With the United States’ entry into World War II, the Secret Service increased its protective web around the President. In December 1941, Franklin Roosevelt became the first President to use an armored vehicle. Originally belonging to infamous gangster Al Capone, the car was seized by the Treasury Department in 1932 on an income-tax evasion charge. The car’s armor actually was comprised of only bulletproof glass; the body of the car was still vulnerable. The vehicle was used until limousines in the presidential fleet.
United States Secret Service agent Morgan L. Gies was responsible for White House vehicles from 1941 to 1967, serving five presidents. This photograph from his personal collection shows a 1956 Cadillac. Ohio company O’Gara-Hess and Eisenhardt custom-built two of these convertibles — Queen Mary II and Queen Elizabeth II — for presidential motorcade duty. They served Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson.
One of the two 1956 Cadillacs that replaced the Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth which were 1938 Cadillacs. Agent Morgan L. Gies is sitting behind the wheel. Chief of the Secret Service, U.E. Baughman is also pictured.
The 1984 Cadillac Fleetwood Seventy Five Presidential Limousine was used by President Ronald Regan
In 1993, the Fleetwood Brougham was completely redesigned and continued the long-standing Cadillac tradition as the choice for professional car conversions, including the presidential limousine.
On Inauguration Day 2005, President George W. Bush rode in a 2006 Cadillac DeVille Touring Sedan (DTS). The limousine actually was a refurbished 2005 model that gave the appearance of the 2006 Cadillac, available to the general public. The vehicle was wider, longer and taller than its predecessor.
President Barack Obama travels in a 2009 customized DTS Cadillac that was in production for two years prior to being unveiled on Inauguration Day. Slightly more upright than its predecessor, the vehicle features 19.5 inch wheels and enough room for five seated passengers. The interior is ornate, complete with a fold-out desk for the President. The limousine is designed to Secret Service specifications, which includes a heavy duty chassis, extended length and armored material, and offers the President secure communications with encrypted measures. At the time, the Assistant Director for the Office of Protective Operations noted, “It is safe to say that this car’s security and coded communications systems make it the most technologically advanced protection vehicle in the world.”