Tips for Visiting Presidential Memorials
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Washington, DC is the place you think of first when it comes to Presidential Memorials, combine a trip there with a trip to Virginia and you can absorb a lot of Presidential history. You could spend a month in Washington, DC and neighboring Virginia just visiting sites connected with George Washington. First stop should be the mall and the the Washington monument.
Then head on over to the Smithsonian where you can see objects related to Washington’s presidency, including his uniform and the lamp he used when writing his farewell address.
Just outside Washington, in Alexandria, VA sits the Washington Masonic Memorial. Washington was a member of the Alexandria Masonic Lodge and the memorial was built in 1910 to both honor our first President and to house and display the many Washington artifacts owned by the masons. You’ll find a variety of Masonic and presidential artifacts in the fourth floor’s George Washington Museum.
George Washington’s birthplace is located in Westmoreland County, Virginia. The ancestral home of the Washingtons burned down in 1799. Its original foundation was excavated in 1936 and stands today as it did then. The Memorial House and Colonial Kitchen were constructed in 1931. The reconstructed plantation depicts the culture and social standing of the Washingtons during George Washington’s youth.
In 1738, when he was 6, George Washington’s father moved the family to Ferry Farm, on the banks of Rappahannock River near Fredericksburg. Although the family owned and farmed several plantations, Ferry Farm was where George Washington spent his formative years. He inherited the farm from his father, Augustine Washington, when he turned 21.
Ferry Farm is hosting a number of special events February 16-18 to commemorate Washington’s birthday. Also, if you visit the farm on the weekends, you might want to stop by Kenmore, the home of Washington’s sister, Betty Washington Lewis. The house has just undergone a years-long renovation.
Located just 16 miles from Washington, DC Mount Vernon was Washington’s home for 45 years. He inherited the plantation in 1761 and expanded it from 2,000 to 8,000 acres over the years. Visitors can tour the Mansion house, where George and Martha Washington lived, and more than a dozen outbuildings including the slave quarters, kitchen, stables, and greenhouse. There are also four different gardens available for touring, a forest trail for hiking and the George Washington Pioneer Farmer site, a four-acre working farm. George and Martha Washington are buried on the estate in a tomb where wreath-laying ceremonies are held daily. A Slave Memorial and Burial Ground is nearby.
The Jefferson Memorial commemorates our third president, who was also author of the Declaration of Independence. Visitors to Washington who are interested in Jefferson should also tour the Jefferson building of the Library of Congress. Jefferson sold his library to Congress after its collection of 3,000 books was destroyed by the British in the War of 1812. The Jefferson was the library’s original building; it’s known as the most beautiful building in Washington. It’s open to the public year round on Monday - Saturday from 10am to 5pm.
Jefferson’s home, Monticello, is about 125 miles from Washington. Jefferson worked on the house, building and refining it, for over 40 years. Unfortunately, he died in debt and his heirs were forced to sell it. The Thomas Jefferson foundation bought the house in 1923 and spent years restoring the house and gardens, collecting furnishings that were actually owned by Jefferson and furniture of the period so that it now resembles the building that Jefferson knew. The gardens have also been restored according to Jefferson’s plans and include a vegetable garden, an eight-acre fruit orchard and a winding flower walk designed by Jefferson himself.
Not far from Monticello, is the University of Virginia, one of the country’s first state colleges, which Jefferson founded. Jefferson designed the college as an “academical village,” a place where shared learning infused daily life. Plans were developed for 10 pavilions attached to two rows of student rooms and connected by an inward-facing colonnade. Each pavilion was identified with a subject to be studied and inhabited by the professor who taught that subject.
At the head of the shared lawn would stand the library–the university’s Rotunda– its dome shape inspired by Rome’s Pantheon and symbolizing the enlightened human mind. Guided tours of the Rotunda and lawns are available throughout the year, with the exception of the university’s three-week winter break.
Poplar Forest is yet another place in Virginia connected with Thomas Jefferson. Poplar Forest became Jefferson’s private retreat, designed by him to become “the best dwelling house in the state, except that of Monticello; perhaps preferable to that, as more proportioned to the faculties of a private citizen.” Jefferson took over the estate in 1773 after his wife inherited the plantation in the Blue Ridge Mountains. It went through many hands before being bought by a non-profit group which began restoring it in 1993. The restoration is ongoing. The house is open to visitors from April through November.
James Madison’s official memorial is the James Madison Memorial Building of the Library of Congress, a fitting tribute to the man known as the father of the Constitution. To continue on with your study of Madison, you might want to stop by the National Archives where you can see the Constitution as well as the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights.
Montpelier, Madison’s lifelong home is about a two-hour drive from Washington. The Montpelier estate features the Madison mansion, historic buildings, exhibits, archaeological sites, gardens, forests, and a freedman’s cabin and farm. Here, in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains you can spend an hour or two — or a day or two — strolling the grounds, picnicking, and learning more about the man whose contemporaries called him the “Father of the Constitution,” and Dolley Madison, the woman who was the first to be called First Lady.
In the nearby town of Orange, Virginia is the Madison Museum.
The Lincoln Memorial is one of the most well-known memorials in Washington, DC. It’s a beautiful place to visit. Combine a trip here with a trip to Ford’s Theatre, where Lincoln was assassinated.
Also in Washington are:
- Theodore Roosevelt Island, a memorial to the nation’s first conservationist president. The Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Association purchased this 88.5-acre island in 1932 and dedicated it to the public in memory of Roosevelt. Frederick Law Olmstead, Jr., a leading landscape architect, worked with the Civilian Conservation Corps to bring the neglected island into a mature woodland sanctuary. Today, the National Park Service protects the island, while providing for public enjoyment. It’s a great place to hike and enjoy the outdoors.
- The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, one of the newest memorial’s on the Washington Mall. The memorial is divided into four outdoor galleries, one for each of FDR’s terms in office. The galleries feature shade trees, waterfalls, statuary, and quiet alcoves.
- The Woodrow Wilson House, where Wilson lived after leaving the White House.
- The Lyndon Baines Memorial Grove on the Potomac.
In Virginia you can also visit:
- Ash Lawn-Highland, the home of President James Monroe and his wife, Elizabeth Kortright Monroe from 1799 to 1823.
- Berkeley Plantation, birthplace of William Henry Harrison, ninth president of the United States.
- Sherwood Forest, home to President James Tyler from 1842 until his death in 1862.
- John F. Kennedy’s grave at Arlington National Cemetery.
photo credits: alphageek, chris kelly, cipher, clicksee, philliplarson, justme, sanetw
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