These Lovely Homes Are Where the 8 Best US Presidents Lived

George Washington/s Mount Vernon in Virginia, courtesy of Wikipedia

My husband and I have been to thirty of the forty-five American Presidents’ homes, tombs, and/or presidential libraries. We always sought them out while we RVed across the US. It’s too bad we didn’t get to all of them. In this post, I focus on the eight presidential homes which made the greatest impression on us. When I completed the list, I found out they also represent great times in our history.  And the Presidents that lived there are the Top 8 of the ranking of presidents from C-SPAN'S Presidential Historians Survey of 2017 where nearly 100 historians measured them according to 10 qualities of presidential leadership. 

Our Early Years

The first president of the US is George Washington (1789-1797). He was the general who led the country to victory in America’s War for Independence. Mt. Vernon is his historic home and estate. The land had been owned by his family since 1674 and the original house was built by his father in 1754. George Washington expanded it into a one and a half story mansion in the 1750s and 1770s.  A typical southern plantation with servants’ homes, carriage sheds, storage buildings, gardens, and a family tomb, it is now a National Historic Landmark, just 13 miles south of Washington DC. The back of the mansion dramatically looks out to the historic Potomac River.

Thomas Jefferson's Monticello in Charlottesville, Virginia, courtesy of Wikipedia

Our third president is Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809). He is remembered as a Founding Father and principal author of the Declaration of Independence. He inherited this estate in Charlottesville, Virginia when he was just 26 when he immediately started designing the plantation house in neoclassical design. He further improved it with French elements while he served as the nation’s MInister to France. This most impressive estate displays his brilliance in influencing a new architectural style with new and highly functional elements. Designated a National Historic Landmark, it is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site together with the University of Virginia which he also designed. Located on an 850-ft high summit of Southwest Mountains, Monticello means “little mountain.”

The Civil War Years

the Lincoln family welcoming us into the Lincoln home in Springfield, Illinois

Our 16^th President, Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865), is frequently cited as the best president we have ever had because he ably led the country during its worst crisis. He was able to preserve the union and abolished slavery and his untimely assassination further glorified his presidency. His Greek revival style modest home is great to visit because it is he and his wife, Mary, played by actors, who welcome you to the tour in downtown Springfield, Illinois. Actually, we also visited the Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park in Hodgenville, Kentucky. It exhibits his humble beginnings with the tiny cabin where he was born and the 56 steps representing his short life leading to it. But it is the Lincoln Presidential Library in the city that is the testament to his greatness. To me, it is the best presidential library and museum we have visited because he comes alive in holograms, in the Douglas-Lincoln debates using multiple TVs and other innovations.

The Conservation Years

the Maltese Cross Cabin at the Theodore Roosevelt National Park, courtesy of the NPS

Our 26th President (1901-1909) is the youngest president we have ever had. He rose to the presidency at 42 after President McKinley was assassinated. But he made such a significant contribution to the country. He is known for his Square Deal and the start of the construction of the Panama Canal but he made conservation a top priority, establishing national parks, forests, and monuments to preserve the nations's natural resources. We were not able to visit his Sagamore Hill National Historic Site in New York but we were able to visit his birthplace in New York City. But it was seeing the Maltese Cross Cabin now on display at the Theodore Roosevelt National Park that gave us a better view of the man whose cabin experiences in North Dakota gave him his great interest in the outdoors. that shaped his conservationist views.

The WWII Years

Bill at Franklin Roosevelt's Springwood Estate in Hyde Park, New York

Franklin Roosevelt was our 32^nd President (1933-1945). He won a record four presidential elections, led the nation through the Great Depression and through WWII. His home, the Springwood Estate, in Hyde Park, New York is a National Historic Site. The last renovation he made doubled the size of the mansion and made it in Colonial revival style. Since it was owned by his mother, he built Top Cottage in Hyde Park as his own private home. His wife, Eleanor Roosevelt, redefined the role of the First Lady and became ninth of the Top 10 Most Widely Admired People of the 20^th Century. Her home, Val-Kill Cottage, just two miles from Springwood, has also been named a National Historic Site.

Harry Truman's Little White House in Key West, Florida, courtesy of Wikipedia

When Roosevelt died, his vice-president, Harry Truman became our 33^rd president. He authorized the first and only use of nuclear weapons that ended WWII, led the rebuilding of Europe after WWII through the Marshall Plan, and established the Truman doctrine and NATO. He also established the Little White House in Key West, Florida where he spent the winters when his doctor ordered him to stay in warmer places. It was originally the first officers’ quarters of a submarine naval station later converted into the base commandant’s home. The House would later be the site of many historic agreements and meetings.

Post-WWII Years

Dwight Eisenhower's Boyhood Home and Presidential Library in Abilene, Kansas 

Dwight Eisenhower became our 34^th president (1953-1961). A 5-star general, he was the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe and was directly responsible for the success of Operation Normandy that led to the end of WWII. He authorized the creation of NASA, contributed to the end of McCarthyism, and built the Interstate Highway System. His terms saw widespread economic prosperity. The Eisenhower National Historic Site is near Gettysburg in Pennsylvania but it was his boyhood home in Abilene, Kansas which we visited, my husband being a native of Kansas, too. It is a two-story wood-frame house in an acre of land. It also houses his Presidential Library and Museum and his final resting place. 

John Kennedy's Hyannis Memorial and Museum in Hyannis, Massachusetts

After Eisenhower, John Kennedy was elected to become our 35^th president (1961-1963). It may have been a short presidency but it was a beloved one. The majority of his work was done during the height of the Cold War and his speeches inspired the nation. The whole world mourned his assassination. We visited the Kennedy Compound in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts. Kennedy used it as a base for his presidential campaign and later as a summer White House. There are three buildings: the Main House owned by the patriarch Joseph Kennedy and where Edward Kennedy lived until his death, John Kennedy’s smaller home on Irving Avenue, and Robert Kennedy’s home on Marchant Avenue. None of these places are open to the public. Instead, we visited the JFK Hyannis Museum nearby.

We are still hoping to see the other fifteen homes of the presidents we were not able to see. Visiting presidential homes has been truly instructive for us. They show us how great men were influenced to be the men they eventually became and how, in turn, they influenced the country by the way they lived and governed.

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