Indian Treaty Room, Reception room in Eisenhower Executive Office Building, Washington D.C., United States
The Indian Treaty Room is a reception hall in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building featuring walls of Italian and French marble, English Minton tile flooring, and ornate cast iron railings. Nautical details decorate the interior, and the space functions today as an official meeting venue for White House staff.
Completed in 1879, the room was originally designed by Richard von Ezdorf as the Navy Department's library and reception hall. Its importance grew after President Eisenhower held the first televised presidential press conference here in 1955, revolutionizing how Americans experienced politics.
The room takes its name from treaties signed here between the U.S. government and Native American nations. Today, visitors can sense the weight of these diplomatic negotiations in the formal setting and grand finishes.
The room is accessible only through guided tours of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, which require advance reservations. Visitors should expect limited access and variable scheduling due to its ongoing use for official government business.
The room contains the only surviving original light fixtures in the entire Eisenhower Executive Office Building. A compass design embedded in the floor gives the space a subtle nautical direction that most visitors overlook.
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