Days 12

Fairfax County, Virginia

Our adventures began on Saturday, when we went to Lincoln's Summer Cottage...that's okay, I'd never heard of it before, either. It's on the grounds of the Armed Forces Retirement Home, which is located just minutes from the White House. This retirement home for veterans (that's okay, I'd never heard of it before, either...broken record?) has a long history dating back to the time of the Civil War. Lincoln spent fully one quarter of his presidency in this residence.

Because the house had been used for various things after Lincoln's assassination, there is no original furniture for visitors to not touch, but the house is used, instead, as an interpretive space with each room representing a different year or period during Lincoln's presidency. The house is administered by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, so there is a fee to visit. But, if you find yourself in Washington, D.C. and are a fan of the 16th President, then follow the link above for the cottage and I've added directions below (we got lost, and based on something the guide said, apparently that happens a lot).

In front of the house is a statue of Lincoln. It was created by using his life mask and hand casts as size indicators. In other words, it is roughly life size. When my dad saw it he wanted to have a picture...as you can see, he's not as tall as Lincoln, but he read that Lincoln was 6' 3"/1.9 m tall. My dad used to be 6' 6"/1.98 m tall, but he's shrunk a bit...

 

That night, my sister, mom, and I went to Alexandria Old Town for a Ghost and Graveyard tour. The tours start from the Ramsey House Visitors Center on King Street and meander through Old Town for about an hour. Our tour guide was great! She was very entertaining and I certainly learned things that I didn't know before (and not just about Alexandria!). I highly recommend this tour. If you ever find yourself in Alexandria or it's environs and have nothing more pressing to do, take one of these tours! There are at least two different routes through the city and on Friday and Saturday they generally have tours starting at 7:30 and 9 pm.

 

BELOW: Our tour ended (perhaps they all do?) in the cemetery of the Old Presbyterian Meeting House. 1) Unmodified image of the front of the church. 2) Color modification of same image. Do you see anything?

 

 

This would be the same church where, in 1799, George Washington's burial service was conducted 4 times (his services were conducted here, despite the fact that he was an Anglican, because this was the only church within the town of Alexandria, proper, at that time; all the Anglican churches were in the country, and it was determined that his service shouldn't be held in a country church).

 

BELOW: Old Presbyterian Meeting House Cemetery. 1) Tomb of the Unknown Soldier of the American Revolutionary War. 2) Dr. James Craik, the physician who attended George Washington. 3) Members of our tour party chatting with the guide in the back of the cemetery. (First two images are unaltered from their original state, the third has been color adjusted for better clarity...do you see anything?)