State, War and Navy Building (SWAN)

The State, War and Navy Building (SWAN Building) has changed names multiple times during its history. First known as the SWAN building, then the Old Executive Office Building, it is currently named the Eisenhower Executive Office Building (EEOB).

It was originally called the State, War, and Navy Building because it housed the three departments, although by the 1930s all three left for more spacious accommodations. The Secretary of War moved to the Navy and Munitions Building on the National Mall, the same building where in The Hesperus Prophecy, the Continental Army’s office leads down to the Clypeate’s Headquarters hidden beneath the city.

Built between 1871 and 1888 in the French Second Empire style, the facade clashed with the design of other Federal buildings and was regarded as an eyesore. Mark Twain called it “the ugliest building in America.” Mary Elizabeth’s father shares a similar opinion, the little girl hearing him call it the “ugly monstrosity” and the “overdone wedding cake.” While Mary Elizabeth thinks the building looks like a fairytale palace during the day, her opinion is far less favorable at night, when dark, menacing shadows hide the Obturavi as they wait to attack.