The Parkmaker and His New York Creation

“Central Park stands as Olmsted’s sublime achievement, a calm and lovely oasis in the frantic heart of Manhattan Island” (126). 


The Book   

Throughout Genius of Place: The Life of Frederick Law Olmsted, author Justin Martin weaves the theme of restlessness. Olmsted spent majority of his life jumping from job to job and interest to interest. It wasn’t until he was forty-five years old that Olmsted fell into a career as a landscape architect. As you read the book, you have the sense that Olmsted would have fit in with today’s culture: his mind wasn’t set on one job for his entire life.  

Genius of Place is a biography of Olmsted’s entire life, not just the years spent working on Central Park. He was a sailor, a farmer, a writer, a newspaper correspondent, an administrator, an environmentalist, and a landscape architect. Despite all of this, Olmsted will always be known for the iconic Central Park. Martin spends several chapters describing the development and construction of the park, all 778 acres of it. Many of the features Olmsted, and his design partner Calvert Vaux, planned would take years to develop. In their plan, Olmsted and Vaux said, “twenty years hence, the town will have enclosed the Central Park. Let us consider, therefore, what will at that time be satisfactory, for it is then that the design will have to be really judged” (142). They would spend many years fighting changes in their plan and trying to stay true to the design. 

Olmsted also designed other prominent American projects: Prospect Park, Brooklyn; the suburb of Riverside, IL; the Buffalo park system; Washington Park, Chicago; U.S. Capitol Grounds, DC; Back Bay Fens, Boston; the Stanford University grounds; the Vanderbilt Biltmore estate; and the 1893 World’s Fair Columbian Exposition. 

The Place  

Central Park truly is a magical place. Nestled in the heart of Manhattan, it is sometimes easy to forget you are in one of the busiest cities in the world. A friend and I spent an entire day in Central Park and we still didn’t see everything. The best way to experience the park is to simply plan a day (or even two) to wander around. Entry is free, but the children’s’ zoo, boat rentals, and ice skating have a fee.

There are bridges to cross, boulders to climb, fields to run through, and lakes to row across. Olmsted’s trees have grown tall and provide a canopy over the walkways. Twists and turns take you further away from the noise of the city. Visitors will encounter carriages, but unless you walk along the outskirts of the park you will not see any cars. 

Despite Olmsted’s aversion to statues, there are several in Central Park that commemorate well-known figures and others that are long forgotten. My favorite statue is by the ice skating rink. It depicts a larger than life Hans Christian Anderson reading a story to the Ugly Duckling.

Small Town President

“[Reagan] really had the brand of small-town, Midwest America stamped on him” (Richard Norton Smith, xi). 


The Book   


The Essential Ronald Reagan: A Profile in Courage, Justice, and Wisdom, by Lee Edwards, is a brief biography that touches on all aspects of Reagan’s life. It is a great introduction for anyone that wants to read about the fortieth president. Edwards opens the book with a look at Reagan’s funeral in 2004 and then traces his roots and impact on American politics.

Ronald Reagan was born in Tampico, Illinois and his family later moved to Dixon, Illinois. He lived in Dixon until he graduated from Eureka College and became a sports broadcaster in Iowa. Edwards uses the chapters on Reagan’s early life to show the reader how Reagan’s later beliefs were shaped and changed by growing up in Dixon. The future president came of age in “a bustling town of about eight thousand built on gently rolling northern Illinois hills and containing several plants and factories” (8).

No biography of a president is complete without space dedicated to his time in the office. This book is no different and most of the chapters are focused on Reagan’s rise to political prominence: starting with his speech in support of Barry Goldwater in 1964 to his final days as president in 1989.



The Place   

Dixon, Illinois is two hours west of Chicago and much of the town looks as it did when Reagan was growing up. The RonaldReagan Boyhood Home is preserved for visitors to walk through and see what life was like for the Reagan’s. Some highlights of the house are: the Bible Reagan was sworn in as president is sitting on his parents’ dresser and a loose tile in front of the fireplace where Reagan hid his money as a child. Next door is a visitor center that presents pictures from each stage of Reagan’s life and a short video that documents the restoration of the Boyhood Home.

The Northwest Territory Historic Center is housed in the building where Reagan went to elementary school. When visitors first walk into the building they are greeted with a large portrait of Ronald Reagan made out of jelly beans. Reagan’s 6^th grade classroom is preserved and the exhibit includes Hollywood and Presidential memorabilia. There is also a well-done exhibit on the Black Hawk War and farming in the Dixon community.

Thomas Jefferson's Retreat

“A three-story farmhouse designed to look like a one-floor villa, Monticello is a masterpiece of architectural deception” (142). 


The Book 


In Twilight at Monticello: The Final Years of Thomas Jefferson, author Alan Pell Crawford writes about Jefferson’s time at Monticello after he left the presidency. The first nine chapters focus on the land Monticello sits on, Jefferson’s early life, the Revolutionary War, and Jefferson’s time as a public servant. Crawford includes just enough information on Jefferson’s life before retirement to bring the reader up to speed.


Jefferson moved to Monticello when he was 27 and spent majority of the rest of his life there. In designing and adding on to Monticello, Jefferson used half-octagonal shapes that stemmed from his interest in circles and squares (73). Several generations of Jeffersons lived with the family patriarch, which often led to tension. Crawford uses short chapters on specific topics to show the reader that Jefferson was a man just like everyone else. In his final years, Jefferson dealt with bad harvests, debt, family infighting, declining health, and weather damage to his land. The reader comes away with a personal look at the author of the Declaration of Independence, which includes his good and bad points.



The Place   

Monticello is a beautiful place to visit: full of history and views of the surrounding countryside. Just like Mount Vernon, I visited Monticello once as a kid and a second time when I was living in Washington, DC. During the two visits a brand new visitor center was completed to welcome visitors to Jefferson’s home. A video introduces visitors to Jefferson and Monticello before a walk up the hillside. From Jefferson’s front door you can look down the hill and see the University of Virginia. Inside visitors can take in artifacts from the Lewis and Clark Expedition, paintings and busts of family and friends, and a special clock that Jefferson designed.


Jefferson’s library is well stocked, just as it was when he lived there. As visitors file past Jefferson’s rooms they can see his bed that folded out from the wall, in order to conserve space. Outside are the extensive gardens, family cemetery, and walkways that extend from the house. Monticello is a two and half hour drive from Washington, DC and sits just outside Charlottesville, VA. James Madison’s home, Montpelier, is forty-five minutes north of Monticello. Constitution Highway connects the homes of these two Founding Fathers.