The desk that sits in the Vice President’s Room just off the Senate Chamber in the United States Capitol has a rich and interesting history. This mahogany desk served as an important icon for Vice Presidents for more than a century. In fact, Vice President Nixon liked the desk so much that when he was elected President, he had the desk moved to the Oval Office. “The double-pedestal, mahogany desk is sometimes referred to as the ‘Wilson desk,’ an erroneous association with Vice President Henry Wilson. Every vice president from Garret Augustus Hobart to Lyndon Johnson used the desk. In 1969 it was loaned to the White House and served as the Oval Office desk for Presidents Nixon and Ford. It was returned to the Senate in 1977.” The desk also played a role in a pivotal moment in U.S. history. On this day 40 years ago, President Nixon announced his resignation over the Watergate scandal. During his first term in office, President Nixon had a secret audio recording system installed in the Oval Office, including several microphones placed in the “Wilson Desk.” The recordings in the Oval Office became part of the record that led to the President’s downfall. You can read more about the Vice President’s Room and desk here: go.usa.gov/UtMe. For information on the history of the White House tape, visit go.usa.gov/Panw.
Posted on: Fri, 08 Aug 2014 18:56:09 +0000
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