife of Woodrow Wilson, established the Rose Garden in 1913.
  • It was redesigned under the Kennedy administration and has hosted many historic events.
  • Donald Trump paved over the grass in the Rose Garden, turning it into a patio space.

Before the White House had a Rose Garden, the land was used for horse stables.

Under the tutelage of first ladies throughout history, the garden was built and transformed into a colorful landscape with a well-manicured event space.

In one of many decor changes President Donald Trump has made during his second non-consecutive term, the White House unveiled a redesigned Rose Garden in August featuring a patio space made of stone tiles.

Here’s how the Rose Garden has changed over the years.

Before the Rose Garden, Edith Roosevelt established the Colonial Garden in 1902.
Edith Roosevelt's Colonial Garden.
Edith Roosevelt’s Colonial Garden.

Library of Congress

The garden featured Johnny jump-ups, daisies, and wildflowers that the first lady gathered herself, according to the White House Historical Association. The flowers were surrounded by boxwood.

Ellen Wilson replaced the Colonial Garden with the White House Rose Garden in 1913.
The White House Rose Garden in 1913.
The Rose Garden as planted in 1913 according to First Lady Ellen Wilson’s modifications of plans by George Burnap.

Library of Congress

Before the space was used for events and press conferences, it was designed as a formal flower garden.

The Rose Garden was designed by George E. Burnap and Beatrix Farrand.
The White House Rose Garden in 1914.
Photo shows the rose garden designed by George E. Burnap, planted 1914, on the south side of the White House, on the site of the former West Colonial garden

Harris & Ewing/Library of Congress

Instead of round, winding paths through flowers, the garden was organized in rows with a lawn in the center.

In 1961, designer Rachel Lambert Mellon reimagined the garden.
John F. Kennedy pictured with tulips in the White House Rose Garden in 1963.
1963 Spring in His Steps. Washington, D.C.: The camera angle almost makes it look as if President John F. Kennedy is walking on a bed of Tulips (in lieu of the proverbial roses) as he returns to his White House office in Washington May 1st after a meeting with Army leaders. With tulips in bloom and shrubs in leaf, there’s an air of Spring about the White House Rose Garden.

Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images

Mellon wrote that President John F. Kennedy became interested in revamping the Rose Garden after returning from a trip to Europe.

“The President had noted that the White House had no garden equal in quality or attractiveness to the gardens that he had seen and in which he had been entertained in Europe,” she wrote for the White House Historical Association. “There he had recognized the importance of gardens surrounding an official residence and their appeal to the sensibilities of all people.”

Mellon added Katherine crab apple trees, perennials, annuals, green pillow, and of course, roses.
The White House Rose Garden in bloom in 1963.
Flowers are in full bloom in the White House Rose Garden, Washington, DC, on April 27, 1963.

Bettmann via Getty Images

Mellon also handpicked four magnolia trees for the corners of the garden, inspired by the front of the Frick in New York City.

More flowers were added to the Rose Garden for the wedding of President Richard Nixon’s daughter Tricia and Edward Finch Cox in 1971.
tricia nixon wedding white house rose garden
(Original Caption) Washington, DC.: After taking their vows, Edward Finch Cox and Tricia Nixon Cox walk through rows of flowers past their guests en route to the White House for the reception, following their wedding in the White House rose garden. The bride is the daughter of president Richard Nixon.

Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images

Though Tricia was the eighth daughter of a president to hold a wedding at the White House, hers was the first outdoor wedding ceremony.

The wedding was attended by 400 guests.
Tricia Nixon and Edward Cox's White House wedding.
380450 49: The wedding ceremony of Tricia Nixon and Edward Cox June 12, 1971 at the White House.

National Archive/Newsmakers/Getty Images

The reception was then held in the East Room.

In 1983, President Ronald Reagan playfully fed some squirrels burrowed in the garden’s potted plants.
Ronald Reagan in the Rose Garden
(Original Caption) 11/16/1983- Washington, DC- President Ronald Reagan feeds some White House squirrels (not shown) with acorns collected for Camp David. The photo was taken outside the Oval Office adjacent to the Rose Garden.

Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images

The Oval Office is adjacent to the Rose Garden, making it easy for presidents to step outside for some fresh air.

Over the years, many historic events occurred in the Rose Garden.
Bill Clinton with Ruth Bader Ginsburg in the Rose Garden.
Bill Clinton names Ruth Bader Ginsburg, of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, to be Associate Justice of the Supreme Court in the Rose Garden of the White House, Washington DC, June 14, 1993. She was confirmed, on August 3, 1993, to the position vacated by retiring Associate Justice Byron White.

Ron Sachs/CNP/Getty Images

President Bill Clinton named Ruth Bader Ginsburg to the Supreme Court in the Rose Garden in 1993.

The garden also once featured a small seating area where presidents occasionally held meetings or ate lunch.
Barack Obama and Joe Biden meet in the White House Rose Garden.
President Barack Obama, (R) and Vice President Joseph Biden, (L) meet with Sergeant James Crowley, (2nd R) and Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., (2nd L) in the Rose Garden outside the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C. on July 30, 2009. (Photo by

ImageCatcher News Service/Corbis via Getty Images

President Barack Obama and then-Vice President Joe Biden met with James Crowley and Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. in the Rose Garden in 2009.

In 2020, Melania Trump unveiled the new Rose Garden design.
white house rose garden melania trump
Melania Trump’s White House Rose Garden redesign in 2020.

Erin Scott/Reuters

Updates included improved technology for hosting events and new limestone walkways bordering the lawn.

The magnolias remained, but she also added roses in white and pastel shades.
Melania Trump's White House Rose Garden in 2020.
A general view of the renewed White House Rose Garden, from where first lady Melania Trump will address the Republican National Convention on August 25, during a media preview hosted by her office in Washington, D.C., U.S. August 22, 2020.

Erin Scott/Reuters

Around 12 crab apple trees from the Kennedy administration were removed and replanted elsewhere on the grounds. The small seating area was also removed and replaced with an art installation.

In August, President Donald Trump unveiled a redesigned Rose Garden featuring a stone patio and tables.
Donald Trump's new White House Rose Garden.
View of the newly-paved Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, DC, on August 9, 2025. US President Donald Trump converted the grass portion of the Rose Garden into a patio space, inspired by his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP

Trump told Fox News host Laura Ingraham in March that he planned to renovate the Rose Garden because the grass lawn “just doesn’t work” for large events.

Appearing to take inspiration from the outdoor terrace at his Mar-a-Lago club, the president had the grass paved over with stone tiles and added table seating shaded by yellow and white striped umbrellas.

In a statement to The Hill on Wednesday, White House spokesperson Davis Ingle referred to the space as “The Rose Garden Club” and called it “the hottest place to be in Washington, or perhaps the world.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

The new tiles include nods to the office of the president.
The presidential seal and American flags on tiles in the Rose Garden.
WASHINGTON, DC – AUGUST 19: A view of a Presidential seal on the paved Rose Garden at the White House on August 19, 2025 in Washington, DC. Reporters were brought out to see the newly renovated Rose Garden and hear the new sound system.

Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images

Designs on the tiles included the presidential seal in gold, a favorite of Trump’s, and American flag-inspired stars and stripes.

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Category: Business

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