Barbara Franceschine, age 16, of Pitcairn, Pa., for her question:
WHERE DOES THE VICE PRESIDENT LIVE IN WASHINGTON?
In the northwest section of Washington, D.C., is a park-like 72-acre plot of ground on which is located the U.S. Naval
Observatory, an observation station and a number of laboratories. The property was originally the estate of a Mrs. M.C. Barber but was acquired in 1881 when President Rutherford Hayes named a commission to acquire a location for a new Naval Observatory.
On top of Observatory hill, on a 12-acre corner of the U.S. Naval Observatory grounds, architect Leon E. Dessez designed a grand home which served as the residence of the observatory superintendent from 1893 to 1928 and from 1928 until until 1974 as the home of the U.S. Chief of Naval Operations. In 1974 Congress designated the house as the vice presidential residence.
The Gerald Fords were getting ready to be the first vice presidential residents. Betty Ford selected most of the home's household accessories as well as the china and crystal. Then history took a surprise turn and the Ford family moved into the White House instead.
Vice President Nelson Rockefeller chose not to move into the new vice presidential residence since his own home in Washington was much more spacious.
So the very first vice presidential residents of the elegant Victorian home are Vice President Walter F. (Fritz) Mondale, his-wife Joan, their 17-year-old daughter Eleanor and their two sons, Teddy, 17 and William, 15. Also part of the family is the Mondales' blind collie, Bonnie.
The vice presidential residence has its kitchen at the basement level with food being brought up to the dining room on dumbwaiters. There's a microwave oven, a large range and refrigerator and lots of equipment that enables the staff of six Navy men to easily cook and put the finishing touches on a meal for 40 guests.
There's also a small pantrylike kitchen off the dining room that the family often uses to prepare quick meals.
A large reception hall is in front of the house with an impressive-sized living room, dining room and a cozy den and small sitting room. Around the main floor is a curved porch that is gracefully embellished with a decorative rail and Greek columns. Much carefree living and entertaining can be done outdoors overlooking the sweeping lawn and a leafy curtain of large trees. Bedrooms are on the two upper floors.
Many visitors have said that the new vice presidential residence in Washington, D.C., is in a much better location than the White House, since it is farther from downtown's crowded center and since it is situated on a commanding hill overlooking parklike grounds. But one thing is certain: the Vice Presidents of the United States now and in the future will have a most elegant Washington house that they will temporarily be able to call home.