. Bulletin - United States National Museum. Science. in all phases of the cultural arts. His merits had been recognized almost as soon as he arrived in the United States and, within a few years, he had established him- self not only in his governmental work on the state level, but in the many important private enterprises with which he was connected. When Latrobe was appointed Surveyor of Public Buildings the White House was in much the same condition as it was in 1800 when Abigail Adams com- plained so feelingly that "there was not one apart- ment" in what she considered a "fin
. Bulletin - United States National Museum. Science. in all phases of the cultural arts. His merits had been recognized almost as soon as he arrived in the United States and, within a few years, he had established him- self not only in his governmental work on the state level, but in the many important private enterprises with which he was connected. When Latrobe was appointed Surveyor of Public Buildings the White House was in much the same condition as it was in 1800 when Abigail Adams com- plained so feelingly that "there was not one apart- ment" in what she considered a "finished" condition. The walls of the apartments of the eastern section were still unplastered, the grounds were rough and neglected, temporary wooden steps were at all the principal entrances, and the roof leaked badly. None of the outbuildings so necessary for storage had ever been constructed, and the house lacked most of the conveniences then looked upon as essential. During the last six years of the Jefferson adminis- tration, the President and Latrobe worked together to make the house structurally habitable, to supply the missing conveniences, and to improve the ex- terior appearance of the building. No work seems to have been done on the interior of the house during this period, probably because so much was required on the exterior that neither funds nor time were available. Thus, President James Madison and his charming wife Dolley' in 1809 moved into a house (fig. 3) which was at last beginning to present to the world a dignified outside appearance. And it was a house which had been supplied with many of the necessities for comfortable living, such as water closets and a roof which did not leak. But it was a house with an interior not yet developed to the degree promised by its architectural elegance, a condition soon to be corrected. The election of James Madison to the Presidency must have given Benjamin Latrobe great pleasure. To his brother Christian, in England,
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