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Click on a cabinet position below to learn more about it, including when it was added. The first cabinet, that of George Washington, consisted of only four department heads; those of State, Treasury, War, and the Attorney General. The names are familiar: Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, Henry Knox, and Edmund Randolph held the offices respectively. What had been four departments is now fifteen. In the cabinet are also the Vice President and any other person in the executive department that the President wishes, such as the Ambassador to the U.N. or a National Security Advisor.

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The United States Treasury Department is entrusted with a broad range of duties and functions. In addition to monetary functions such as budgets, taxes, and currency production and circulation, Treasury also oversees critical functions in enforcement, economic policy development, and international treaty negotiation, just to name a few.  This is one of the first four original departments.

The First Congress created the position of Secretary of State in July 1789, as the principal officer of the Department of Foreign Affairs. The secretary was to perform such duties as the president required, in accordance with the Constitution (Article II, Section 2, Clauses 1-2), relating to correspondence, commission, or instructions to U.S. ministers or consuls abroad, and to conduct negotiations with foreign representatives. The secretary also has served as principal adviser to the president in the formulation of U.S. foreign policy and in recent decades has become responsible for overall direction, coordination, and supervision of interdepartmental activities of the U.S. Government overseas, except for certain military activities.  In September, 1789, Congress changed the name of the Department of Foreign Affairs to the Department of State. A number of domestic duties were then assigned to the Department, but most of those were later reassigned to other agencies.

A member of the president's cabinet, the secretary heads the Department of Defense, created in 1947. The departmental predecessor was the Secretary of War. A civilian, the secretary is appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate. All activities in the department are accomplished under his or her supervision.  The secretary administers the national military budget and holds authority over personnel, supplies and other aspects of defense. He or she also is the main advisor to the president on all Department of Defense matters and related topics. The secretary is a member of the National Security Council, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and other agencies. He or she also maintains close contact with the State Department and the Joint Chiefs of Staff. A deputy and several assistant secretaries are answerable to the secretary.

Until 1947, the Secretary of the Navy was a Cabinet-level position. This secretary was appointed by the president with the Senate's approval. Since passage of the National Security Act of 1947, the secretary heads the Navy Department under the supervision of the Secretary of Defense. He or she ranks equally with the secretaries of the Army and Air Force. The secretary has general responsibility for all naval affairs. His or her main civilian aides include an undersecretary, assistant secretaries and a special assistant. The Secretary of the Navy is responsible for all the affairs of the Department of the Navy, including recruiting, organizing, supplying, equipping, training, mobilizing, and demobilizing. The secretary also oversees the construction, outfitting and repair of naval ships, equipment and facilities. He or she is responsible for the formulation and implementation of policies and programs that are consistent with the national security policies and objectives established by the President and the Secretary of Defense. The Department of the Navy consists of two uniformed services: the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps. 

The Postmaster General is the executive head of the United States Postal Service. The Office of the Postmaster General was created in 1789. It was not until the administration of Andrew Jackson that the Postmaster General was invited to sit on the president's cabinet. From 1872 to 1971, he was the head of the Post Office Department, an agency of the U.S. government in charge of postal service. After July 1971, the Postmaster General has been appointed by, and serves under, the Governor of the United States Postal Service, a quasi-governmental agency that replaced the U.S. Post Office the same year.

The chief lawyer in the United States is the Attorney General. He or she is appointed by the president, with the approval of the Senate, and serves in the Cabinet. The Attorney General heads the Department of Justice and represents the government in legal matters. He or she is responsible for enforcing federal laws, especially criminal statutes.

The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), with eight bureaus, is the nation's principal conservation agency, charged with the mission to protect America's treasures for future generations, provide access to the nation's natural and cultural heritage, offer recreation opportunities, honor its trust responsibilities to American Indians and Alaska Natives and its responsibilities to island communities.  In addition, the department conducts scientific research, provides wise stewardship of energy and mineral resources, fosters sound use of land and water resources, and conserves and protects fish and wildlife. The Secretary of the Interior is appointed by the president with the approval of the Senate. He or she directs and supervises all aspects of the 

As early as 1796, President Washington called on Congress to establish a national board of agriculture. Although the bill was considered in that session, it never reached a vote and it would be another 40 years before agriculture would be represented by a federal agency. From 1836 to 1862, agricultural interests were promoted by the Patent Office. Commissioner Henry Leavitt Ellsworth helped lay the foundation for the subsequent Department of Agriculture through his work.  Largely through efforts by the U.S. Agricultural Society in the 1850's, a law was passed in 1862 establishing the Department of Agriculture with Isaac Newton as its first commissioner. In 1884, the Bureau of Animal Industry was created and six years later the Weather Bureau was transferred from the War Department. Only in 1889 did the Department achieve cabin status, after a long campaign on its behalf by the National Grange. The Department of Agriculture's mission is to enhance the quality of life for the American people by supporting production of agriculture, to ensure a safe, affordable, nutritious and accessible food supply

Congress established the Department of Commerce and Labor in 1903 at the behest of President Theodore Roosevelt. The department comprised eight bureaus that dealt with labor, corporations, statistics and standards, the census, navigation, fisheries and immigration. In 1913 Congress created a separate Department of Labor and a new Department of Commerce.

An independent Department of Commerce was established in 1913, when the Department of Commerce and Labor was divided into two separate agencies. The composition of the department has changed many times over the years, but in 2003 included the following bureaus: Bureau of Industry and Security, Economics and Statistics Administration, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of the Census, Economic Development Administration, International Trade Administration, Minority Business Development Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, Patent and Trademark Office, Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology and National Technical Information Service.

A separate Department of Labor was created in 1913 when the previously existing Department of Commerce and Labor was divided. This change reflected the realization that the aims of the business community and those of workers were often different and needed separate representation. The secretary is appointed by the president with the approval of the Senate. He or she sets the Department's policies. The secretary functions as the president's main liaison with organized labor, and is a member of several presidential and Cabinet-level committees.  The undersecretary is the secretary's main aide and directs the department in the latter's absence. Other principal

The Department of Health and Human Services is the United States government's principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves. The secretary's responsibilities in the pre- and post-1979 departments are similar. The HEW secretary directed the department, was appointed by the president with the Senate's approval and was directly responsible to him. An undersecretary and several assistant secretaries worked with the department head. Today's HHS secretary is assisted by secretaries for administration and management, budget, technology and finance, legislation, public affairs, planning and evaluation, among heads of other offices.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development is the Federal agency responsible for national policy and programs that address America's housing needs, that improve and develop the nation's communities, and enforce fair housing laws. HUD's business is helping to create a decent home and suitable living environment for all Americans, and it has given America's communities a strong national voice at the Cabinet level. HUD plays a major role in supporting homeownership by underwriting homeownership for lower- and moderate-income families through its mortgage insurance programs.  The secretary of the department is appointed by the president with the Senate's approval. He or she directs and supervises all department activities. The undersecretary is the secretary's chief aide. There also are several assistant secretaries.

The Department of Transportation was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, the Department's first official day of operation was April 1, 1967. The mission of the department is to serve the United States by ensuring a fast, safe, efficient, accessible and convenient transportation system that meets our vital national interests and enhances the quality of life of the American people, today and into the future.  The Secretary of Transportation is the principal adviser to the president in all matters relating to federal transportation programs. The secretary is assisted by the Deputy Secretary in this role. The Office of the Secretary (OST) oversees the formulation of national transportation policy and promotes intermodal transportation. Other responsibilities range from negotiation and implementation of international transportation agreements, assuring the fitness of U.S. airlines, enforcing airline consumer protection regulations, issuance of regulations to prevent alcohol and illegal drug misuse in transportation systems and preparing transportation legislation.

The Department of Energy's overarching mission is to advance the national, econonmic and energy security of the United States; to promote scientific and technological innovation in support of that mission; and to ensure the environmental cleanup of the national nuclear weapons complex. The department has four strategic goals toward achieving the mission: Defense Strategic Goal: To protect national security by applying advanced science and nuclear technology to the nation’s defense. Energy Strategic Goal: To protect national and economic security by promoting a diverse supply of reliable, affordable, and environmentally sound energy. Science Strategic Goal: To protect national and economic security by providing world-class scientific research capacity and advancing scientific knowledge. Environment Strategic Goal: To protect the environment by providing a responsible resolution to the environmental legacy of the Cold War and by providing for the permanent disposal of the nation’s high-level radioactive waste.

The U S. Department of Education is the agency of the federal government that establishes policy for, administers, and coordinates most federal assistance to education. It assists the president in executing his education policies for the nation and in implementing laws enacted by Congress. The department's mission is to serve America's students — to ensure that all have equal access to education and to promote excellence in the nation's schools.  The secretary is responsible for the overall direction, supervision, and coordination of all activities of the department and is the principal adviser to the president on federal policies, programs, and activities related to education in the United States.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) was established on March 15, 1989, succeeding the Veterans Administration. It is responsible for providing federal benefits to veterans and their dependents. Headed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, VA is the second largest of the 15 Cabinet departments and operates nationwide programs for health care, financial assistance and burial benefits.

The following agencies have been incorporated into the Department: United States Customs Service, Immigration and Naturalization Service, Border Patrol, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Transportation Security Administration, Federal Protective Service, U.S. Coast Guard, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Plum Island Animal Disease Center, National Infrastructure Simulation and Analysis Center, Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office, National Infrastructure Protection Center, Federal Computer Incident Response Center, and National Communications System.  The Secretary of Homeland Security is a civilian, and is responsible for the coordination of 22 agencies that cooperate to defend the nation inside its borders and protect the American people. The secretary works with the agencies' nearly 200,000 workers to strengthen U.S. borders, generate intelligence analyses and shield infrastructure, enhance the use of science and technology to thwart weapons of mass destruction, and create a thoroughgoing response and recovery branch

The Department of Health and Human Services is the United States government's principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves. The secretary's responsibilities in the pre- and post-1979 departments are similar. The HEW secretary directed the department, was appointed by the president with the Senate's approval and was directly responsible to him. An undersecretary and several assistant secretaries worked with the