You might occasionally hear someone refer to the “Resolute Desk” when talking about a President or the Oval Office. I first heard of it casually, but the 2007 movie National Treasure: Book of Secrets highlighted its importance in a fictitious but entertaining way. Before that, I thought of it as just one more Oval Office item, not its significance.
In movies, the desk often contains hidden compartments and clues that lead to puzzles, ultimately revealing treasure. We can find no real documentation of hidden compartments, but the desk has significance beyond just an Oval Office piece of furniture.
Queen Victoria and President Rutherford B. Hayes
The Resolute Desk is sometimes referred to as the Hayes Desk because it was a gift from Queen Victoria of England to President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1880. The name Resolute Desk originates from the oak used in its construction. During an Arctic exploration, England explorer Sir John Franklin was forced to abandon the HMS Resolute in 1854. The ship was found in 1855, repaired, and returned to England in 1856 as a goodwill gesture. When the ship was decommissioned in 1879, Queen Victoria had three desks made from the ship’s timbers. She presented this desk to President Hayes the next year.
On the front of the desk was a bronze plaque that read:
“H.M.S. ‘Resolute,’ forming part of the expedition sent in search of Sir John Franklin in 1852, was abandoned in Latitude 74º 41′ N. Longitude 101º 22′ W. on 15th May 1854. She was discovered and extricated in September 1855, in Latitude 67º N. by Captain Buddington of the United States Whaler ‘George Henry’. The ship was purchased, fitted out and sent to England, as a gift to Her Majesty Queen Victoria by the President and People of the United States, as a token of goodwill & friendship. This table was made from her timbers when she was broken up, and is presented by the Queen of Great Britain & Ireland, to the President of the United States, as a memorial of the courtesy and loving kindness which dictated the offer of the gift of the “Resolute’.”
This plaque is visible in images of the desk during the time of President Kennedy but was removed from the front when President Obama was in the Oval Office. It is possible that the drawers were reversed, and that the plaque is now on the President’s side of the desk, but we can find no pictures or references to the change,
Physically Dominating
The Resolute Desk dominates its surroundings, primarily due to its size. Desks of this size were often designed as partners’ desks, even though they were intended for just one person. The top measures six feet wide by four feet deep. The desk is 32.5 inches high, but initially, it was only thirty inches tall.
It was modified twice from its original form. First, in 1945, the kneehole on the front of the desk was enclosed with a hinged panel displaying an eagle, along with two smaller side panels. President Roosevelt requested that the change be made to hide his leg braces when visitors were present. Then, in 1961, it was raised by two and one-half inches, a more practical height for the era. This plinth can be seen as a separate piece of wood at the bottom of the desk.
The Travels Around the White House
The Resolute Desk had been used in the White House’s broadcast room since the Building was renovated at the end of World War II. Jacqueline Kennedy discovered it and moved it to the Oval Office to replace the Roosevelt Desk, which was then in use. Many Americans have a mental picture of President Kennedy sitting at the desk, with “John-John” or Caroline peeking out of the hinged panel that had been added to the front.
President Johnson favored the use of a Senate desk and had the Resolute Desk removed; his old Vice Presidential desk in his Senate office was then moved in as a replacement. This change may also have been made out of respect for President Kennedy.
Presidential Use of the Resolute Desk
Since its gifting, the Resolute Desk has been used as the Oval Office desk by Presidents John F. Kennedy, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. We should remember that the Oval Office has not always been the working office for the President, and the Resolute Desk was not received from Queen Victoria until 1880.
Respect and Disrespect
I am often struck by the story of President Reagan and his respect for the Presidency and the Oval Office. He understood the weight of the position and the importance of symbolism. While he occasionally entered the Oval Office dressed casually, there are no pictures of him using the Resolute Desk as a footstool.
In recent times, pictures have surfaced of Presidents Obama and George W. Bush with their feet up on the desk. Maybe it is just me, but I believe this shows disrespect for the Country, our history, and the relevance of important symbols of our Republic.
I doubt we will see images of President Trump with his feet propped up on the desk. Like him or not, he has a sense of the importance of symbols in communicating the importance of the Presidency. When our enemies see images of Presidents disrespecting the Oval Office, it resonates with them in ways we do not want.
Significance Down Through Time
The name may come from the HMS Resolute, but the name fits for the leader of the free world. Resolute is defined in the Oxford Dictionary as purposeful, determined, and unwavering. Webster’s Dictionary adds bold and steady as synonyms.
It is the person behind the desk, not the desk, who must be resolute. The desk serves as a reminder of our history and the importance of the position. It is there to support the President and the weight of his decisions, not a footstool. The desk may be in the Oval Office, but it belongs to the American people.
As a republic, we tend to shy away from ostentatious symbols, such as crown jewels and palaces. Our symbolism is rooted in founding documents and their concepts, as well as in everyday items such as our flag and the Resolute Desk. It could be for us that as the Resolute Desk and its Presidents go, so does the Republic.
The Substitutes
The Resolute Desk is one of six desks in the Oval Office that the President has access to during their term in office. The other five are the C&O, Theodore Roosevelt, Hoover, Johnson, and Wilson.
The C&O desk refers to the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. It has recently been used by President George H. W. Bush and temporarily by President Trump while the Resolute Desk undergoes restoration. The desk made its way to the White House first through a railroad merger in about 1920, then via a loan to the Department of State, and ultimately to the White House. It did not become a permanent donation in 1987.
The Theodore Roosevelt Desk is now used as the Vice President’s official desk. It was made in 1903 and installed in the West Wing. After surviving a fire, it was placed in storage until Presidents Truman and Eisenhower brought it out of storage. It remained there until Jacqueline Kennedy replaced it with the Resolute Desk. The most famous use of the desk was by President Nixon in his private office, where microphones were attached and some of the Watergate tapes were recorded.
Presidents Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt used the Hoover Desk. It is also known as the “FDR’s Oval Office Desk.” The desk was a part of a complete suite of furniture made specifically for the White House. After President Roosevelt’s death, it was given to Eleanor Roosevelt and then later donated to FDR’s Presidential Library.
The Johnson Desk is named for Vice President and later President Lyndon B. Johnson. The desk was built by the Senate Cabinet Shop sometime between 1906 and 1926. Then Senator Johnson began using the desk, and it accompanied him when he became Vice President. He took it with him to the Oval Office when he became President after President Kennedy’s assassination. It differs from the other desks in several ways. First, it is designed in the style of furniture used in the Senate. Second, it is the only Presidential desk with a green leather top. Third, it was never donated to the White House and was moved to the Johnson Library after he left office.
The Wilson Desk is also known as the McKinley-Barkley desk. It was built in the style of a partner’s desk and was commissioned by Vice President Hobart for his office in the Senate. The desk gets its name from Vice President Henry Wilson, not President Woodrow Wilson. Richard Nixon used the desk during his Vice Presidential tenure. When Lyndon Johnson left the White House, he took the desk with him to Texas. But when Nixon became President, he wanted it back, and the Johnson Library put it on loan to the White House. This is the infamous desk with the hidden microphones used to record Presidential conversations, which became known as the Watergate Tapes.
Resources and Further Reading
A Look at the Oval Office Desks of Presidents Past—One of Which Will Soon Be Part of Joe Biden’s Workspace By Mary Elizabeth Andriotis, House Beautiful, housebeautiful.com, January 20, 2021.
C&O Desk, Wikipedia, wikipedia.org, Last accessed March 13, 2025.
From Roosevelt to Resolute, the Secrets of All 6 Oval Office Desks, By Eric Grundhauser, Atlas Obscura, atlasobscura.com, April 7, 2016.
National Treasure: Book of Secrets, Wikipedia, wikipedia.org, Last accessed March 12, 2025.
The Johnson Desk, Wikipedia, wikipedia.org, Last accessed March 22, 2025.
The Long And Fascinating History Of The President’s Resolute Desk, By Katie Serena, All That’s Interesting, allthatsinteresting.com, April 11, 2018.
The Resolute Desk, Wikipedia, wikipedia.org, Last accessed March 10, 2025.
The Wilson Desk, Wikipedia, wikipedia.org, Last accessed March 23, 2025.
Theodore Roosevelt Desk, Wikipedia, wikipedia.org, Last accessed March 15, 2025.
Trump removes 150-year-old Resolute Desk from the Oval Office to be ‘lightly refinished’, By Greta Cross, USA Today, usatoday.,com, February 24, 2025.
Trump reveals he has removed the Resolute Desk used by Biden and Obama from the Oval Office, By James Liddell, Independent, independent.com, February 21, 2025.
What is the Resolute Desk?, By White House Historical Society, whitehousehistory.org, Last accessed March 24, 2025.
