What is Blair House? Joe Biden to follow tradition and stay at president’s guest house on eve of inauguration
A State Department official has revealed that President-elect Joe Biden has accepted an offer from the White House to stay at the Blair House for the night before the inauguration. The president's guest house sits across from the White House at 1651 Pennsylvania Ave. For decades, presidents-elect have spent the night there on the eve of Inauguration Day.
The Blair House is a complex of four buildings that are primarily used to house guests of the state. However, the invitation to use the home usually comes from the sitting president. "As is customary, the White House offered use of the Blair House for Jan 19th and it was accepted," a State Department spokesperson told Fox News.
Last week, President Donald J. Trump revealed that he would not be attending Biden's inauguration -- making him the fourth president to not attend his successor's inaugural ceremony. Former presidents John Adams, John Quincy Adams, and Andrew Johnson also did not attend their successor's inauguration.
Nonetheless, Trump did acknowledge last week for the first time that "a new administration" would be inaugurated on January 20. "My focus now turns to ensuring a smooth, orderly and seamless transition," he said. "This moment now calls for healing and reconciliation."
The Blair House is the official presidential guest house and is situated just steps from the north lawn of the White House. According to Yahoo News, the building has acted as the "world's most exclusive hotel" since World War II as it hosted heads of state, royalty, and presidents-elect.
Trump hosted French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte at the guest house for three days during their first official state visit. Former President George W. Bush also stayed there with his family before his father's funeral in Washington, D.C.
That said, the guest house carries historical significance beyond serving as the meeting location for US presidents and their foreign visitors. Blair House was constructed in the 1820s as a residence for Joseph Lovell, the eighth surgeon general of the US Army, per Yahoo News.
Francis Blair, a close pal and supporter of President Andrew Jackson, purchased the home for $6,500 in 1836. The building would later be purchased by the US government in 1942, when Franklin D. Roosevelt was president. Named after Jackson's friend, the property has since served as the official presidential guesthouse for heads of state, foreign delegations, etc. who are visiting Washington, D.C.
In 1950, President Harry S. Truman survived an assassination attempt by two Puerto Rican nationalists while staying at the guesthouse. Police officers were able to stop the assassins from entering the home, killing one and wounding the other in the process. Truman was at the guesthouse for about four years during his presidency while the White House was being renovated.
As of 2021, Blair House constitutes a complex of "four seamlessly connected townhomes," with 110 rooms across approximately 70,000 square feet -- thereby making it larger than the White House. According to its website, each of Blair House's 14 guest rooms has "a full bathroom, three formal dining rooms, two large conference rooms, a hot and cold kitchen overseen by an executive chef and sous chef, a fully equipped beauty salon, an exercise room, and an in-house laundry facility."