Blair House Division

Blair House: The President's Guest House

1651 Pennsylvania Avenue may not be a well-known address, but the structure on that site is known throughout the world as Blair House, the President’s Guest House, managed by the Office of the Chief of Protocol. The Blair House of today consists of four interconnected townhouses, forming a 120-room complex totaling 70,000 square feet. The original Blair House, from which the entire complex takes its name, appears on Pennsylvania Avenue as a yellow masonry structure in the late federal style. Blair House has long been associated with important events in America history, and in recent times, world history. An invitation to visit the United States and stay at Blair House is an extraordinary honor for a foreign head of state. Blair House was built around 1824 by Dr. Joseph Lovell, the eighth Surgeon General of the United States, on land purchased from Commodore Stephen Decatur. In 1836, Francis Preston Blair, who ran the Globe newspaper and was one of Andrew Jackson’s closest confidants, purchased the house for $6,500. Following Blair’s retirement to Maryland in 1846, the house was occupied by his descendants and other notable people for the next 100 years. During World War II, Blair House was purchased by the federal government and officially became the President’s guest house for heads of state visiting the White House. The house underwent a major renovation in the 1980s and remains a magnificent home for monarchs, presidents, and prime ministers while in Washington. The staff at Blair House attend to these guests’ needs and wants, offering service and hospitality as luxurious as a five-star hotel. Blair House employs a team of chefs who offer the best of American cuisine, featuring locally sourced food and the best American wines. The staff keep Blair House in a constant state of readiness and strive to make Blair House a comfortable home for all guests. For more information about the Blair House, please visit the Blair House Restoration Fund page at www.blairhouse.org.