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Even though the South Passage underwent major renovations in ca. 1812 and ca. 1901, the room's ca. 1764 wainscot survived largely intact.  The paneling did not, however, remain unchanged and ca. 1901 it had been extensively altered to fit an office space created out of the western end of the South Passage by the duPonts. However, the duPonts were not the only ones to alter the ca. 1764 paneling.  President Madison also had his father's wainscot reconfigured to fit the new layout of the South Passage during the ca. 1812 renovations.  Because of all the changes made to the paneling, one of the main challenges in restoring the South Passage was determining where the wainscot was installed during the Madison ownership.

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The north wall in the South Passage before the Restoration started. An altered section of paneling can be seen on the left side of the photo.