1994 - This holiday season of 1994, the White House Historical Association commemorates with its Christmas ornament the eleventh President of the United States, James K. Polk. In the cameo, military historical artist Donna J. Neary has placed President Polk and his wife Sarah on the south lawn of the White House. They are being serenaded by “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band. Our scene i8s imaginary, but meticulously researched in every detail, from the blue and red uniforms of the U.S. Marine Band to the south façade of the Presidents House, which is based on a daguerreotypist John Plumbe’s very distinct image taken in the winter of 1846 while Polk lived there.
1995 - Zachary Taylor, twelfth President of the United States, was the fourth military hero to hold office and the second to die while President. He rose to popularity in the Mexican War (1846-1848), was elected in 1848, served one year and 126 days, and survives in history as a rather obscure figure, surrounded in the national memory by the flutter of flags and blast of cannons, with the nickname given him by his soldiers, Old Rough and Ready. The ornament pays tribute to his both his patriotism and his impact on the presidential legacy.
1996 - In designing the 1996 Christmas ornament, the White House Historical Association has taken a closer look at President Fillmore and has found an interesting and able man in a time of relative calm. We owe our capitol dome to him. He had an immovably strong sense of ethics. “This president of ours,” wrote his attorney general after three years, “is a very remarkable man.”
1997 - The White House Historical Association’s ornament for 1997 commemorates neither the poilitacl efforts nor achievements of President Franklin Pierce, but instead his renovations and redecoration of the White House in 1853 and 1854. The fancy gilt frame, based upon the elaborate gold-leafed frames of two huge mirrors he hung in the state parlors, symbolizes the rich character of the new furnishings, while the tranquil 1857 view from the south shows the White House in Pierce’s era, after the work was completed.