White House Curator to retire after serving under eight presidents
White House Curator William Allman announced its retirement after serving for 40 years under eight presidents. Allman’s decision comes after reports that Chief White House Usher Angella Reid will also bee leaving.
White House Curator William Allman will retire on June 1 after serving for 40 years under eight US presidents.
“It has been a tremendous honor to serve eight Presidents and First Ladies in helping to preserve and beautify the White House, and maintain and interpret its wonderful collections of art and furnishings,” Allman said in a statement cited by the Washington Post.
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The announcement of Allman’s departure came after it was reported that Chief White House Usher Angella Reid will also be leaving the Trump administration. But according to the First Lady’s Press Office, Allman’s retirement and Reid’s departure are not connected as the curator has been talking about leaving the White House since mid 2016 but accepted to stay on in order to help with the transition.
Allman’s retirement was first reported by CNN after friends and associates have been hinting that the curator might step down.
Allman has held the top job in the curator’s office since 2002 and has worked closely with both Laura Bush and Michelle Obama on their projects of updating and preserving the historic building.
The Office of the White House Curator was established in 1961 under the Kennedy administration with then First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy overseeing the restoration of the White House. Since the building was declared a museum, the curator has gotten an office inside the White House.
The Office of the Curator is charged with the conservation and study of the collection of fine art, furniture and decorative objects used to furnish both the public and private rooms of the White House as an official residence and as an accredited historic house museum.
William Allman joined the White House in 1976 as Curatorial Assistant and then Assistant Curator. In 2002, George Bush promoted him to lead the office.
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