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Benjamin Brimelow, Elias Chavez, and John L. Dorman
Updated
- Camp David has been a destination for presidential rest and relaxation since it opened.
- The camp has also been the site of meetings and summits with various world leaders over the years.
- Camp David has been the site of some big national and foreign policy decisions.
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Nestled in the countryside of Maryland, in theCatoctin Mountain Park, is the presidentialcountry retreat known as Camp David.
The first parts of the complex were built by the Works Progress Administration in 1935, and Franklin D. Roosevelt made it the presidential retreat. FDR originally named the property "Shangri-La," a name it kept until the Eisenhower administration, who named it Camp David after his grandson.
The compound has expanded over the years, with new cabins being built and even a pool. It has also been the site of diplomatic events like the Camp David Accords in 1978 and the G8 summit in 2012.
Here's a look inside Camp David, where presidents go to escape Washington.
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The original name of Camp David was Shangri-La, the name of a fictional Himalayan paradise in the 1933 novel "Lost Horizon."
When President Dwight D. Eisenhower took office, he renamed the property "Camp David," after his father and grandson who had the same name.
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By the end of the Eisenhower administration, Camp David looked like this. The president's cabin — Aspen Lodge — was originally called the Bear's Den by FDR.
From the beginning, Camp David gave presidents a chance to enjoy the countryside.
Here, FDR and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill fish in the woods around "Shangri La." The two men reportedly planned the D-Day invasion from a porch on one of the cabins.
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Since Camp David is in the Catoctin Mountain Park, it has a number of trails around it that presidents and their families can enjoy.
Horseback riding is also a common activity for the trails, as seen here with President Ronald Reagan and Vice President George Bush.
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Originally, the pool at Camp David was far from Aspen Lodge. President Lyndon B. Johnson can be seen enjoying the pool with family, friends, and staff.
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President Richard Nixon added a pool behind the Aspen Lodge in the 1970s. President Barack Obama apparently still enjoyed it decades later.
Obama White House photographer Pete Souza snapped a number of great behind-the-scenes shots of life at Camp David, which also has tennis and basketball courts.
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Camp David can provide a relaxing setting for presidents to do their work, away from the chaos of Washington.
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Many presidents have spent Christmas at Camp David.
It's pretty nice in winter too.
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President Jimmy Carter turned Camp David into a place where diplomacy was conducted, like the landmark Camp David Accords in 1978.
Like Carter, President Bill Clinton used Camp David as a location for talks between Israel and Palestine.
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Obama also used Camp David as a place for diplomatic events.
In 2012, he hosted the leaders of the G8 nations at Camp David.
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It's not all work, though. European leaders took a break during the 2012 G8 to watch the overtime shootout of the Chelsea vs. Bayern Munich Champions League final.
President Donald Trump visited Camp David five times in his first year in office, calling it "a very special place" in one tweet.
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In January 2018, Trump brought senior Republicans to Camp David for a leadership retreat.
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During his presidency, Trump frequented his properties more than Camp David.
Before taking office, Trump once told a German journalist in an interview, "Camp David is very rustic, it's nice, you'd like it. You know how long you'd like it? For about 30 minutes."
By August 2020, Trump had made 500 visits to his properties. Of those 500, Trump had visited Mar-A-Lago 134 times.
Comparatively, Trump visited Camp David five times in his first year in office, according to USA Today. He visited his golf clubs 150 times in his first year.
Sources: Washington Post, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, USA Today
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President Joe Biden made his first trip to Camp David three weeks into his presidency for Valentine's Day weekend in 2021.
Source: Reuters
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Biden was at Camp David during the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan.
He spent 72 hours at Camp David and cut his trip short to return to the White House and address the nation.
Source: Washington Post
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In February 2023, Biden and his team prepared for his State of the Union address from Camp David.
Source: CBS News
Biden and his family spent the Fourth of July weekend at Camp David in 2023.
Source: Washington Examiner
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Biden gathered with close family members at Camp David in June 2024.
President Joe Biden leaned on his family during a difficult stretch of his reelection campaign following his first 2024 debate with former President Donald Trump.
Editor's note: This story was first published in February 2018 and has been updated with recent information.
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