Hardwood Floors February/March 2025

The museum, titled “The People’s House: A White House Experience,” sits at 1700 Pennsylvania Avenue, just across the street from the White House. Its purpose is to offer visitors an experience of stepping into the White House, complete with faithfully replicated rooms, artwork, and, of course, the Oval Office. For Lynn, the project was a natural fit. “We’ve worked for every president since Eisenhower,” he shares. “I’ve worked in the actual Oval Office multiple times, so I’m very familiar with that floor – its design, materials, and even how it has changed over time.” The Oval Office floor itself is iconic, with a pattern of alternating 4” planks of walnut and quartered white oak in the center and a border design in the same woods. “Every piece in the real Oval Office floor is unique because of the shape,” Lynn explains. “With an oval, every angle is slightly different, so each plank has to be specifically cut and labeled for its exact spot. It’s not like a herringbone or chevron where you can swap pieces around – it’s basically a massive jigsaw puzzle.” The complexity went beyond the floor’s design. The new museum floor, made entirely of first grade walnut and white oak, needed to be a flawless replica of the original. Lynn suggested starting the project with a laser-cut template to ensure the room’s walls were built to the precise oval shape required. “With an oval, there’s no room for error,” he says. “If the walls are off, the floor can’t be right.” Despite his recommendation, the contractor declined to use the template, leading to complications later on. “We ended up having to digitally scan the entire room ourselves to prove where the walls were off,” Lynn recalls. “Once we overlaid our scan with theirs, it was clear there were issues. But by that point, we had to adjust the floor to compensate for the uneven walls. It added extra work, but we got it done.”

PHOTOS COURTESY OF SPRIGG LYNN | UNIVERSAL FLOORS

the magazine of the national wood flooring association

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