When you're cooking for the president and first family, your meals and recipes become a part of history. In this episode, White House Historical Association President Stewart McLaurin interviews Matthew Wendel about his book, "Recipes From the President's Ranch: Food People Like to Eat," a first-hand account of his time serving as personal chef for President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush and their family and world leaders at Camp David and their Texas home, Prairie Chapel Ranch.

This year marks the centennial of the 19th Amendment, the culmination of the suffragists' fight to secure the right to vote for women. In this episode, White House Historical Association President Stewart McLaurin talks to authors and historians Rebecca Roberts, Elaine Weiss and Colleen Shogan about the longest social movement in American history, and the story of how suffragists lobbied presidents and became the first protesters to picket at the gates of the White House.

Every year, the White House Fellows program gives young, talented Americans the opportunity to work in the White House alongside White House staff, cabinet members and senior officials. In this episode, White House Historical Association President Stewart McLaurin speaks with Elizabeth Pinkerton, Director of the President's Commission on White House Fellows, Stephanie Ferguson, President of the White House Fellows Alumni Association, and Andy Ku, a recent White House Fellow, about their experience with the program and how its members shape the history of the White House and our country.

In this special episode of The 1600 Sessions, financier and philanthropist David Rubenstein interviews White House Historical Association President Stewart McLaurin to discuss the work of the Association during the recent period of the COVID-19 pandemic and protests in Lafayette Square, and how the history of "The People's House" provides context to the challenges of the present day.

George Washington might not have become the Founding Father we know today if not for the influence of his mother. For Mother's Day, Association President Stewart McLaurin interviews Craig Shirley, author of "Mary Ball Washington: The Untold Story of Washington's Mother," about how our first president's life and personality was shaped by the unique character of his mother.

Throughout our history, presidents have faced crises that have gripped both the nation and the world. In this episode, Association President Stewart McLaurin speaks to Paul Sparrow, Director of the FDR Library and Museum, and Mark Updegrove, President & CEO of the LBJ Foundation, about the unique challenges these two presidents faced, and the leadership skills that helped them navigate these challenges.

The White House is a symbol of freedom and democracy, but from its very conception it had a paradoxical relationship with the institution of slavery. In this episode, Association President Stewart McLaurin speaks to Association historians Matthew Costello, Lindsay Chervinsky, and Lina Mann about their groundbreaking work researching and telling the stories of the enslaved individuals that built, worked at, and lived in or near the White House.

To Learn more about our Slavery in the President's Neighborhood initiative, visit our landing page.

The institution of slavery and the stories of enslaved people have always been a part of the fabric of White House history. In this episode, White House Historical Association President Stewart McLaurin introduces a conversation between financier and philanthropist David Rubenstein and the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, Dr. Lonnie G. Bunch III, about the history and legacy of slavery in the nation's capital, held at St. John's Church on February 5, 2020.

After President John F. Kennedy's assassination, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy wanted her husband to be remembered through a national cultural center that would serve as a living memorial. In this episode, White House Historical Association President Stewart McLaurin talks to Deborah Rutter, President of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, about the origins of the Kennedy Center, its mission to honor President Kennedy's legacy through support of the arts, and how it has had a relationship with the White House over time.

The White House is known for its creative confections and desserts, particularly during the holiday season. White House Historical Association President Stewart McLaurin speaks to Chef Roland Mesnier about his experiences serving as White House Pastry Chef for five presidential administrations, detailed in his new book, Creating the Sweet World of White House Desserts: A Pastry Chef's Secrets, co-written with his former pastry assistant Mark Ramsdell.