The Lost White House Garden: Jacqueline Kennedy’s Namesake Memorial Was Quietly Torn Out During East Wing Demolition

On a bright April day in 1965, first lady Claudia “Lady Bird” Johnson welcomed familiar faces from the Camelot era back to the former home of President John F. Kennedy and first lady Jacqueline Kennedy — finishing a White House project that had been interrupted by JFK’s assassination.

“Only a short while ago, sometimes it seems only days, this wonderful old building was occupied by the 35th American president and his first lady,” Johnson told the gathered guests. “They brought to the White House many striking qualities, but perhaps above all, they brought the lilt of youth and instinct for the lovely, and an infinite quality of grace.”

Johnson said that among the Kennedys’ plans for the White House grounds was the creation of outdoor spaces meant for “repose” and “reflection.” To make that vision real, John and Jackie asked their close friend — horticulturist Bunny Mellon — to design practical green areas beside both the West Wing and East Wing.

While the West Garden evolved into the better-known Rose Garden, Lady Bird argued that the East Garden deserved a dedication that recognized the woman who helped imagine it.

“There could be only one name for this garden,” Johnson said, announcing that it would be called the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden.

Standing beneath a pergola designed by architect I. M. Pei, Johnson added that the space would endure: “For generations to come, the garden will add to the pleasure of those who occupy this home, and the thousands of Americans who walk down that walkway over there on their visit to the White House.”

Jackie Kennedy did not attend the April 22, 1965 dedication, having largely stayed away from the White House after her husband’s death. But members of the Kennedy family did return for the ceremony, including Robert F. Kennedy and his wife, Ethel, along with Jackie’s mother, Janet Lee Auchincloss (née Bouvier).

Auchincloss, then 57, also spoke — calling the moment deeply personal.

“I know you’ll understand that I cannot express how I feel at this tribute to my daughter. Very few people have been so honored,” she said.

She added that JFK would have been moved by the gesture: “President Kennedy loved gardens very much, and as you said, he planned this garden with Jacqueline, and I know that it makes him very happy to have it dedicated to her.”

“I wish I knew how to thank the President and you, Mrs. Johnson, for this especially thoughtful tribute,” she concluded.

Over time, the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden often lived in the shadow of the Rose Garden, but it still became an important White House setting — used for award ceremonies, gatherings hosted by first ladies, and formal receptions.

During Hillary Clinton’s tenure as first lady, the garden was reimagined as a sculpture garden featuring contemporary American works — intended to highlight “how important the arts are as part of our public life, but also as an integral part and contribution to our private lives.”

For decades, the garden also served as a first impression for countless visitors on White House tours. After entering through the East Wing, guests would look out from the East Colonnade’s long stretch of large windows and see the garden below.

Then, on Oct. 20, 2025 — exactly 60 years after Lady Bird Johnson’s dedication — demolition equipment began tearing through the historic East Wing as construction started on President Donald Trump’s proposed 90,000-square-foot ballroom.

In the days that followed, the entire east side of the White House complex was razed, including the East Colonnade and the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden — one of the most visible American landmarks carrying the late first lady’s name.

A White House official later said the plan was to rebuild the garden, while noting that “the scope and the size of the overall [ballroom] project has always been subject to vary as the project develops” and adding, “we will have more specifics to share as we go along.”

At a Jan. 8 meeting with the National Capital Planning Commission, the ballroom’s architect presented updated renderings of the new East Wing, reflecting changes from earlier versions of the plan.

One aerial-view rendering appeared to show a garden returning along the East Colonnade after construction ends, but it did not clarify whether it would mirror Jackie Kennedy’s original design — or whether it would continue to carry her name.

The White House ballroom is expected to be completed by 2028.