WASHINGTON (AP) — Franklin D. Roosevelt toiled over paperwork there during the World War II's darkest days. George W. Bush sat behind it to address the nation on 9/11. Beneath it, John F. Kennedy Jr. once crawled and peeked out from behind its front panel while his father worked above, an image so etched into American history that President Joe Biden recreated it with his grandson.
The Resolute Desk is one of the most recognizable pieces of furniture in the White House — and probably in the entire nation. As the president’s desk, it’s been at the center of American history for nearly 150 years.
That famous front panel has its own story. Many accounts claim it was added during FDR’s presidency to conceal his wheelchair and leg braces, but some historians dispute that. They argue Roosevelt used the desk in his private study, away from the public eye, and that the panel itself was not installed until after his death.
The desk’s origins extend far beyond the Oval Office. In fact, it's not American; it’s British.
The desk is crafted of timbers from the HMS Resolute, a British naval vessel that set off for the Arctic in the early 1850s in search of Sir John Franklin, who disappeared while seeking the Northwest Passage. During that mission, the Resolute became trapped in ice and was abandoned by its crew. Years later, it was discovered drifting through Arctic waters by an American whaling vessel.
The United States repaired it and returned it to Queen Victoria. The vessel resumed service for many years before eventually being retired.
Once decommissioned, Queen Victoria expressed her gratitiude to the United States by ordering the timbers of Resolute to be transformed into several pieces of furniture. One of them was a large desk that she presented to President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1880.
The desk spent much of its early White House history out of public view until 1961, when first lady Jacqueline Kennedy moved it into the Oval Office.
Every president since Jimmy Carter has used the Resolute desk in the Oval Office, with the exception of President George H.W. Bush, who instead placed it in the Treaty Room. The desk has also become the place where recent presidents leave a letter for their successor on Inauguration Day.
The Resolute Desk stands not only as a symbol of the American presidency, but also as a reminder of the enduring friendship between the United States and Britain.
Part of a recurring series, “American Objects,” marking the 250th anniversary of the United States. For more American objects, click here. For more stories on the anniversary, click here.
FILE - The private study of President Franklin D. Roosevelt at the White House on the second floor is shown on May 10, 1933. (AP Photo/File)
FILE- A view of the Resolute desk in President John F. Kennedy's Oval Office at the White House in Washington, Feb. 5, 1961. (AP Photo/Bob Schutz, File)
FILE - President John F. Kennedy gestures from behind a richly carved desk, made from the timbers of a British sailing ship, as he talks, Feb. 6, 1961 in his White House office in Washington with Mongi Slim, right, Tunisian Ambassador to the U.S., and G. Mennen Williams, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs. (AP Photo/HB, File)
ATLANTA (AP) — A brother of NFL player Calais Campbell has been charged with murder after police found their 71-year-old mother dead at her home in Atlanta during a welfare check. His family told police he struggled with mental illness.
Arrest warrants say Nateal Campbell’s throat was cut and Ciarre Campbell was found with a knife. Officers found her unresponsive when they arrived at around 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to a police statement.
Ciarre Campbell, 41, was booked into the Fulton County Jail, where he was being held without bond, and waived his initial court hearing Wednesday on charges including aggravated assault and murder. A lawyer listed for him in online court records did not immediately return an email and voicemail seeking comment on the charges.
In a 911 call released by police, an unidentified man can be heard asking for a wellness check. He tells the dispatcher that he is trying to get inside his mother's house with his brother and sister-in-law. He says they can see another brother, who is “mentally ill” and lives with their mom, inside the home. The caller says the brother inside had said their mother left but a neighbor's camera footage shows she didn't.
Police records show that before Tuesday, officers had received at least nine calls for service to that address since September for a variety of reasons, including a fight in progress, a suspicious person and an earlier welfare check.
According to a police incident report, a sister of Ciarre Campbell called police on April 24 and said her brother was inside the house and had “started a fire to rid the house of the demons.” The sister told an officer that her mother lived there but had not been at the home for a week because Ciarre Campbell “has overtaken the home.”
Neighbors called the police on multiple occasions to report disturbances, and Nateal Campbell told an officer in mid-April that her son had not been taking medication prescribed to treat schizophrenia, reports show.
The Campbell family issued a statement asking for privacy while they deal with “overwhelming grief.”
“We are devastated to share that the Campbell Family has lost its matriarch, Mrs. Nateal Campbell,” the family statement said. “While the details of her passing are still being investigated, we take comfort in knowing she is reunited with our father, her beloved Chuck, and in the arms of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.”
A defensive lineman for the Baltimore Ravens, Calais Campbell is entering his 19th NFL season after signing a one-year, $5.5 million contract in April. He is the oldest active defensive player in the NFL going into the 2026 season. He will be 40 on Sept. 1.
The 2017 first-team AP All-Pro selection has been voted to the Pro Bowl six times in a career that started as a second-round pick in 2008 with the Arizona Cardinals.
The former Miami Hurricane spent 10 seasons with the Cardinals and also played in Jacksonville, Atlanta and Miami.
Campbell has 117 career sacks in 278 games, including 259 starts.
This undated booking photo provided by the Fulton County Sheriff's Office on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, shows Ciarre Campbell. (Fulton County Sheriff's Office via AP)
FILE - Arizona Cardinals defensive tackle Calais Campbell (93) during an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Nov. 23, 2025, in Glendale. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri, File)
