Presidents and First Ladies Trivia

[L Verge]

First, I misspoke - my friend's parents were from Finland, not Sweden. As for a sauna in the White House, it is mentioned in the last sentence of the following, but it does not seem clear as to whether it was a temporary "saunamobile" or a permanent structure:

With the American passion for sports, saunas at the Olympics certainly helped bring saunas into the limelight, but there were other reasons as well. After World War II, Finnish Americans were looked upon with a new respect. Second and third generation Finns returned from the war as proven American citizens, ready to fight and die for the U.S.. Finland was receiving world attention for her heroics against Russia during the Winter War of 1939-4O. Although Finland lost much of her eastern territory to Russia, it was generally recognized that the Finns had fought valiantly for independence against overwhelming odds. World sympathy went out toward Finland. A few years later, tiny Finland again impressed the world when she became the first European country to pay back her war reparations debt.

Thus, Finland's notoriety primed the American public for a Finnish custom. The press reported the President of Finland's longing for a sauna during a visit to America in 1961. A sauna company responded by driving its "saunamobile" demonstrator to New York and placing it at the service of the distinguished guest. Later, President Kennedy and his family enjoyed a sauna in the White House.