Which U.S. President kept sheep on the White House lawn?

President Woodrow Wilson had a way with animals. Not only was he the last president to be towed by horse-drawn carriage to his inauguration, he also kept sheep on the White House lawn.

For several years, beginning in the spring of 1918, a flock of sheep grazed on the White House Lawn. After America entered World War I, the sheep helped to save manpower by keeping the grass trimmed, as well as money on the cost of mowing. It is not known exactly who came up with the idea, but Dr. Cary T. Grayson, a close acquaintance, purchased a few sheep on Wilson’s behalf from a farm; 12 sheep and four lambs in all. Over three summers, that number would grow to 48.

The idyllic appearance of sheep grazing on the lawn was part of the appeal of the project. Eventually, the flock had to be sheared, and two pounds of wool was given to each state. With governors acting as auctioneers, the wool was sold to the highest bidders, and the proceeds of over $50,000 (41,798 EUR) were donated to the Red Cross War Fund.

In 2018, the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library & Museum received an unusual donation; wool from the White House sheep. JP Brunschwyler, a West Virginia engineer, was one of the people who had bid on the wool (as part of a group). He put it in a safe deposit box, where it remained for one hundred years. Visitors to the museum can now view a tactile piece of evidence which proves that sheep once grazed on the White House lawn.