Washington's Home

“…Mount Vernon was far more than simply a house. It was an extension of [Washington] himself, a tangible emblem of his character, his personality, his hopes, his dreams” (xvi).  

The Book

George Washington’s Mount Vernon by Robert F. Dalzell Jr. and Lee Baldwin Dalzell is an unusual biography. Instead of focusing on the man, it focuses on the place while exploring the impact of and on the man. Mount Vernon was passed down through generations of Washingtons and the present buildings were designed by George Washington. Mount Vernon went through three major reconstructions while owned by Washington and majority of the time Washington was away from home. The Dalzells’s use Washington’s letters to show the reader how involved he still was in the construction. Washington was in constant contact with his managers, even as the commander of the Continental Army.

The Dalzells also introduce the reader to the architecture of the periods and the type of men who would have worked on the construction. Washington’s travels throughout the colonies introduced him to different ways to build a structure. He built an unusual house which is evident in the different types of architecture he was influenced by and the changes over the years. These sections can be hard to read at times, but they lend a better understanding to the eventual outcome.

The Place   



Mount Vernon is a place that combines history with hands on learning. I have visited Washington’s home twice: once as an elementary school kid and once after college. Both times I felt the same awe as I walked up the drive to the front of the house. Washington focused on a visitor’s first impression and that focus is still in place today. You can tour the house and spend some time sitting on the piazza (river front porch) watching the Potomac River. Down the road is a replica of Washington’s sixteen sided barn where wheat was threshed and the tomb where George and his wife Martha were laid to rest.

In the years in between my two visits, a visitor’s center and museum were added. These two add so much to the Mount Vernon experience. As you walk through the museum, you see Washington develop from a young surveyor to the President of the United States. Interactive videos explore the relationship of George and Martha Washington and the battles of the Revolutionary War. The Revolutionary War video includes cannon smoke and “snow” falling from the ceiling. Much time and effort were obviously put into Mount Vernon to make it, once again, a place for the people to visit.

 

Master List of Books

I thought it would be a good idea to pause this week and provide my readers a list of all the books and authors I have been writing about. I plan to update this list as I continue to post in Traveling through Reading.

The list is in chronological order as pertains to the blog. All books can be found at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or your local library. 

1. Signing Their Lives Away by Denise Kiernan and Joseph D’Agnese
2. Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne
3. Manhunt: The Twelve Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer by James L. Swanson
4. The Assassin’s Accomplice by Kate Clifford Larson
5. Bloody Crimes: The Funeral of Abraham Lincoln and the Chase for Jefferson Davis by James L. Swanson
6. Annie Oakley by Shirl Kasper
7. My Father, Frank Lloyd Wright by John Lloyd Wright
8. The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
9. Murder in Mackinac by Ronald J. Lewis
10. Terror at the Soo Locks by Ronald J. Lewis
11. George Washington's Mount Vernon: At Home in Revolutionary America by Robert F. Dalzell Jr. & Lee Baldwin Dalzell 
12. Twilight at Monticello: The Final Years of Thomas Jefferson by Alan Pell Crawford
13. The Essential Ronald Reagan: A Profile in Courage, Justice, and Wisdom by Lee Edwards
14. Genius of Place: The Life of Frederick Law Olmsted by Justin Martin
15. Ocean City: America’s Greatest Family Resort by Fred Miller  
16. Grand Avenues: The Story of the French Visionary Who Designed Washington, DC by Scott Berg 
17. Navy Pier: A Chicago Landmark by Douglas Bukowski 
18. To Conquer the Air: The Wright Brothers and the Great Race for Flight by James Tobin
19. The Magic Kingdom: Walt Disney and the American Way of Life by Steven Watts
20. Murder at the National Cathedral by Margaret Truman
21. Nearest Thing to Heaven: The Empire State Building and American Dreams by Mark Kingwell
22. The Flag, the Poet, and the Song: The Story of the Star-Spangled Banner by Irvin Molotsky
23. Millennium Park: Creating a Chicago Landmark by Timothy J. Gilfoyle
24. A History of the Kennedy Space Center by Kenneth Lipartito and Orivlle R. Butler
25. Going Home to Glory: A Memoir of Life with Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1961-1969 by David Eisenhower with Julie Nixon Eisenhower
26. The Pentagon: A History by Steve Vogel

The UP

“It wasn’t going to be all fun, but they didn’t know it yet. This would be the beginning of an experience that all three would never forget” (48). 


The Book  


Terror at the Soo Locks by Ronald J. Lewis is a follow-up mystery novel to Murder at Mackinac. The characters are different, but there are slight nods to the characters and themes in Lewis’s first novel. The story follows Professor Bradley Kendall as he travels the globe and dodges international crime plots. Assassins follow him from Michigan to Hawaii to Singapore. Along with his friends, Professor Kendall works to stop a plot to bomb the Mackinaw Bridge when two high-ranking politicians are participating in the annual Labor Day walk across the bridge.

Once again, Lewis pays close attention to detail and proves that he has traveled to the places he writes about. Because the Soo Locks are one of the largest locks for international shipping, the reader learns a lot about the ships and shipping procedures in the Upper Peninsula (UP).



The Place   


Michigan’s UP has many attractions for visitors. The Soo Locks are a fascinating lesson in international shipping. When my family and I visited, we rode a tour boat into the lock and watched as the water lifted our boat high enough for the next lock. During the tour you can see Canada across the lake. There is also observation tower where you can watch the large international ships go through the locks. Farther north in the UP is Whitefish Point on the shores of Lake Superior. Whitefish Point is home to a lighthouse and the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum. The waters of Lake Superior are some of the most treacherous and the museum pays homage to the many shipwrecks. The most well known shipwreck is that of the Edmund Fitzgerald in 1975.

If you are looking for a fun place to eat after exploring the UP, The Antlers provides good food and an interesting atmosphere. The restaurant is decorated with stuffed wild animals like polar bears and lions. Hanging from the wall are mounted heads of deer and various antlers.  

Island Lost in Time

“Little did Roy suspect that his noncontroversial, nonpolitical, academic life would be plunged into turbulent chaos and life threatening entanglements, both controversial and political” (4). 


The Book  

Murder in Mackinac (Mackinac is pronounced Mack-i-naw) by Ronald J. Lewis is a mystery novel that you read just for fun. It follows the story of Roy Nelson, a college professor who gets caught up in solving a series of murders. The mystery takes the reader from Mackinac Island to Hawaii, from World War II to the present day, from politics to organized crime. The fiction might be hard to believe at times, but that is what is great about reading. Sometimes you just need a book that doesn’t make you think.

The best part about this book is Lewis’s decision to include destinations in and around Mackinac Island. This is my favorite part of the novel because I can picture the places I saw when I visited Mackinac Island. 

The Place   

Mackinac Island is a place where time has stood still. No cars are allowed on the island, visitors and residents must take a boat across Lake Huron to reach the island. Once there, you can take a tour of the island on a carriage pulled by horses. Highlights on the tour include: the Grand Hotel and Fort Mackinac. One of my favorite parts of the tour was the Arch Rock. High above the lake is a look-out point that shows visitors a rock formation in the form of an arch. Visitors can also rent bikes to ride around the island.

Mackinac Island is also known for its fudge. Down by the harbor are several local shops that sell fudge and other gift items. When we visited, we had lunch in Fort Mackinac and had a beautiful view of the harbor below. You can also see the Mackinac Bridge, the third largest suspension bridge in the world and the longest in the western hemisphere.

The White City

“The fair was so perfect, its grace and beauty like an assurance that for as long as it lasted nothing truly bad could happen to anyone, anywhere” (289). 


The Book   

One of my favorite books is The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. Larson weaves together the stories of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition (known as the White City) and H. H. Holmes (“the devil”). The book is split into four parts: background leading up to the construction for the exposition, construction of the exposition, the exposition, and the discovery of Holmes’ crimes. Holmes was a serial killer operating before, during, and after the fair. But, for the purpose of this blog I will focus on the fair.

Larson helps the reader imagine a time when the impossible seemed possible. Originally, the exposition was meant to open in October 1892, to commemorate the 400^th anniversary of Columbus discovering America. Delays caused the exposition to open in May 1893. The most incredible thing about this was that the location of the exposition was picked in February 1890. Larson explores the many issues the exposition and its director, Daniel Burnham, faced-economic crisis, rise of unions, weather, lack of time, and Chicago’s bad reputation. The reader comes away in awe of the magnitude of the undertaking and that it was a success.

The exposition helped put Chicago on the world map and introduced many new things to the world. The 27.5 million visitors (over six months) were exposed to electricity, moving pictures, Shredded Wheat, and other cultures. An engineer named George Washington Ferris designed the first Ferris Wheel for the exposition. 

The Place   

This past Saturday, my mom and I took a walking tour through the Chicago Architecture Foundation: White City Revisited. The tour is two hours and takes you through Jackson Park, the site of the exposition. The only building still standing from the exposition is the Museum of Science and Industry, which housed the art exhibits during the exposition.

The only other aspect left is the Wooded Islandin the middle of the park. A replica of the Statue of the Republic stands in the middle of an intersection and a bird and butterfly sanctuary occupy much of the Manufacturer’s and Liberal Arts building (a 32 acre building). The tour guide shows pictures to the group of the different buildings, points out their locations in the park, and mentions facts about the buildings and exposition.

Although many of the buildings are no longer standing, it is easy to imagine what the exposition would have looked like. The exposition was nicknamed the White City because all the buildings were painted white and reflected the sun as it moved throughout the day. It is said that exposition visitors were overwhelmed by the sheer size of the buildings and in certain areas many walked around quietly out of a sense of reverence. Jackson Park is a part of the Chicago Park District and visitors can walk the grounds without a tour guide.

Prairie Style Architect

Frank Lloyd Wright: “When creative effort is involved, there are no trivial circumstances. The most trivial of them may ruin the whole issue. Eternal vigilance is the only condition of creation in architecture” (67) 


The Book   

My Father, Frank Lloyd Wright by John Lloyd Wright is a unique look at Wright the Father. The general public already knows Wright the Architect. The biography is a collection of memories and stories; each chapter a new topic or event. According to his son, Frank Lloyd Wright was more interested in playtime with his children than academic training. Instead of going to school for training, John Lloyd Wright works with his father and learns how to be an architect.

Despite the focus on Wright as a father, the book can’t help but touch on Wright as an architect. The reader gets a glimpse into how he viewed creating and designing buildings. An interesting side note, which is briefly touched on in the book, is that John Lloyd Wright is the inventor of Lincoln Logs. 

The Place   

Last summer one of my friends was giving tours at the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio. My other friend and I decided to spend a Saturday in Oak Park, IL taking the tour. Oak Park is about 11 miles west of Chicago, but it is easy to forget how close you are to the city. The downtown area quickly blends into neighborhoods with large trees and picturesque houses.

The Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio is at 951 Chicago Ave. Oak Park, IL 60302. The home is set back from the street and in close proximity to other Prairie Style buildings. The tour begins at the back of the house and visitors are led down the sidewalk to the front. You enter through the front door, as if you are visiting the Wright’s. My favorite room on the tour was the children’s playroom. It is a large room with windows at a child’s eyelevel. The studio is also unique and provides a glimpse into Wright’s creations. 

Visitors are not allowed to take pictures inside the Home and Studio without a photography pass. A walking tour of the Frank Lloyd Wright Historic District takes visitors through the Oak Park neighborhood. The Unity Temple, designed by Wright in the early 1900s, is a short walk from the Home and Studio. Tours are available as well.

Little Sure Shot

Annie Oakley: “Aim at a high mark, and you’ll hit it. No, not the first time, nor the second time and maybe not the third. But keep on aiming and keep on shooting for only practice will make you perfect. Finally, you’ll hit the bull’s eye of success” (232). 


The Book  

One of my childhood heroes was Annie Oakley, the famous sharpshooter who traveled with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. However, I never got around to reading an adult biography of Annie Oakley, just the kid versions. Annie Oakley by Shirl Kasper reveals more to the reader than simply the legend of Annie Oakley. It is true that Annie met Sitting Bull, the famous Native American from Custer’s Last Stand, and he adopted her. She traveled seventeen years with the Wild West Show and only missed five performances. Annie traveled the world showing off her skills, but her fame didn’t really take off until performances in London for Queen Victoria’s Jubilee in 1887.

Annie Oakley was more than a skilled shooter; she was also a talented horse rider and sportswoman. Kasper takes the time to introduce the reader to a quiet and proper woman. Small of stature and a conservative manner, Annie wanted to be seen as a lady. The reader also gets a glimpse into the love story between Annie and Frank Butler. Butler was a talented shooter in his own right, but recognized that Annie had more potential. He became her manager and assistant-holding playing cards and throwing glass balls in the air for Annie to shoot. 

The Place   

Annie Oakley was born in Darke County, OH and lived in Greenville, OH. One of my good friends from college was from Greenville and she invited me to spend a weekend with her exploring Annie’s hometown.

The Garst Museum is run by the Darke County Historical Society and home to The National Annie Oakley Center. In the museum are memorabilia from Annie’s life: her guns, glass balls she shot, playing cards Frank held, and posters from her time traveling with Buffalo Bill. The legend of Annie Oakley is preserved well here. The museum also provides exhibits from the history of Darke County: a visit from Teddy Roosevelt, the time as a territory, and the broadcaster Lowell Thomas.

Outside of Greenville, visitors can drive to Annie Oakley’s birthplace. The cabin is no longer in existence, but a historical marker points out the exact spot. The one disappointing aspect of this historical marker is that it is not actually on the spot, it points a visitor 1,028 feet east of the marker. The birthplace can be hard to find. It is on Spencer Rd. in Yorkshire, OH 45388; in between N. Star Fort Loramie Rd. and Houschilt Rd.