President Lincoln's Cottage, D.C.

When President Abraham Lincoln first took office, outgoing President Buchanan made a recommendation to him. The federal government had recently purchased a home with a lot of land about two miles north of the District of Columbia's populated area. It was a nice retreat from the growing city and the very busy life of the president. Lincoln tucked that idea away in the back of his head. 

The house was built by the Riggs family, prominent bankers in the District. So even though it is referred to as a "cottage," the house was built to the highest standards and had enough bedrooms to accommodate the nine children in the Riggs family. In the 1850s, they sold it to the Federal Government, which planned to turn it into a soldiers' home for veterans of the Mexican American War. The first soldiers to arrive lived in the house but moved into a large dormitory constructed nearby on the grounds. The house was used by Buchanan as a summer White House and a place to get away from the heat (literal and metaphorical) of the city. The house is on a hill that overlooks downtown. From the back porch, people could see the Washington Monument and the Capitol Building being finished.

Lincoln brought his family to live there after their son Willy died, to get away from the attention. Mary Todd Lincoln was especially sensitive to the loss. They lived there for three summers (1862, 1863, 1864), hauling a lot of furniture and books from the White House so Lincoln could work and live comfortably there. He still commuted to the White House, about 35 minutes on horseback. Initially, he rode back and forth on his own until one day he came back to the cottage without his hat. When people asked about it, he said it wasn't important. Some soldiers went to investigate the path he took and found the hat with a bullet hole in it. They then insisted that Lincoln have an escort, which he would often try to dodge by leaving early. That commute was his only "alone time" to think and have a break from the pressures of being a war-time president and a grieving father. 

Now known as President Lincoln's Cottage, it was opened to the public in 2008. The buildings nearby still house military veterans (so the rest of the area is not open to visitors). An extensive cemetery, similar to Arlington National Cemetery, is nearby. When we visited on Juneteenth, we were able to park outside on the street. Getting in requires government photo ID since the veterans' part is off-limits. The visitor center and the cottage are not far from the entrance.

Fancy entrance

Visitors Center

Visitors can buy tickets to tour of the cottage at the center, if they haven't bought the tickets online previously. The building also has a gift shop and some exhibits about the Lincolns' life at the cottage. A nice mural is in the foyer.

Click to enlarge the mural

Looking at a 3D view from the time

The exhibit above has a 3D viewer that my children enjoyed. The write-up describes it as a type of View-Master. We had to explain to our children what a View-Master was. 

Portrait of the family after the death of Willy

The matriarch

The boys

A Lincoln statue

Informational signs explained Lincoln's relationship to the military, some of whom were camped at the cottage, partly for Lincoln's safety, partly for the veterans. He interacted with both groups, the young soldiers and the aged veterans.

With the troops

Map skills

When our tour time came, we gathered in a side room where the guide let us know the various rules about the cottage, including two chairs we could not sit in (too fragile). The house has plenty of other benches and furniture that we used. She also said we could not take pictures inside the cottage, so that's a bummer for the blog, more so for you, dear readers.

Some Lincoln quotes prepping us for the visit

The cottage was built in the Gothic Revival Style, with plenty of room for plenty of people. At one point, Secretary of War Stanton came and stayed with his family while the Lincolns were there. The home was a good spot for meetings where fewer prying eyes and spying ears could get information to print in the papers or to sell to the Confederates. 

The tour took us to various rooms, ending in the Lincolns' bedroom. That was where Lincoln drafted the Emancipation Proclamation. The furniture from the room is still in the White House (in the Lincoln bedroom, of course) though they recreated Lincoln's desk to display in the cottage bedroom. I was sorely tempted to take a photo but did not. I have bragged that I was in the Lincoln bedroom, however.

Front of the cottage

A door on a side wing

Connecting a wing

The back of the cottage

Back around by the front

Just across from the cottage is a life-size statue of Lincoln. He stood six-foot four-inches, still the tallest president of the United States. His hat was fourteen inches, adding another foot or so to his height. No wonder he's taller than the horse!

Lincoln statue

Nearby is a gazebo that was put in later but I thought it was nice, so I took a picture.

The tour guide said they get a lot of school visits but otherwise the cottage is not as popular as downtown sights. Hopefully they get more attention in the future! It is definitely worth visiting to get a more personal understanding of the Lincolns. And you could say you were in the Lincoln bedroom too!

Book Review: The Gettysburg Address: A Graphic Adaptation by J. Hennessey et al.

The Gettysburg Address: A Graphic Adaptation written by Jonathan Hennessey, art by Aaron McConnell, and lettering by Tom Orzechowski

Using the Gettysburg Address as a framework for telling the story of the American Civil War is the conceit governing this book. The premise intrigued me so I picked it up off the library shelf. The narrative starts off with a quick look at the horrors of the Civil War before zeroing in on the Gettysburg Address as an encapsulation of the major issues involved and as a signpost pointing both forward and backward in history. The narrative moves from the American War for Independence all the way into the middle of the twentieth century with the great successes of the Civil Rights Movement. 

But the book has a lot of problems.

 

The book establishes a false division between the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Their claim is that the Declaration is full of philosophical “unionist” ideas that are different from the Constitution's concepts that the states contractually join a union that they can leave (the defense made by the "secessionists"). The book asks where did States Rights go in the Constitution, a question that implies that the Constitution is more "unionist" than the Declaration. The authors completely leave out the Bill of Rights, the tenth of which explicitly says "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." The two documents are not in opposition. The Constitution is an outgrowth or a fruition of the Declaration of Independence, especially after the disastrous Articles of Confederation, which crafted a too weak federal government that clearly was not working. This book does talk about the Articles of Confederation but fails to draw the line between the Declaration and the Constitution that runs through the Articles.

The book also does a great disservice to Abraham Lincoln. They insist that he always harbored the idea that the slaves should be freed and sent to another country, their own country. He did consider this scheme but quickly rejected it as impractical and unjust. Also, after quoting Lincoln saying, "There is no reason in the world why the Negro is not entitled to all the natural rights enumerated in the Declaration of Independence--the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," [p. 97] the authors claim that Lincoln thought of these as Civil Rights and did not want the former slaves to to have Political Rights, i.e. the right to vote, hold office, and serve on juries. The whole point of the Declaration is that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are rights held prior to, above, and beyond the political system under which people live. They are natural rights, not granted by a civil or a political body. Men and women possess these rights because of their basic humanity (just as the white men possess these rights). Lincoln clearly argues that a government denying these natural rights is wrong.

I liked the idea of this book but was very disappointed in the execution.

Not recommended.

Movie Review: Reagan (2024)

Reagan (2024) directed by Sean McNamara

This bio-pic of President Ronald Reagan (Dennis Quaid) covers his whole life, from small-town middle-America to the White House and beyond. The story is framed as the reminiscences of a modern-day former KGB agent (Jon Voigt) who tells one of his Russian juniors how the Soviet Union fell. Almost all the credit goes to Reagan, though they do mention contributions from Pope Saint John Paul II (who is only seen in stock footage) and Margaret Thatcher (played by Leslie-Anne Down). The main focus is on Reagan's political conflict with the Soviets, arguably his largest contribution to history.

Quaid gives a very good performance as Reagan. He shows the integrity and strength of character through all his years for his involvement in the Screen Actors Guild to California politics and the presidency. The movie rushes a bit, trying to cover too many things in too little time. His complicated, evolving relationship with unions in California could make its own interesting film, or his years as governor of California, righting the economy while dealing in tough ways with civil unrest. The drama of his campaigns could make their own compelling narrative, as could the Iran-Contra scandal or his negotiations with Mikhail Gorbachev. This movie is more like highlights of what happened without digging deeper into the rich details. The film is just okay when it could have been great.

Mildly recommended--this is a good overview of Reagan's life and impact without getting into the depths of the man.

Frederick Douglass Geocaching Trail, Easton, Maryland

During our Easton trip in June 2026, I got up early Saturday morning, before everyone else, to find all the caches for the Frederick Douglass Geocaching Trail (see info about the kick-off event here). Douglass spent a lot of time in town, since he was born a slave in Talbot County in 1818. The town is proud of his influence, as is seen by Douglass's statue in front of the town courthouse. 

Frederick and me

I started the trail at the Easton Point docks, the original port for the town. Douglass arrived at this port in November 1878. He was a celebrated public figure and had a state room on the ship. He stayed at the Avon Hotel (more about that below). Both were precedents for a black man who had fled the area in the mid-1800s as a slave. Douglass may have taken a boat from here to go north to Baltimore on his way up the Underground Railroad. Now he was back with honor and respect.

The docks are a launching point for local sailors. They don't look like anything special.

Approaching the port

The main launch area

In town is a mural dedicated to the life and influence of Douglass. He is shown with his wife Anna Murray. The mural represents Douglass's impact through educational and military service. He encouraged President Lincoln to have a United States Colored Troop to fight in the Civil War. Many of Douglass's descendants served in the military.

The mural was created in 2021 by Michael Rosato who also made a mural of Harriet Tubman in Cambridge.

Douglass mural

The mural is on a rails-to-trails trail, so a nearby building commemorates that.

A nearby mural

The Avon Hotel in town was replaced with the Tidewater Inn. Douglass's last stay in Talbot County was in 1893, where the newspapers followed him around, reporting his every move. He also received visitors in the hotel's dining room and was generally treated as a celebrity.

Tidewater Inn, former site of Avon Hotel

Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church is the oldest A.M.E. church on the Eastern Shore and was rebuilt in 1878, celebrating its 60th year. That same year, Frederick Douglass also turned 60 and was present to dedicate the church. They still have the same pulpit that he used almost 150 years ago. I was unable to go inside since it was before 7 a.m. on a Saturday.

Bethel A.M.E. Church

During his 1893 visit, Douglass went to the Easton Colored School where he told the students of an orphan boy who had to sleep on cold floors but he taught himself to read and speak, eventually holding public offices and gaining some wealth. That young boy was Douglas and those children had the same opportunities to improve themselves. Afterwards, the building became the Moton High School and is now an apartment building.

Original Easton Colored School

Back by the courthouse is the site where Douglass was jailed in 1836 for attempting to escape slavery. Two years later he successfully escaped. The building was torn down and a new jail built in the same spot in 1881.

Former Talbot Jail

Not far away is the Talbot County Free Library. This branch of the library has a Frederick Douglass Room with paintings of the man and many of his writings and other artifacts. I visited later in the day but the room was closed.

Talbot County Free Library

The library is one of the places that geocachers can pick up the commemorative coin for finding all the caches. I chatted with the librarians while they went and fetched my coin!

Frederick Douglass Geocaching Trail coin obverse

Frederick Douglass Geocaching Trail coin reverse

Book Review: All the Beauty in the World by Patrick Bringley

All the Beauty in the World: The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me by Patrick Bringley

Patrick Bringley was an up-and-coming worker in NewYork City publishing when his older brother died of cancer. Patrick reevaluated his life and wound up taking a job as a security guard at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This book tells the story of his life as a security guard, admiring and engaging with the art, the visitors, and his own sense of mortality. 

After the initial set-up, Bringley mostly focuses on the art and his job as a guard. He has a lot of time to appreciate the art. He also becomes familiar with the sorts of people who come and how best to help them. The descriptions of the background work (organizing the various shifts and locations for the guards and other workers setting up the new or rearranged exhibits) is a fun "inside baseball" look at the machinations of a museum and art gallery. It's interesting and entertaining but his personal life is mostly set aside until the end of the book.

Toward the end of his ten-year tenure at the museum, he and his wife have two children. He talks a little bit about them and they seem to be the unacknowledged catalyst for Bringley moving on from the guard job. He applies for a position as a walking tour guide in Lower Manhattan, which he is excited about for the educational and research opportunities, especially for interaction with the public in a more direct way. He's come to some closure or acceptance with his brother Tom's death, though he does not get into the details of that either.

The text is enjoyable and Bringley is an entertaining narrator. I wanted a bit more out of the book, some more depth. I don't mind having read it but probably won't read it again.

This book is reviewed on A Good Story is Hard to Find podcast #382. Check it out!

Random Bits of Easton 2026 Trip

Here's some stuff from our trip out to Easton, Maryland, that did not make its own post...

On the way out to Easton, we hit heavy traffic crossing the Bay Bridge and decided to stop for some ice cream and a bathroom break on Kent Island. We went to Sugar Doodles, which has some delightful custom flavors. I had Cow Cream, which was a delightful blend of vanilla ice cream with chocolate and peanut butter ribbons and some peanut butter cup chunks. 

Yay, ice cream!

In Easton, we went to Bonheur Ice Cream and Pie. Since we had ice cream earlier in the day, we got some slices of pie for dessert--pecan and cherry.

The slices were the same size, despite the above optical illusion

The local library was a pick-up location for a geocoin that I qualified for on the trip. The library also has a seed library, so we took some home. It also had a cool fountain.

Talbot County Library

Cool like an avacado!

The next morning I got up early to do some geocaching and got breakfast from the Bagery. The bagels were fresh and delicious and eaten before a picture could be taken!

Here's the store, at least

Part of geocaching was finding this statue of Frederick Douglass

Across from our Airbnb is Idlewild Park. It has a huge playground where our kids played for a short time. The heat was already getting to be too much at 9 on a June morning!

Playground gates

Play village?

Forts and slides

We were in town just before Flag Day and saw tons of flags up in the park.

A patriotic town

After kayaking in the morning, we got lunch back at Bonheur Ice Cream and Pie. I had the ham and potato crepe, which came with a salad. I was surprised to see the salad served on top of the crepe.

Crepe and salad

Book Review: Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales #13 by Nathan Hale

Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales: Bones and Berserkers by Nathan Hale 

This anthology of thirteen tales runs the gamut from strict history (like the insane butler killing everyone at Taliesin in 1914) to complete fiction (Edgar Allan Poe's Hop-Frog). The framing story with American patriot Nathan Hale, his executioner, the British officer, and the African American slave, provides comedy for what turns out to be some very grim stories. The jokes take the edge off, as does the graphic novel format. Cartoon drawings of chopped off limbs or rotting corpses are a lot less graphic than photos or realistic drawings. That said, this book is really for older kids, not the very young. There's even a joke about that, explain that if you are a second-grader reading way above your level, you probably shouldn't be reading this book. I did learn a lot about a bunch of different stories and found it interesting throughout.

Recommended, but only if you can handle it!