Looking back at White House holiday decorations through the years
Here's a look back at some memorable White House Christmas decorations from the past several decades.
President John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy pose in front of the Christmas tree in the Blue Room of the White House in Washington on Dec. 13, 1961. The occasion was a pre-Christmas party for White House staff members and their families. (AP Photo/Henry Burroughs)
FILE - In this Dec. 13, 1961, file photo Caroline Kennedy wonders at the Christmas tree in the White House Blue Room before a party for White House employees given by her parents. First lady Jacqueline Kennedy began the tradition of a theme for White House Christmases when she chose to decorate the Blue Room tree with items evoking Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker Suite." In the background are Caroline's aunt, Jean Kennedy Smith and cousin Stephen Smith, Jr. (AP Photo/Henry Burroughs, File)
Sadly, this would be President John F. Kennedy’s final Christmas before his assassination in November 1963. For this year, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy decided to make the Christmas tree children’s themed. According to WhiteHouseHistory.org, many of the ornaments on the tree were reused from the Kennedys' previous year when the decorations were based on Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker.”
First Lady Betty Ford stands in front of the White House Christmas tree in 1974. That year, the tree was shipped from Ford’s home state of Michigan and decorated with ornaments handcrafted by children according to MLive.
First Lady Betty Ford holds ornaments to be placed on the White House Christmas tree as she stands in front of the tree in the executive mansion in Washington Monday, Dec. 15, 1975. (AP Photo)
FILE - In this Dec, 9, 1976, file photo first lady Betty Ford looks over decorations and presents under the White House Christmas Tree in Washington in the Blue Room of the presidential mansion in Washington. In 1974 Betty Ford went with a patchwork-trimmed tree, and distributed instructions so families around the country could make their own decorations. (AP Photo/Charles Tasnadi, File)
First Lady Rosalyn Carter poses near a White House Nativity scene. In addition to the nativity scene, the Carters also decorated the White House tree with borrowed Victorian dolls and antique miniature furniture from the Margaret Woodbury Strong Museum according to WhiteHouseHistory.org.
First Lady Nancy Reagan and Santa, better known as television weatherman Willard Scott, greet members of the press during a tour of the White House State floor in Washington on Monday, Dec. 13, 1982 to view the Christmas decorations. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)
First Lady Nancy Reagan stands in front of the East Room tree in 1983. That year, the tree housed in the Oval Office featured decorations made by Second Genesis, a D.C., Maryland and Virginia-based drug treatment program, alongside toys from the Margaret Woodbury Strong Museum according to WhiteHouseHistory.org. Second Genesis would contribute ornaments for many other Christmas trees during the Reagan administration.
First lady Nancy Reagan takes 5-year-old Amie Garrison of Clarksville, Ind., on a tour of White House Christmas decorations on Monday, Dec. 11, 1984 in Washington. Amie, who is in failing health and in need of a liver transplant, came to Washington with her family to put her favorite ornament on the White House Christmas tree. Woman at right is not identified. (AP Photo/Ira Schwarz)
First Lady Barbara Bush, center, gestures at the White House while showing off the Christmas decorations, Monday, Dec. 8, 1992, Washington, D.C. Mrs. Bush accused the press corps on Monday of being humorless, making up anonymous sources and falsely depicting her husband as despondent after his election defeat. After having her say she remarked, "I feel better for that." The woman on the right is unidentified. (AP Photo/Doug Mills)
First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton points to a gingerbread house during a tour of the White House Christmas decorations, Monday Dec. 6, 1993. Showcasing the "best of America," Mrs. Clinton unveiled the decorations, a cozy display of crafts, trees and "funky and down to earth" ornaments. White House head pastry chef Roland Mesnier is at left. (AP Photo/Doug Mills)
First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton displays ornaments on the White House Christmas tree in the Blue Room of the White House in Washington, Dec. 5, 1994. Mrs. Clinton gave a tour of the White House showing Christmas decoration's including the tree, an 18-and-a-half-foot Colorado Blue Spruce grown in Clinton County, Missouri. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
The Clintons’ 1997 Christmas tree, according to Getty, was a tribute to Santa’s toyshop and featured decorations from the National Needlework Association, the Council of Fashion Designers of America and artisan glassmakers.
First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, standing next to a gingerbread house replica of President Clinton’s Hope, Ark., boyhood home, speaks to reporters during a tour of White House Christmas decorations in Washington Monday, Dec. 5, 1994. Speaking about House Speaker-in-waiting Newt Gingrich’s comments on orphanages, Mrs. Clinton said she was seen the movie “Boys Town” and she still doesn’t like orphanages. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
FILE - First lady Laura Bush gives members of the media a tour of the White House holiday decorations Dec. 3, 2001, in the State Dining room of the White House. In pre-pandemic times, presidents and first ladies spent many evenings in December before Christmas hosting nearly two dozen holiday parties and receptions, sometimes two per day, where they stood in line for hours to pose for photos with ecstatic guests. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds, File)
First lady Laura Bush shows of a ginger bread White House while hosting a media preview of the 2006 holiday decorations at the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 30, 2006. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)
The 2007 White House Christmas theme was “Holiday in the National Parks.” To honor our nation’s national parks, “artists decorated 391 ornaments representing national parks, memorials, seashores, historic sites, and monuments across the country,” WhiteHouseHistory.org notes.
The theme for the Bushs’ final Christmas was “A Red, White and Blue Christmas.” Among the decor was an ornament featuring a portrait of Theodore Roosevelt, and an ornament with a painting of Santa Claus on his sleigh.
WhiteHouseHistory.org notes that the Obamas’ 2010 Blue Room tree was themed, “Gift of the American Spirit,” and was decorated with award ribbons from state and county fairs nationwide.
In 2011, First Lady Michelle Obama selected the theme “Shine, Give, Share” for the White House Christmas decorations. Nestled within the 18 ½ foot official tree were the medals of military servicemen and women alongside cards created by military children, Getty reports.
Bo, the Obama family dog, made from plastic garbage bags, is seen in the Library of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2011, as the Christmas holiday decorations, whose theme is "Shine, Give, Share" were previewed. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
A topiary of Bo, the Obama family dog, made from felt, is seen in the East Garden Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2011, as the Christmas holiday decorations, whose theme is "Shine, Give, Share" were previewed. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
FILE - White House holiday cookies, including some picturing Bo and Sunny, the Obama family dogs, are displayed outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington, Dec. 4, 2013, after first lady Michelle Obama welcomed military families to the White House to tour the 2013 decorations. In pre-pandemic times, presidents and first ladies spent many evenings in December before Christmas hosting nearly two dozen holiday parties and receptions, sometimes two per day, where they stood in line for hours to pose for photos with ecstatic guests. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)
The 300 pound gingerbread White House replica with a mini Bo and Sunny is displayed in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2013, during a press preview of the 2013 Christmas decorations, which is themed "Gather Around". (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
First lady Melania Trump walks along the East Colonnade decorated in white branches that are part of 2017 holiday decorations with the theme "Time-Honored Traditions" at the White House in Washington, Monday, Nov. 27, 2017. The First Lady honored 200 years of holiday traditions at the White House. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
First lady Melania Trump watches as ballerinas perform a piece from The Nutcracker among the 2017 holiday decorations in the Grand Foyer of the White House in Washington, Monday, Nov. 27, 2017. The First Lady honored 200 years of holiday traditions at the White House. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
FILE - In this Monday, Nov. 27, 2017 file photo, first lady Melania Trump pauses as a ballerina performs a piece from The Nutcracker behind her among the 2017 holiday decorations in the Grand Foyer of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
A photo of the 18-foot official White House Christmas tree that was decorated to reflect the Trumps' 2018 theme “American Treasures,” with tributes to all of the country’s states and territories, according to WhiteHouse.gov.
FILE - In this Nov. 26, 2018, file photo, topiary trees line the East colonnade during the 2018 Christmas preview at the White House in Washington. Melania Trump's cranberry topiary trees may have left some of her critics seeing red, but they turned out to be a hit this Christmas _ one of several new wrinkles the Trumps introduced this holiday season. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)
The 2019 White House Christmas theme was “The Spirit of America,” and this tree, housed in the Blue Room, is yet another testament to the colorful nature of the United States of America. “Blossoming with handmade paper flowers, the décor on the Blue Room tree pays homage to the distinctive floral emblem of every state and territory,” WhiteHouse.gov says. First Lady Melania Trump described the inspiration for the decor scheme, as an homage to, “those who have shaped our country and made it the place we are proud to call home.”
First lady Melania Trump looks over the 2019 White House Christmas tree as it is delivered to the White House in Washington, Monday, Nov. 25, 2019. The Douglas fir is approximately 23 feet tall and was grown by Larry and Joanne Snyder at Mahantongo Valley Farms in Pennsylvania. Since 1966, the National Christmas Tree Association has held a contest that awards its winner with the honor of presenting their tree to the first family and will serve as a centerpiece for Christmas decorations in the Blue Room of the White House. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
First lady Melania Trump stands next to the 2020 official White House Christmas tree after it arrived at the White House in Washington, Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. This year's tree is an 18.5-foot Fraser Fir, selected and cut from Dan and Bryan Trees in Shepherdstown, W.Va. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
FILE - The Red Room of the White House is decorated for the holiday season during a press preview of the White House holiday decorations, Nov. 29, 2021, in Washington. In addition to fewer people passing through the White House for the open houses, thousands of other people didn't get a close-up look at how Jill Biden decked out White House hallways and public rooms for the holidays because public tours of the executive mansion remain on indefinite hold due to COVID-19. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
FILE - The China Room of the White House is decorated for the holiday season during a press preview of the White House holiday decorations Nov. 29, 2021, in Washington. In addition to fewer people passing through the White House for the open houses, thousands of other people didn't get a close-up look at how Jill Biden decked out White House hallways and public rooms for the holidays because public tours of the executive mansion remain on indefinite hold due to COVID-19. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
FILE - A view of the South balconies of the White House in Washington Nov. 30, 2021, lit up with holiday decorations. In addition to fewer people passing through the White House for the open houses, thousands of other people didn't get a close-up look at how Jill Biden decked out White House hallways and public rooms for the holidays because public tours of the executive mansion remain on indefinite hold due to COVID-19. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
First lady Jill Biden receives the official 2021 White House Christmas Tree at the White House, Monday, Nov. 22, 2021, in Washington. This year's tree is an 18.5-foot Fraser fir presented by Rusty and Beau Estes of Peak Farms in Jefferson, N.C. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
FILE - A photo of President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden sits in a Christmas tree in the State Dining Room of the White House during a press preview of the White House holiday decorations, Nov. 29, 2021, in Washington. In pre-pandemic times, presidents and first ladies spent many evenings in December before Christmas hosting nearly two dozen holiday parties and receptions, sometimes two per day, where they stood in line for hours to pose for photos with ecstatic guests. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
The White House Christmas Tree is on display in the Blue Room of the White House during a press preview of holiday decorations at the White House, Monday, Nov. 28, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
A sugar cookie replica of Independence Hall and a gingerbread replica of the White House are on display in the State Dining Room of the White House during a press preview of holiday decorations at the White House, Monday, Nov. 28, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
The Green Room of the White House is decorated for the holiday season during a press preview of holiday decorations at the White House, Monday, Nov. 28, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
The East Wing of the White House is decorated with trees dedicated to Gold Star families for the holiday season during a press preview of holiday decorations at the White House, Monday, Nov. 28, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
The East Colonnade of the White House is decorated for the holiday season during a press preview of holiday decorations at the White House, Monday, Nov. 28, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
From the Kennedys to present day, here's a look back at some memorable White House holiday displays.
Here's a look back at National Christmas Tree lighting ceremonies going back to Herbert Hoover in 1931.