
Cross Hall

Cross Hall, White House Hallway
Description: The Cross Hall is a prominent room located in the White House, the official residence of the President of the United States. Located on the first floor of the White House, the Cross Hall measures just under 18 by 80 feet and provides access to the elevator vestibule, Entrance Hall, East Room, Blue Room, Green Room, Red Room, and State Dining Room. The Grand Staircase is also visible from an opening directly across from the Green Room. The Cross Hall is used for receiving lines following a State Arrival Ceremony on the South Lawn, or a procession of the President and a visiting head of state and their spouses. The current architectural appearance of the Cross Hall dates to the 1952 Truman reconstruction, which replaced the golden-hued Joliet stone floors, columns and pilasters with a cool gray marble. Plaster walls divided by a dado and painted cream and gold were also changed to marble. McKim employed Roman doric columns based directly on the work of the sixteenth-century Italian architect Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola for the screen separating the cross hall and entrance hall. James Hoban's niches in the south wall were also retained, although their exterior trim was made less overt. The niches now include busts of Presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, although in the past Hoban had urn-shaped cast-iron stoves placed in them. Visitors to the White House should be sure to check out the Cross Hall on their tour as it is an interesting, historical room that provides insight into the history of the White House.
Location: Washington, D.C.
Source: Wikimedia