<P> In the fall of 1882 work was done on the main corridor, including tinting the walls pale olive and adding squares of gold leaf, and decorating the ceiling in gold and silver, and colorful traceries woven to spell "USA". The Red Room was painted a dull Pomeranian red, and its ceiling was decorated with gold, silver, and copper stars and stripes of red, white, and blue . A fifty - foot jeweled Tiffany glass screen, supported by imitation marble columns, replaced the glass doors that separated the main corridor from the north vestibule . </P> <P> In 1891, First Lady Caroline Harrison proposed major extensions to the White House, including a National Wing on the east for a historical art gallery, and a wing on the west for official functions . A plan was devised by Colonel Theodore A. Bingham, which reflected the Harrison proposal . These plans were ultimately rejected . </P> <P> However, in 1902 Theodore Roosevelt hired McKim, Mead & White to carry out expansions and renovations in a neoclassical style suited to the building's architecture, removing the Tiffany screen and all Victorian additions . Charles McKim himself designed and managed the project, which gave more living space to the President's large family by removing a staircase in the West Hall and moving executive office staff from the second floor of the residence into the new West Wing . </P> <P> President William Howard Taft enlisted the help of architect Nathan C. Wyeth to add additional space to the West Wing, which included the addition of the Oval Office . In 1925, Congress enacted legislation allowing the White House to accept gifts of furniture and art for the first time . The West Wing was damaged by fire in 1929, but rebuilt during the remaining years of the Herbert Hoover presidency . In the 1930s, a second story was added, as well as a larger basement for White House staff, and President Franklin Roosevelt had the Oval Office moved to its present location: adjacent to the Rose Garden . </P>

Why are there so many rooms in the white house