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The East Wing of the White House will soon be completely demolished to make way for President Donald Trump’s $300 million ballroom. Despite initial claims that the planned, lavishly gilded 90,000-square-foot hall—which will have a seating capacity of 900—would not touch the Washington, D.C. landmark, the New York Times reported that the entire building will be razed by October 26. The White House determined it would be less expensive and more structurally sound to destroy the historic edifice rather than construct the addition.

Originally constructed in 1902 during President Theodore Roosevelt’s first term, the building was first called the East Terrace and served as a guest entrance to the White House. In the 1940s, President Franklin Roosevelt enlisted architect Lorenzo Winslow to completely rebuild the single-story structure to include a second floor and a secure underground bunker. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt set the precedent of using the East Wing as her official office, a tradition carried on with every successive administration.

In addition to the First Lady’s office and space for her staff, the structure also housed the official White House visitor lobby, garden room, gift shop, and calligraphy office. It was linked to the main residence via the East Colonnade, also to be bulldozed, which contained the family movie theater. In the wake of the demolition, the White House Historical Association confirmed to CBS News that it had completed a total a “digital scanning project and photography to create an historic record" of the wing and surrounding gardens.

See below for a look inside the landmark structure.

Public visitors to the White House used to arrive for their tours through the East Wing into a wood-paneled entryway lined with paintings of former presidents and first ladies.

The East Wing lobby was decorated for the 2018 holiday season with twinkling trees, garlands, and wreaths during Trump’s first term.

First Lady Pat Nixon shared a laugh with her staff director and press secretary, Constance Cornell Stuart, in her East Wing office on December 30, 1970.

In 2023, First Lady Jill Biden met with the President of the American Federation of Teachers, Randi Weingarten, in her East Wing office, which was decorated by interior designer Mark Sikes.

First Lady Betty Ford worked at her desk in the East Wing from 1974 to 1977, during President Gerald Ford’s term.