Tag: Thomas Jefferson

The White House

Sixteen-hundred Pennsylvania Avenue is among the most famous addresses in the United States. The 132-room home and workplace has also been known as the Presidents House and the Executive Mansion, but since 1902 its officially been called the White House.

When George Washington was President, government meetings were held in various cities. He and Martha Washington kept two homes in New York and one in Pennsylvania. Seeing the need for a federal city, the President and Congress agreed in 1790 to the Residence Act. This provided for a district not exceeding ten miles squareon the river Potomac. The new federal city would be designed by Pierre L’Enfant, and the city planner would hold a blueprints contest for the Presidents house.

James Hoban, an Irishman living in South Carolina, won the competition with a classic Georgian design. (Thomas Jefferson was also among the entrants; he competed under a pseudonym.) Hoban based the building on a dukes palace in Ireland.

Two states, Maryland and Virginia, ceded land for the new federal district. Both were slaveholding states, and slaves broke ground for the home. The work was completed by European immigrants. The new house wasnt built in time for the Washingtons to move in; John and Abigail Adams were the first to take up residence in 1800.

The building has undergone countless changes since the years of John and Abigail Adams. Interior redecorating and structural changes started with the next resident President, Thomas Jefferson. He ordered French furniture and French wallpaper, and he added space outdoors to conceal stables and storage. Other Presidents would make even larger additions: Theodore Roosevelt — who had six children and required more space contributed the West Wing; and FDR added the East Wing during World War II to conceal construction of an underground bunker.

Each Administrations time at the White House brought something new, but here are some of the more notable changes:

* British soldiers burnt the building in 1814 during James Madisons presidency. Most of the home and its contents were destroyed by fire. A thunderstorm saved outside walls, and Dolley Madison rescued a famous portrait of George Washington. The architect James Hoban was available for renovations.
* The White House needed an extensive washing after 20,000 muddy partiers celebrated Andrew Jacksons inauguration. Jackson soon installed running water. He also planted magnolia trees and made plans for later landscaping.
* James Garfield installed the first elevator.
* Harry Truman extensively renovated the whole house and added a second porch. He also added basements for wartime safety.
* The White House was made more wheelchair-accessible during FDRs service. A pool was also added in consideration of his physical challenges.
* Richard Nixon cemented over the FDR pool to create a Press Briefing Room.
* Jacquelyn Kennedy directed the most extensive and historically accurate White House restoration. She also planted a flower garden.
* Rosalynn Carter contributed an Office of the First Lady.

Today the White House Complex consists of six stories and 55,000 square feet of space. The Executive Residence spans several floors. Two basement levels also provide storage, service areas, and a bomb shelter for the Presidents family. The West Wing holds executive offices including the Oval Office, the Cabinet Room, and the Situation Room. The East Wing is home to offices for the First Lady, White House correspondence staff, and other White House staff members.

Some of the interior is visible to the public, but tours must be pre-arranged by a member of Congress. Visitors might tour the State Floor, where several rooms are simply named by color: the Green Room, Red Room, and Blue Room. The Green Room is named for the moss green silk that lines its walls. Its used for informal meetings and photo opportunities with foreign political leaders. Famous Green Room paintings depict Benjamin Franklin, John Quincy Adams, and Abigail Adams. The Red Room is decorated like an early-1800s parlor with a marble mantel. The Blue Room is the White Houses most formal setting. Its shaped like an oval and is furnished with gilded furniture. This is where the White House Christmas tree is traditionally placed. Visitors might also see the Map Room, the State Dining Room, or the famous Lincoln Bedroom.

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Four Presidents and a Lady

When you think of the breath taking splendor that is the North American continent, it seems we will never stop being astounded by the beauty all around us in this phenomenal land that God has given us for our home. But every now and then as you re sightseeing in this magnificent land, you gaze upon something so breath taking, so inspiring and yet not entirely made by nature.

We have in diverse locations around our countryside some of the most phenomenal man made works of art that have ever been created. Small wonder that any vacation that sets out to see the wonders of our nation would have to include trips to see such amazing creations as these man made sights that our culture has produced.

Mount Rushmore in South Dakota is a perfect example of a magnificent sightseeing stop that combines the greatness of nature with the creativity, tenacity and artistic talent of mankind. In addition its a well crafted monument to the greatness of our leadership especially in the early years of the federation.

It is almost impossible stand and not be awed by these mountain sized tributes to George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. Some might say that we are participating in a bit of hero worship making such grand statues to our early presidents. To that I say, guilty as charged. And why should we not hold these men as the tremendous heroes that they were and still are? And Mount Rushmore only dramatically brings out our deep sense of gratitude and respect we have for these early presidents who put all on the line to make this country the great nation that it is.

The statue of liberty in the New York harbor is just the kind of fantastic man made sight that both makes its visitors go wow and inspires everyone who sees it because of what that statue stands for. Just like the monuments at Mount Rushmore, Lady Liberty, as she is called is also stunning for the striking physical beauty of the harbor and of Manhattan Island to her North.

As much as we sometimes have mixed feelings about the relationship between the French government and our own, this gift that the French gave to our nation when we were just becoming a real country of our own is such a beautiful reminder of the value and enduring friendships America has with the international community. But more than that, because so much of our citizenry came to this country with little more than a dream and the clothes on their backs, the Statue of Liberty is a dramatic statement that this country is the home of the brave, the land of the free and the place people come to know true liberty in a world where freedom and opportunity are often very scarce indeed.

But not all of the man made wonders you can take in when sightseeing all over America are statues. In a way, the city of Washington DC itself is one huge work of art. This is particularly easy to see when you watch video of shots of the city taken from a helicopter that shows the stunning view looking down the Washington Mall. The elegant and simple Washington monument stands proudly in the center surrounded buy the reflecting pool, the White House, Congress and the most amazing art museum campus in the world, the many buildings of the Smithsonian Institution. The beauty of Washington is so unstoppable that it could not even be contained to one building. Instead to really get a feel for this amazing artistic creation, you need lots of time to explore the nations capital on foot.

The man made wonders that are welcoming you as a visitor all over America are more evidence of how great this country really is. And because they all touch us so deeply because of the combination of the beauty of art and the wonderment of nature, they point to what makes America great too. And that is the glorious country God gave us to live in combined with the heart of a great people who are the nation called America.

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Mount Rushmore

Mount Rushmore
In 1927, workmen with lively nicknames like Whiskey Art, Palooka, and Hoot quit
their regular jobs. They were among the 400 people invited to create Mount Rushmore, a
massive mountainside carving of four United States presidents in the Black Hills of South
Dakota. The work would be on-and-off labor lasting fourteen years.
Mount Rushmore was conceived by the South Dakota state historian Doane Robinson in
1923. He had learned of a similar project underway in the southern US. Just east of
Atlanta, the sculptor Gutzon Borglum had been commissioned to carve into Stone
Mountain the likeness of Confederate General Robert E. Lee and a column of soldiers.
The historian thought a similar undertaking by Borglum could draw tourists dollars to
the Black Hills region.
To help maximize tourism interest, Borglum suggested that South Dakota choose a theme
of national significance. The men settled upon the first 150 years of United States history,
with four presidents being selected to represent the nations development. These include
George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt.
Collectively, these men symbolized the countrys founding, expansion, and unity. The
project received approval from Congress and President Calvin Coolidge.
As the project began in 1927, Lakota Sioux people and their supporters opposed the
undertaking. Traditionally, they had called the mountain Six Grandfathers Mountain and
traveled it for spiritual journeys. Following the Black Hills War of 1876-1877, the Treaty
of Fort Laramie granted the land to the Lakota in perpetuity. Now, the land had again
been taken. Furthermore, the creation of 60-foot faces of United States presidents,
symbols of their oppression, would forever mar the sacred landscape. The fact that
Borglum was a Ku Klux Klan member added to the insult!
Six Grandfathers was first informally called Mount Rushmore during an 1885 expedition.
Charles Rushmore, a wealthy New York lawyer and prospector, suggested giving the
mountain his name. However, it was also known to white Americans as Cougar
Mountain, Sugarloaf Mountain, Slaughterhouse Mountain, and Keystone Cliffs. The
United States Board of Geographic Names officially named Mount Rushmore in 1930.
Borglum chose this particular mountain for two reasons. First, its face met with sunlight
for most of the day. Second, it was composed of smooth granite. The rock would be
conducive to carving, and the material erodes very slowly (about an inch every 10,000
years). Nonetheless, over fourteen years of labor the faces suffered minor cracks.
Fractures were sealed with pegmatite and are evident in lighter streaks on the presidents
foreheads.
As the project went on, some people continued to question what the faces were
symbolizing, and whether the monument should be considered racist given the history of
US expansion through native lands. In 1937, before the project was finished, a bill in US
Congress proposed adding the face of Susan B. Anthony, a symbol for civil rights.
However, federal funds were ultimately refused.
Members of the American Indian Movement occupied the monument in 1971. The
Lakota holy man John Fire Lame Deer said that the protestors formed a symbolic shroud
over the presidents faces, which shall remain dirty until the treaties concerning the
Black Hills are fulfilled. (A monument to the Native American leader Crazy Horse, first
proposed in 1939, is being constructed eight miles away. It is also controversial.)
Of some solace to opponents is that the monument, already six stories tall, was intended
to be much larger but lacked funding. The original project cost just under $1 million
during the Great Depression. (The largest single donation came from Charles Rushmore
himself, who gave $5,000.) Borglum had hoped to depict the presidents from head to
waist.
The artist also intended to chisel an expansive panel in the shape of the Louisiana
Purchase. This would include gilded words commemorating founding documents and
territorial expansion; imagine the golden 8-foot tall letters U. S. Constitution carved
into a mountainside. Instead, similar information is now engraved on porcelain panels
inside a vault installed behind the faces in 1998. The engravings include the Declaration
of Independence, the Constitution, biographies of the four presidents, and a history of the
United States.
A 1998 update to the Visitor Center cost $58 million. The renovation added the porcelain
panels, expanded visitor parking, and created a Lincoln Borglum Museum.
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