In Pursuit of John Wilkes Booth

As many of you know, I have two favorite places in DC Metro- Ford's Theatre and Mt. Vernon Estate.
2011 marked the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War and there have been many opportunities to learn more about the historic events that took place  here. It is my impression that President Lincoln is well deserving of his popularity- an astute statesman, war strategist and kind, compassionate man.

A must see in  DC is Ford's Theatre and Museum  http://www.fordstheatre.org/home/plan-your-visit/daytime-visits-fords-theatre/museum    The clothing that President Lincoln was wearing the night of the assassination is on display as well as the murder weapon.  The Museum of American History  also has some stunning Lincoln artifacts.

Right across the street, is the Petersen House http://www.fordstheatre.org/home/performances-events /tours/petersen-house both venues are operated by the National Park Service and admission is free.  The Petersen House is where Lincoln was carried after being shot, he died there the next morning. The house is sandwiched between modern day tourist traps that sell souvenirs and I believe The Lincoln Waffle House a greasy spoon that I visited with Holly and Ryne on their visit

It must be lonely to be a park ranger at the Petersen House since it is easily overlooked and takes a backseat to the more glamorous Ford's Theatre.  Worth the trip across the street and you may even be lucky enough to jaywalk directly to it.

My sister Mary Beth told me about a great book about Lincoln, entitled Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin.  I got the audio book from Sandy for Christmas and I will be listening to it on the long drive home in February. Coincidentally, a Steven Spielberg movie is being made from the book and has been filming in Richmond and DC during our time here. It seems there was an uproar in Richmond, as the lighting of the Christmas tree at the capitol was postponed to accommodate the filming of the movie. It will star Daniel Day Lewis and Sally Field and should be a real winner- looking forward to it!

Tom is reading Manhunt by James L Swanson and it is a good read. Another good book I've heard of is My Thoughts be Bloody by Nora Titone describing the rivalry between John Wilkes Booth and his brother Edwin.

  After seeing the movie, The Conspirators we became intrigued with Mary Surratt  who was hanged as a conspirator in the Lincoln assassination.   We took a trip to Maryland to see The Surratt House and Tavern Museum formerly in Surrattsville MD, now Clinton MD.  It was only about an hour's drive and was tucked in among suburbia. http://www.surratt.org/

We had a nice personalized tour from a friendly senior docent- lovely and unhurried as it was just us and another family. Interesting to see the former tavern and inn which has been restored and preserved by The Surratt Society and is a facility of the Maryland Capital Park and Planning Commission. Only $3.50 for admission and you can take all the pictures you want- yahoo!

After that, we decide to head to Dr. Mudd's farmhouse about 5 miles away as the crow flies. He is the Dr. who treated Wilkes Booth after he broke his leg while making his getaway from Ford's Theatre.  An amazing distance to travel on horseback with a broken leg.  We knew the farmhouse was closed for the season, it would be hard to get to on a snowy day in Winter.  It's in Beantown MD- how about that!
http://www.somd.lib.md.us/MUSEUMS/Mudd.htm

Mary Surratt's Boardinghouse still stands in DC but is now the Wok and Roll Chinese restaurant with a small plaque marking it, courtesy of the Chinatown Lion's Club. We made a quick side trip there on the day we took the NPR tour.

On the way home we stopped at Fort Washington, which is across from the Virginia side of the Potomac and visible from The Mount Vernon Estate.  It was a bitterly cold day and we were pretty much the only ones there except for the deer who were not at all disturbed by visitors and continued to munch on the grass while we took pictures.  This is another site worth the trip- but probably more pleasant on a warm day with a lovely view and unpretentious visitor's center. http://www.nps.gov/fowa/index.htm

Tom surveys the guard's quarters and gets nostalgic for his days as a Sheriff's Deputy. 








We didn't make it back to Port Royal Virgina where Wilkes-Booth was shot and killed.  Too much to see and too little time left.  It has been quite an adventure on our quest to see to see as much as we can of the historical sites all around us. Now, on to Old Town Alexandria.

Thanksgiving weekend: Gravestones, No Turkey Bones

We had a very nice Thanksgiving, in spite of the fact that we missed family and friends this year.

Tom and I had a great dinner at the Fort Belvoir officer's club and I was happy to forgo the cooking and clean-up. no turkey day leftovers though....

 The next day,we headed to Charlottesville Virginia to see Thomas Jefferson's Monticello.  We have been lucky to have such an unseasonably warm Fall and beginning of Winter and have not been hampered in our travels by inclement weather.  The traffic was light and we were quite pleased with ourselves for choosing a perfect day to see the estate. Then, while listening to the radio we heard there was a big football game at the University of Virginia  and heavy traffic was expected- darn!   We had just commented on the wide open spaces and great little towns we had passed through and then the city folk drivers began appearing on the highway into Charlottesville. Increased speeds, horn honking and unwillingness to let others merge, betrayed their origins.   Oh well, soon we had the roadways to ourselves again and we marveled at the beautiful scenery at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Monticello was beautiful and fairly uncrowded. The Christmas events were scheduled for the following weeks with many visitors expected, so we had a nice unhurried tour.  It would be beautiful to see it in the Spring when the gardens are in full bloom.  Worth the trip and a must see in Virginia.  http://www.monticello.org/  A recurrent theme of the weekend was gravestones and we saw some beautiful old burial sites and headstones. Jefferson is buried there and his family plot is a short walk from the mansion.

We had just seen the Leonardo DiCaprio movie J. Edgar, interesting to see since it was partially filmed in the DC area. At the conclusion of the movie, it said that he was buried in the Congressional Cemetery in DC.  We decided a field trip was in order and spent a few hours there seeing various headstones of notables such as John Phillip Sousa, Matthew Brady and Taza- son of the Apache Chief Cochise. http://www.congressionalcemetery.org/welcome-historic-congressional-cemetery

The cemetery was an odd mix of the very old, dating back to The War of 1812 while jutting out in the middle of an urban area that has seen better days. Very interesting and another unexpected find in DC.

The grand finale of Thanksgiving weekend was seeing A Christmas Carol at Ford's Theatre with friends Kari and JR.  It was our second time to see this version of the play. I understand that it is updated every five years or so.  http://www.fords.org/event/christmas-carol-1  Thanks for choosing such great tickets Kari-outstanding  seats.  I got teary-eyed during the play as I knew this would be my last time to see this wonderful production.  And true to form, there was even a prominent gravestone in the play! Ebeneezer Scrooge's, show to him by the Ghost of Christmas Future.

As you can see, my blogging has continued to be backlogged and we are visiting the sites so fast I can barely keep up with it. Only about 6 weeks left before we leave for Arizona and although my wish list of places to visit is being fulfilled, we have a lot more to see.