The President Woodrow Wilson House

Fall Newsletter 2014
The President Woodrow
Wilson House is a
national historic
landmark and house
museum.
The museum promotes
a greater awareness of
President Wilson’s
public life and ideals for
future generations
through guided tours,
exhibitions, and
educational programs.
The museum also
serves as a community
preservation model and
resource, dedicated to
the stewardship and
presentation of an
authentic collection and
property.
The President Woodrow
Wilson House is a
property of the
National Trust for
Historic Preservation,
a privately funded, nonprofit corporation,
helping people protect,
enhance and enjoy the
places that matter to
them.
Tax-deductible donations to
support the President
Woodrow Wilson House may
be made online at
WoodrowWilsonHouse.org
or by mail to 2340 S Street,
NW, Washington, DC 20008.
(202) 387-4062
From Left to Right: Robert W. Vonnoh, Mrs. Wilson and Her Three Daughters, 1913, Oil on Canvas (The President Woodrow Wilson House
Collection); President and Edith Wilson on their wedding day, December 18, 1915.
The Wives of Woodrow Wilson
Remembering the Legacies of Ellen Wilson and Edith Wilson
At the Woodrow Wilson House we
remember and honor both of
Woodrow Wilson’s wives.
Ellen
Louise Axson married Woodrow
Wilson in 1885. Ellen and Woodrow
Wilson had three daughters together
and were married almost 30 years,
until her death in 1914, after fifteen
months as First Lady.
In 1915
Woodrow Wilson met and married
Edith Bolling Galt. She served as
First Lady for over five years and was
married to Woodrow Wilson for over
eight years, until his death in 1924.
Edith Wilson lived in the House at
2340 S Street until her death in
1961, whereupon she left the House
to the National Trust for Historic
Preservation to be used as a
memorial to President Wilson.
This year marks the centennial of
Ellen Axson Wilson’s passing. She
was with Woodrow Wilson from his
days as a graduate student, through
his academic career, and during his
political rise to the Presidency. In her
Inside this Issue:
1 ▪ The Wives of Woodrow Wilson
2 ▪ The Curatorial Corner
3 ▪ Recent Happenings
honor we have displayed this year the
pastel portrait of her made in 1911
by Frederic Yates. From December
until the Spring 2015 we will be
displaying in our gallery a collection
of Ellen Axson Wilson’s paintings,
landscapes
in
an
American
Impressionist style. Earlier this year
this exhibition was installed at the
Martha Berry Museum in Rome,
Georgia, Ellen Axson Wilson’s
hometown.
(See
“Recent
Happenings” on page 3.) A statue in
honor of Ellen Axson Wilson is
proposed to be installed in Rome in
2015.
Edith Bolling Wilson was raised in
Wytheville, Virginia, where her father
was a judge.
Her birthplace and
girlhood home is preserved there by
the Edith Bolling Wilson Birthplace
Foundation. Our Executive Director,
Robert Enholm, traveled there in
October to attend the grand opening
of the Bolling Wilson Hotel, a historic
(Continued on Page 2)
3 ▪ This Season in History
4 ▪ Calendar of Upcoming Events
4 ▪ Spotlight on our Collection
Fall 2014
2
The President Woodrow Wilson House
(Continued from Page 1)
preservation project across the street
from the birthplace. Edith Bolling Wilson
was by Woodrow Wilson’s side during his
reelection in 1916 and the U.S. entry
into World War I. She accompanied him
on his trip to the Paris Peace Conference
in 1919 and his cross-country train trip
in support of the League of Nations. She
cared for him following his stroke and
during his disability and partial recovery
in the White House and later in this
House on S Street in Washington. Edith
Bolling Wilson lived in the House for 40
years as a former First Lady, occupying a
front seat on a turbulent period of
American history.
As a “thank you” to the donors and
.
supporters of the Woodrow Wilson
House, we are hosting on Thursday,
December 18, an open house reception
(from 4:00 to 7:00 PM).
(See
“Upcoming Events” on page 4.) This
date is the 99th Wedding Anniversary of
Woodrow and Edith Wilson, and we
shall serve wedding cake for the
occasion. On display will be a piece of
the wedding cake from Woodrow and
Edith’s wedding in 1915! This antique
piece of cake is made available by the
grandchildren of Joseph P. Tumulty,
who was President Wilson’s Secretary
(or Chief of Staff) and attended the
wedding.
Please join us in celebrating the
legacy of our 28th President and his two
remarkable wives.
THE CURATORIAL CORNER
This
year,
the
Mid-Atlantic
Association of Museums (MAAM)
hosted their annual conference in D.C.
The Registrar’s Committee of MAAM
created the White Gloves Gang day of
service seventeen years ago in
conjunction
with
the
MAAM
conference. This group of registrars,
collections managers, archivists, and
conservators dedicated an entire day to
helping local museums with a specific
project. The White Gloves Gang’s name
comes from the white cotton gloves
worn by museum professionals to
protect the collection from oils on our
skin.
The President Woodrow Wilson
House is grateful to be one of the sites
who benefited from these dedicated
volunteers. Our project was to re-house
all the objects in framed storage,
including oil paintings, posters, and
prints. Storage spaces must be cleaned,
evaluated, and updated regularly. In our
case, we lined the wooden shelves and
individually wrapped the objects in
Stephanie Daugherty
Associate Manager and Curator
archival materials to help prevent
deterioration.
Additionally,
we
photographed each object, located its
catalogue number, evaluated its condition
and determined a new home location.
This is just one of the many projects we
conduct behind the scenes to ensure this
collection and house is preserved for
future generations.
Robert A. Enholm
Executive Director
Sarah Andrews
Manager of Marketing and
Events
Stephanie Daugherty
Associate Manager and
Curator
Elena Popchock
Collections Care
Housekeeper
John Pucher
Manager of Business and
Operations
Allyson Saca
Communications Coordinator
ADVISORY COUNCIL
Linna Barnes – Chair
Ambassador Victor H. Ashe
Nancy A. Bliss – Past Chair
Elizabeth Cooper Doyle
Edward F. Gerber
Frank B. Gilbert
Dr. Dianne T. McRae
Garrett C. Peck
HONORARY MEMBERS
Alex A. Beehler
Sterling R. Bolling, Jr.
Stuart J. Brahs
Constance Carter
Elinor K. Farquhar
Cary Clark Fuller
Hon. Christopher W. Keller
Harriet Sayre McCord
Allan D. McKelvie
Set Charles Momjian
Ellen H. Proxmire
Peggy Rhoades
Hon. Jane Sloat Ritchie
Dorothy M. Woodcock
Dr. Fitz W.M. Woodrow, Jr.
GUIDES
Before and After
Fall 2014
STAFF
Fay Arrington
Jean Baker
Diane Barber (New!)
Barbara Bates
Barbara Cherry
Mary Kay Cooney
Heather Curtis
Jacqueline Drayer (New!)
Dick Goodwin
Ben Israel
Marjorie Kavanaugh
Ivan Mogensen
Carol Newell
Elizabeth O’Brien
Mary Frances Repko
Matthew Theibault
Alex Toegel
Barbara Troutner
Betty Van Iersel
Peter Winkler
3
The President Woodrow Wilson House
From Left to Right: Guests of the Kalorama House and Embassy Tour visit the Korean Cultural Center of the Korean Embassy. Ellen Wilson’s grave in the Oak Hill Cemetery in Rome, Georgia.
Stonemasons work on the stone wall in the lower garden.
This Season in
History:
September 26, 1914
The Federal Trade
Commission is
established to Protect
consumers.
October 15, 1914
President Wilson signs
the Clayton Anti-Trust
Act, strengthening the
Sherman Anti-Trust Act
of 1890.
November 13, 1914
President Wilson issues
a proclamation of
neutrality for the
Panama Canal Zone.
_________________
Upcoming holiday
closures at the House
The House will be closed
on the following days:
Thanksgiving Day
(11/27), Christmas Eve
(12/24), Christmas Day
(12/25), and New Year’s
Day (1/1).
______________
Tax-Free Giving
Taxpayers who are 70.5
years or older may
donate up to $100,000
from their IRAs directly
to charities tax-free.
Please keep the
Woodrow Wilson House
in mind when making
year-end donations.
RECENT HAPPENINGS at the House
Kalorama House and
Embassy Tour
Ellen Axson Wilson
Remembrance in Rome, Georgia
The Woodrow Wilson House hosted the
29th Annual Kalorama House and
Embassy Tour on September 14,
featuring the embassies of Croatia,
Egypt (the Ambassadorial residence),
Korea (the Korean Cultural Center),
Latvia, Luxembourg, and Slovenia, a
private residence, and the Woodrow
Wilson
House.
We
thank
the
Ambassadors and embassy staff for their
generous participation. We also thank
our volunteers, who numbered over 100.
President Wilson’s first wife, Ellen Axson
Wilson, died in 1914 as First Lady. She
was laid to rest in her hometown of
Rome, Georgia. Ellen Wilson was an
artist of considerable talent, and the
Woodrow Wilson House has assembled
an exhibition of some of her work that
was on display in Rome this year. A
celebration of Ellen Wilson’s life and art
was held in Rome in September, and Bob
Enhom and Stephanie Daugherty were
pleased to represent the House. We are
grateful to Berry College, Oak Hill and
the Martha Berry Museum, and the
Repairs to the Garden Walls
As part of our stewardship of the Rome Area Council for the Arts for their
An
Ellen
Wilson
Woodrow Wilson House, repairs and hospitality.
maintenance were performed in October biographical video was produced and
on the back garden stone walls. The unveiled in Rome and can be seen at:
stonemasons
appreciated
the www.romearts.org
craftsmanship of our nearly 100-year
United Nations Week
old walls.
On October 20 the Woodrow Wilson
House co-sponsored a speech by United
We have new
Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan
Telephone Numbers
The telephone system at the Woodrow Eliasson at the headquarters of the
Nations
Foundation
in
Wilson House has been upgraded, United
Washington.
On
“UN
Day,”
October
24,
allowing each staff member to have a
direct line. The new number for the gift the House was the site of a program
shop is 202-792-5805. Thankfully, we featuring Wilson biographer Dr. John
were able to keep our main line number Milton Cooper, Jr. and Canadian
which was Edith Wilson’s number when academic and UN consultant Dr. A.
she lived in the House: 202-387-4062. Walter Dorn.
She would have said “DUpont 7-4062.”
(Continued on Page 4)
Fall 2014
4
The President Woodrow Wilson House
(Continued from Page 3)
C-SPAN
Curator Stephanie Daugherty gave a
tour of the “Images of the Great War”
exhibition to C-SPAN that aired on
October 12 and can be found on the CSPAN website.
Western Front Association
On October 25 Bob Enholm spoke at
the Western Front Association meeting
in Baltimore on “The Perils of
Neutrality:
President
Woodrow
Wilson’s Efforts to Avoid the Great
War.”
« • « C A L END A R O F U P C O M I N G EV ENT S » • »
Ellen Wilson’s paintings are
coming home!
The Art of First Lady Ellen
Axson Wilson: American
Impressionist
This encore exhibition will open in early
December and run through midFebruary. Gallery admission included in
ticket price.
99th Wedding Anniversary
Celebration and “Thank You”
Wreath Laying at
President Wilson’s Tomb
Thursday, December 18 // 4 – 7 pm
Join
us
for
wedding
cake,
champagne, and coffee as we open
the House as a “thank you” to our
supporters and donors. Featuring for
the first time, a piece of Woodrow
and Edith Wilson’s wedding cake
from 1915!
A military honor guard lays a wreath
at President Wilson’s tomb at the
Washington National Cathedral each
year on December 28, his birthday.
More information will be on our
website when available.
Holidays through History
Saturday, December 6 // 4 – 8 pm
Spend an evening touring four of
Washington’s most historic homes. The
President Woodrow Wilson House,
Dumbarton House, Anderson House, and
Tudor Place will all offer a festive evening.
Each site will offer special music
performances, refreshments, and holiday
décor.
Tickets include a shuttle among all four
sites. For more information and to
purchase tickets, see our website.
First Wednesday of each month
Next game night: December 3
5:30 – 8:00 pm
This medal
commemorates the
signing of the
Armistice, which
brought an end to
World War I on
November 11, 1918.
The city of Turin, Italy
presented this medal
to President Wilson
during his visit in
January 1919.
«« • «« • « • » • »» • »»
View more objects in our
collection in the virtual
gallery “The Art of First
Lady Ellen Axson Wilson:
American Impressionist”
on Google Art.
«« • «« • « • » • »» • »»
Find us online
The perfect mid-week happy hour for
history, museum, and game enthusiasts!
After-hours admission to the House, 2
drink vouchers, munchies, and all you
can play vintage games.
(Please note: the first Vintage Game
Night in 2015 will be February 4.)
Tickets and more information available on our website, WoodrowWilsonHouse.org
Fall 2014
Spotlight on
our collection
Medal with
miniature cannons
and artillery shells,
1918
wwilsonhouse