![]() The fence was 13 feet (4.0 m) tall, twice the height of the previous. During the George Floyd protests and 2020 elections, a new temporary fence was installed, with concrete barriers to prevent vehicles. Temporary barriers are also regularly installed during inaugurations. Since the September 11 attacks, the restricted airspace above the White House has been expanded and better enforced. During the mid-1990s, the fence was expanded by one block to move traffic farther from the White House to prevent damage from any car bomb. An iron fence was constructed in 1819, and portions of this early barrier still exist. Various barriers to prevent unwanted access to the White House have existed since the time of Thomas Jefferson, who had a wooden barrier constructed in the early 19th century. After the Second World War, public access to the White House grounds became increasingly restricted, with the visitor office providing scheduled tours to a limited area of the building. The general open-door policy remained until around the time of the Cleveland presidency in the 1880s, and the grounds themselves were open until the Coolidge presidency in the 1920s. Lincoln had the layout of the building adjusted so he could go for meals without navigating the public hallways. While Lincoln was, to begin with, adamant about the importance of speaking to regular people, it grew excessive and the White House began to restrict visiting hours for the public to a twice weekly slot. ![]() This became a significant problem by the time of the Lincoln administration, which saw the building regularly filled with people "on all conceivable errands, for all imaginable purposes." Some would gain access by climbing through windows. Lobbyists for example could wait in the hallways of the building to petition the president. Until the late 19th century, the White House maintained an open door policy with the public having access to the corridors and lobbies of the building. ![]()
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