First White House of the Confederacy - Montgomery, AL - Picture Perfect Postcards on Waymarking.com

On February 18, 1861, Jefferson Davis was sworn in as the President of the Confederate States of America. On February 21, 1861, the Provisional Congress authorized the leasing of an Executive Mansion. The house they rented had been built between 1832 and 1835 by William Sayre. It was then located at the corner of Lee and Bibb Streets. The owner at the time, Colonel Edmund S. Harrison, rented the house, completely furnished and staffed, for $5000 a year, a large sum which caused some comment at the time. During the short time it was the White House, Mr. and Mrs. Davis hosted many social events.

The house survived the war and passed through other hands. In 1897, the newly organized United Daughters of the Confederacy undertook the the preservation of the house, and a White House Association was formed in 1900. Mrs. Jefferson Davis gave furniture and other items to the association for use in furnishing the home. They were finally able to purchase the House in 1919. The previous owners wanted to keep the land, so property was bought and the house was moved to its present location at 644 Washington Avenue at the corner of Union Street. It is next door to the Alabama Department of Archives and History Building. The postcard was purchased at the Gift Shop in the Museum of Alabama in the Alabama Department of Archives and History Building. Parking at parking meters is available along Washington Avenue.

The description from the back of the postcard reads:

"The home of President Jefferson Davis and his family from February until May 1861, when Montgomery was the capital of the Confederate States of America. The First White House contains period furnishings and many of the Davis' personal belongings."

Physical Address: 644 Washington Avenue Montgomery, AL USA 36104 Related Web Site: [Web Link] Description of Postcard Location: Photo taken from the sidewalk on Washington Avenue, in front of the building. Parking Coordinates: Not Listed

Visit Instructions:
To log a Visit, please make every effort to supply an image of yourself at the site. The standard GPS photo may be used as well, or even just an image that you took when you visited the location. If you do not have the option to provide an image, please provide a detailed description of your visit so we can form a 'mental image'

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   05/07/2022 Don.Morfe visited it 06/09/2018 stevepre2 visited it 07/26/2017 Benchmark Blasterz visited it 03/22/2017 Sneakin Deacon visited it 03/22/2017 PrairieRose78 visited it 05/24/2016 WyndInHare visited it 11/23/2013 strummin_along visited it 08/28/2013 the federation visited it 07/19/2013 kristianmatthews visited it 05/04/2013 lumbricus wrote comment for it

View all visits/logs