Lives and Legacies

Tag: Historic House Museums

  • Ice Cream: A Scoop of History

    This time of year, I find it difficult not to reach into my freezer after dinner to get a cold, sweet dairy treat.  Ice cream in cartons and scooped from behind a counter has become a part of the American experience. Ice cream was not always so easy to come by, however, as the ingredients and tools to make it were reserved for the most elite part of the population. 

    Ice cream has a complicated past that is often exaggerated, misinterpreted, and associated with individuals that probably have nothing to do with the creation of the icy treat.  In the 20th century, companies fabricated a great deal of these origin stories to help sell this delicacy.  Stories range from Ancient Rome to Martha Washington and Dolley Madison, some of which contain bits of truth, but are now inflated into full blown myths.

    Dolly Madison electric ice cream freezer on display

    A “Dolly Madison” branded electric ice cream freezer, along with packaging for commercially made Dolly Madison Ice Cream. Source: The Montpelier Foundation.

    Here is what foodways historians believe to be true based on the evidence we do have.  The earliest known description of a frozen dairy product comes from China in the 7th Century.  It most likely was not the recipe for this specific dessert that traveled the Silk Road to Europe, but the concept of freezing liquids using a combination of ice and salt.  This combination creates an endothermic effect which draws heat from outside air that lowers the temperature of the ice to the point that it is able to freeze liquids, not just keep them cold. To put this discovery into perspective, humans discovered how to utilize fire about 790,000 years ago, but it was only about 1,400 years ago that humans discovered how to use cold in a similar fashion.[i] 

    Moving forward to Colonial North America, ice cream recipes were not hard to come by as even Hannah Glasse had a recipe “To Make Ice-Cream” in her popular book The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy.[ii]  Thomas Jefferson, extensive traveler that he was, even  recorded a recipe for vanilla ice cream, helping to establish its popularity in the English American colonies and new republic.[iii]  Ice cream flavors usually depended on seasonal fruits that were easy to mash, but more interesting and savory flavors like parmesan and oyster also made their way into recipe books of the period.

    text of how to make ice cream
    printed text of how to make ice cream

    “To Make Ice-Cream” from The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy by Hannah Glasse  Source: Library of Congress.

    Thomas Jefferson's written ice cream recipe

    Thomas Jefferson’s recipe for ice cream. Written in his hand.  Source: Library of Congress.

    So, if it wasn’t availability of recipes and the concept of freezing the cream to make the dessert that stopped Americans from making this treat to cool off in the summer, then what was it?  It was the capability of keeping ice, the labor it took to churn the cream by hand, the expensive imported ingredients, and the specialty serving pieces needed to put the frozen delight on the table for guests. 

    At this time, if you wanted ice, you had to harvest it from frozen lakes, ponds, or rivers in the winter. Anyone could do that, but preserving it was the challenge. Underground ice houses specifically built to preserve the ice until the warmer months were reserved for the elite.

    Also remember that colonists had to typically import both the sugar to sweeten the cream and the salt for the ice.  Both white sugar and salt were used sparingly.  So, a recipe meant to show off using a liberal amount of both was something many could not afford to waste resources on. 

    ingredients laid on on a table for making ice cream

    Ingredients used to make strawberry ice cream.  Source: The George Washington Foundation.

    Ice cream could be made using either a pewter vessel or a specialty sorbetiere.  A sorbetiere was a French invention made specifically for ice cream production that was essentially just a copper container with a lid.  Either the sorbetiere or pewter bowl with the ice cream mixture was placed into a container of ice and salt.  The container was then churned, occasionally stopping to scrape the mixture off the sides when it began to freeze.  This process is not unlike what happens in both hand crank and electric ice cream makers from modern times, but all done by hand.  On a Southern plantation wealthy enough to afford the ice, sugar, salt, and tools to make the ice cream, they’d also have to spare the time of an enslaved laborer for an hour or more to churn the dessert by hand. 

    woman hand churning ice cream in 18th century clothing
    a copper sorbetiere on table with ingredients
    copper sorbetiere sitting in bucket of ice

    (Left) Churning the ice cream. Source: Emma Schlauder. (Center & Right) Copper sorbetiere. Source: The George Washington Foundation.

    George and Martha Washington were possibly introduced to ice cream by the Royal Governor of Virginia, Lord Botetourt in 1770 at the Governor’s Palace in Williamsburg, where there is evidence of an ice house and ice molds used in the production of ice cream.[iv]  Following George’s introduction to ice cream, he ordered an ice house to be built at Mount Vernon  and he acquired a “cream machine for ice” and other items to help make and serve ice cream to guests.[v]  Martha Washington was known for hosting gatherings during George’s presidency where she served prestigious treats like Lemonade and ice cream, as noted by Abigail Adams  in 1789.[vi]

    Mount Vernon Ice House

    Ice house at Mount Vernon. Source: Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.

    When I prepare for Taste Through Time Programs, I always look for evidence of what I am making at both Kenmore and Ferry Farm. Unfortunately, there is really no evidence of ice cream being served at either property during the occupation of the Washington and Lewis families. Despite the presence of The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy in Fielding Lewis’ probate inventory and loaves of white sugar in Betty Lewis’, there is currently no evidence of ice houses or ice cream making and serving equipage at either Kenmore or Ferry Farm from this period.

    Allison Burgess

    DAR Director of Education

    [i] Theobald, M. M. (Winter 2010). Some Cold, Hard Historical Facts about Good Old Ice Cream. Colonial Williamsburg Journal. https://research.colonialwilliamsburg.org/Foundation/journal/Spring10/icecream.cfm

    [ii] Glasse, H., Katherine Golden Bitting Collection On Gastronomy & Elizabeth Robins Pennell Collection. (1805) The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy; Excelling Any Thing of the Kind Ever Yet Published … Also, the Order of a Bill of Fare for Each Month in the Manner the Dishes Are to Be Placed Upon the Table, in the Present Taste. Alexandria: Printed by Cottom and Stewart, and sold at their Book-Stores, in Alexandria and Fredericksburg. [Pdf] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/05005034/.

    [iii] Berkes, A. (2013, June 28). Ice Cream. Monticello.org. https://www.monticello.org/research-education/thomas-jefferson-encyclopedia/ice-cream/

    [iv] Theobald, M. M., Some Stone Cold Historical Facts.

    [v] Ledger B (photostat, Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association), 198a.

    [vi] “Abigail Adams to Mary Smith Cranch, 9 August 1789,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/04-08-02-0214. [Original source: The Adams Papers, Adams Family Correspondence, vol. 8, March 1787 – December 1789, ed. C. James Taylor, Margaret A. Hogan, Jessie May Rodrique, Gregg L. Lint, Hobson Woodward, and Mary T. Claffey. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2007, pp. 397–401.]

  • Wish You Were Here: Historical Documentation Through Postcards

    Postcards were a staple of vacations.  Collected and sent back to friends and family so they could be part of your adventures. Many of us can remember trying to pick up postcards on the first day of vacation to get them in the mail quickly so they would arrive back home before you. 

    Postcards were created in the mid-nineteenth century, and through the decades, they were mass-produced with popular scenic images and were inexpensive, so many people picked up postcards to document their vacations rather than taking pictures.    Their popularity and collectability mean that boxes and boxes of old postcards can be found in antique stores and flea markets. 

    While postcards are amusing souvenirs and a source of nostalgia, they can also offer us important insights into the evolution of historic sites and cities.  Postcards of Kenmore have helped us document the restoration of the house, the development of the property, and past interpretations, even providing documentation of collection items for which we may not have records.

    For your enjoyment, I’ve selected some of my favorite postcards to showcase how they’ve documented the historical restoration and interpretation of Kenmore.

    Exterior: Pre-Restoration

    Kenmore has always been quite the showpiece, even when it was privately owned.  One of the earliest postcards of Kenmore’s exterior is dated 1908, as indicated by the postmark.  The Howard family owned the house until it was acquired by E.G. Heflin around 1914. 

    The postcard shows the house from the Washington Avenue side (west elevation) and provides a glimpse of the properties before any restoration work.  The old kitchen can be seen on the north side of the house, while the exact date it was built is unknown; we know it was built in the late 1880s or early 1890s.  It was torn down in 1929. 

    Additionally, the exterior brick has been painted, along with the lintel, which was removed in 1929. We can see the paintwork better in the second color postcard. 

    Interior

    Entrance Hall

    One of the earliest postcards we have of the entrance hall, around 1923.    One of the most notable things is the plasterwork on the ceiling.  If you see current pictures of the entrance, you will notice that this plasterwork no longer exists.  The plasterwork was done by former resident William Key Howard, Jr., when he was restoring the original ceiling in the other rooms.    In 1930, the Association decided to remove the plasterwork because it was not original to the Lewis family.  Mr. Howard Jr. was not happy when he found out that the plasterwork had been destroyed and called it an act of vandalism. 

    Additionally, we can see next to the tall case clock a door that leads into the drawing room, which no longer exists.  It was decided that this was not the original placement, and the door was moved directly across from the office door in 1930. 

    Chamber/NW room, first floor

    While we currently interpret the NW room on the first floor as the chamber, the ladies referred to it as the Dining Room. We can see a round table, a sideboard, two chairs, and two portraits, plus a large silver tea urn.   The postcard dates from the late 1930s because we know from our records that most of these pieces were donated in 1935.  We still have all these objects in the collection, but the only things currently on display to the public are the round table in the dining room and the chairs in the drawing room.  All other pieces are in storage. 

    Dining Room/NE room, first floor

    We currently refer to the NE room on the first floor as the dining room.  It has undergone many changes, with Gothic arches added to the closets during the 19th century, and has been restored to its original shape.   Not everything in the postcard is still in our collection, but you can see the square table still on display in the dining room, and Betty’s portrait is now in the drawing room. 

    On the left is the Dining Room during the Howard occupation around the 1890s, and on the right, the Dining Room today
    The Dining Room after the Kenmore Association’s restoration, c. 1940s

    Drawing Room/SE room, first floor

    The drawing room was previously known as the library and also served as a chamber for a while in the 1980s.  By the window, you can see Betty’s desk in the older postcard (c.1940s), which is still on display, but in the chamber.  We still have the tea set on display where it was in the chamber, but it is currently in storage.

    On the left is the Drawing Room during the Howard occupation around the 1890s, and on the right is the Drawing Room now
    Drawing Room, c.1940s
    In the 1980s the Drawing Room was turned into a bedroom

    Office/SW room, first floor

    Fielding’s office has been displayed as a sitting room and a kids’ room.  We don’t have many of the objects in the postcards still in the collection, except the corner chair, which now has a check seat, and the music stand, which is too fragile at the moment for display.

    2nd floor

    We currently do not offer tours of the upstairs area because we don’t put too much stress on our lovely plaster ceilings.  The Kenmore Association interpreted the upstairs as individual bedrooms for the family, which is not the most historically accurate version.

    Hallway/ 2nd floor

    Besides the paint color, the hallways upstairs remain structurally the same.  The ladies have Betty’s desk on display, with the Hammond quilt above.  We still have the Hammond quilt; fortunately, we removed it from the frame, but it is a massive quilt and is not currently on display. However, it is in excellent condition.  As for the tall case clock, chandelier, and curtains, they have been lost to history.

    “Mary Washington Bedroom”/NE room/2nd floor

    We have no evidence that Mary ever had a dedicated bedroom at Betty’s house, and it seems unlikely with the size of the Lewis family.  We do still have some of the pieces in the collection. The tea box is currently on display in the chamber, and the yellow tea set has been displayed intermittently over the years.  The two calendar prints hung on the wall are now downstairs in the drawing room.  Lastly, the chaise lounge was loaned to the foundation by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in the 1930s (subsequently purchased in 1968) and is currently in storage, as there is no evidence that the Lewis family owned many northern furniture pieces.

    “Mary’s Bedroom” is currently storage with temporary covering to protect the original floors.

    “Guest Bedroom”/NW room/2nd floor

    Much like “Mary’s bedroom,” it is very unlikely that the Lewis family had a “guest room,” with as large as the family was, it would have been a waste of space.  The bed still resides in our collection, disassembled and in storage. 

    “Betty’s bedroom”/SE room/2nd floor

    Again, during the Lewis occupation in the 18th century, individual bedrooms were not common, except for the head of the family.  Not many of the objects in the postcard are still in our collection, except for the bed, which is now in the chamber downstairs, and the William Walker, Jr. armchair, which is currently off display, but we do have another one in the dining room.

    “Betty’s bedroom (2nd floor SE) is currently used as storage…and some Twelfth Night decorations

    “Boy’s Room”/SW room/2nd floor

    The last room upstairs is smaller than the other rooms and has access to the attic.  The ladies used this as the boys’ room, but as we discussed, with the other rooms, it is unlikely that this was accurate.  We do still have many of the pieces’ pictures, but the only one currently on display is the slant-top desk in the Visitors Center. 

    Heather Baldus

    Collections Manager

  • New Kids on the Block: The 20th-Century Houses of Kenmore Court

    When you visit Historic Kenmore today, you will find a preserved city block with gardens and pathways reaching from front to back. The tranquil estate is only interrupted by two other houses along Lewis Street, hidden behind a tree line. These buildings remain the only surviving evidence of a time when Kenmore’s block was almost swallowed up by modern developments.

    Although we have spoken at length on this blog about how Kenmore was saved from being turned into apartments (here, here, and here), we have not yet covered the houses that had, in fact, already gone up before Mrs. Emily Fleming and “Miss Annie” Fleming-Smith had even begun their fundraising.

    In 1914, Kenmore was sold by the Howard family, the last private residents of Kenmore, to Elmer “Peck” Heflin, a prolific land developer in Fredericksburg. By the end of the year, Heflin had already subdivided Kenmore into several lots and began to sell them off.

    A newspaper advertisement placed by Heflin in The Daily Star, November 1914.

    His goal was ultimately to turn the Kenmore block into a picturesque and modern housing development complete with single-family houses, apartments, driveways, and a parkway. This was illustrated for all of Fredericksburg to see in another newspaper ad from 1921 (Heflin, 1921). Heflin’s vision for the court was a 20th century city developer’s dream, squeezing as many lots as he could get into the space and ensuring that automobiles could have access to the entire area. Cutting edge, efficient, and shockingly modern.

    “Kenmore Court” plans with “Kenmore Residence” at the center, The Daily Star, January 1921

    By the time this advertisement ran, at least two of the proposed twenty lots had already been built on and three more had been sold to future homeowners. The earliest developments were done along the 1200 block of Winchester Street (which runs along the top of the illustrated plan).

    A fire insurance map from 1919 showing the two new houses and Kenmore. (Sanborn Map Co., 1919).

    It was possibly this very newspaper ad with the proposed plan, seen by Mrs. Fleming and Miss Annie, that shocked them into action to save Kenmore before it was too late. However, even though they had finished their payments to Heflin by 1925 and officially owned the Kenmore mansion, they had yet to undo the sales that had already been made.

    Between 1919 and 1927, another five houses went up along Winchester St. and an additional one along Lewis St. The lots in the 1200 block of Winchester were now completely filled.

    A fire insurance map from 1927 showing the Kenmore block with nine total houses and a now preserved Kenmore listed as “(Shrine)”. (Sanborn Map Cp., 1927)

    Although the Kenmore Association now owned the Kenmore great house and had successfully saved it from demolition, they also valued the physical beauty that the surrounding land had potential for. The new houses were taking up space that could be gardens, reminiscent of what the original grounds may have looked like. But now, they only contained a view into several family’s backyards.

    Kenmore Gardens Pre-Restoration as seen from the portico of the Kenmore great house, photo from the George Washington Foundation Collection.

    The Kenmore Auxiliary for the Reclaiming of Land formed to buy back the sold lots (Whidden, 1972). By 1930 they had already purchased two of the houses, 1206 and 1208 Winchester, and two empty lots on Cornell Street, just a few blocks north. By 1931, the houses were physically moved from Winchester St. to Cornell St.

    “House Moved Through Town” article appeared in the Washington Post, Dec. 1930.

    The Kenmore Association continued to rent these houses out for some time to tenants, generating extra income to help with Kenmore’s preservation process, until they eventually sold the homes to private owners. These Cornell St. houses still exist to this day. Few changes have been made from their historical exteriors.

    The Cornell St. houses as they appear in the present day. (City of Fredericksburg, 2025)
    The Cornell St. houses as they appear in the present day. (City of Fredericksburg, 2025)

    With the assistance of donations from individuals and foundations all over the country, the Kenmore Association was able to raise enough money to make offers to three other homeowners along the 1200 block of Winchester St., all of whom accepted. Most of Winchester St. belonged to the Association by the end of the decade (Whidden, 1972). The houses continued to be rented out to tenants through 1940. Unfortunately, after that year we have not yet discovered what happen to the Winchester St. houses, but they no longer exist on the revised 1947 fire insurance map and are presumed to have been demolished around 1941 or ‘42.

    A fire insurance map from 1947 showing revisions made between 1927 and then. (Sanborn Map Co., 1948)

    You notice that there are still three houses remaining on the block alongside the Kenmore great house. These holdouts remained for many years as private residences. Two of these houses, 605 Lewis St. and 1200 Winchester St., can still be seen today.

    1200 Winchester St. is a large brick façade building that was originally constructed for Dr. Frank Pratt. Dr. Pratt used to treat patients in the building’s basement and lived in the house until his passing in 1964. He founded the Pratt Medical Group in 1937, which still exists today with several locations in Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania (Obituary, 1969). His house was sold in 1991 by the last private owners, the Westfall family, to the Kenmore Association and has become one of the main office buildings on the site.

    1200 Winchester St. Pre 1990s. Photo from the George Washington Foundation Collection.
    1200 Winchester St. in 2025. 2025 photo credit to Allison Ellis.

    605 Lewis St. has a very similar story to 1200 Winchester. Another brick structure, it was built for William Lacy who lived there with his wife Norah, daughter Celia, and sister-in-law Celia Goolrick. Lacy was a pharmacist who passed away in 1933, leaving his home to his wife. She and her sister continued living in the house until both had passed by 1965 (Obituary, 1965). The building was sold to the Kenmore Association in 1992 and converted to offices as well.

    605 Lewis St. Pre 1990s. Photo from the George Washington Foundation Collection
    605 Lewis St. in 2025. 2025 photo credit to Allison Ellis

    The house I’ve saved for last has quickly become my favorite, since it’s the one that sparked my interest in this subject in the first place. While visiting a small antique shop in central New York of all places, I stumbled on a postcard with an image of 1216 Winchester St., also known as the Wilson House.

    The Wilson House on a postcard, circa 1921-1941. From the George Washington Foundation Collection.

    The Wilson house was the only Stucco house of the bunch, constructed in the prairie style. It was owned by Thomas Wilson, co-founder of Wilson Bros. Lumber. He, his wife Temple, Daughter Esther, and granddaughter Janet all lived in the house in 1930. By 1940, it had become a boarding house that rented out space to tenants and visitors. It had at least three units inside of it.

    The Wilson house sat on the corner of Fauquier and Winchester streets, blocking Kenmore’s new brick wall originally meant to extend around the block, until 1971. I don’t know what changed that year, whether it was a death or shift in the family or if the money finally became too good of an offer to refuse, but the Wilson family finally sold their home to the Kenmore Association, who promptly had it razed (Whidden, 1972). The brick wall was never full finished, and the area where this beautiful house once stood is now used as a service lot.

    The Wilson House, 1216 Winchester St., shortly before its demolition, from the George Washington Foundation Collection.
    Lot where the Wilson House formerly sat, 2025

    There are countless other things that could be said about these missing structures that haunt the property. The stories of the people who lived in them. A debate about whether these modern homes were worthy of preservation as well. The archaeological damage that their construction likely caused. So on and so forth. One thing is certain though: the grounds of Kenmore hold history. Not just of the Lewis family, but of the Pratts, the Wilsons, the Lacys, the Franklins, the Coxes, the Joneses, and the countless others who once lived on this city block.

    Sarah Alden

    Manager of Visitor Services and Interpretation

    Bibliography

    City of Fredericksburg. (2025). 806 Cornell St. Fredericksburg: Fredericksburg Information Technology.

    City of Fredericksburg. (2025). 808 Cornell St. Fredericksburg: Fredericksburg Information Technology.

    Heflin, E. (1921, January 24). Modern Homes. The Daily Star, 28(180), 4.

    Lots on Beautiful Kenmore Court. (1914, November 12). The Daily Star, 22(119), 2. Fredericksburg, VA.

    Obituary. (1965, May 19). Mrs. W. J. Lacy Dies in Atlanta, Rites Thursday. The Free Lance-Star, p. 5.

    Obituary. (1969, May 10). Monday Rites for Mrs. Pratt. The Free Lance-Star.

    Sanborn Map Co. (1912, July 12). Fire Insurance Maps Online. Retrieved from Historical Information Gatherers: https://fims-historicalinfo-com.ezproxy.virginiamemory.com/FIMSSD.aspx?m=09021_1912

    Sanborn Map Co. (1919, October 31). Fire Insurance Maps Online. Retrieved from Historical Information Gatherers: https://fims-historicalinfo-com.ezproxy.virginiamemory.com/FIMSSD.aspx?m=09021_1919

    Sanborn Map Co. (1948, June 7). Fire Insurance Maps Online. Retrieved from Historical Information Gatherers: https://fims-historicalinfo-com.ezproxy.virginiamemory.com/FIMSSD.aspx?m=09021_1947

    Sanborn Map Cp. (1927, May 27). Fire Insurance Maps Online. Retrieved from Historical Information Gatherers: https://fims-historicalinfo-com.ezproxy.virginiamemory.com/FIMSSD.aspx?m=09021_1927

    Stanton, G. (2011, February 21). 15th US Census, 1930. Fredericksburg City Enumeration District 107-1 Upper Ward. Retrieved from Fredericksburg Research Resources: https://resources.umwhisp.org/Fredericksburg/census/fbg1930ED107-1.htm

    Stanton, G. (2014, November 28). 16th U. S. Census, Virginia, Fredericksburg (Upper Ward), S.D. 1, ED No. 107-3. Enumerated Beginning 2 April 1940. Retrieved from Fredericksburg Research Resources: https://resources.umwhisp.org/Fredericksburg/census/fbg1940ED107-3.htm

    Whidden, R. W. (1972). Kenmore 1752: Fifty Years as a National Shrine. Richmond, VA: Whittet & Shepperson.

  • Slides That Saved Kenmore

    On January 1, 1925, a group of well-dressed women in hats and long fur coats assembled at Kenmore to hand over the final $1,000 payment and gain full possession of the house and land.  This meeting was the culmination of thirty-two months of persistent work and determination by the ladies of The Kenmore Association to save the historic property from destruction.

    The incredible work in saving Kenmore was beginning for the ladies. Undoubtedly, a house as large and old as Kenmore would require a substantial amount of money for restoration and upkeep.   Until the sale to the Kenmore Association, the house had been a residence for several different families, each leaving a unique imprint on the building.  Unfortunately, these alterations needed to be reversed to restore Kenmore to its original state when Fielding and Betty Lewis first inhabited the house around 1775.

    Kenmore exterior (west facade) before restoration, c. 1920s
    Kenmore Dining Room during the Howard residency, c. 1890s
    Kenmore Hall before restoration in 1929. Notice the plaster work on the ceiling. The ladies of the Association removed this because it was not original but the work of William Key Howard, Jr.

    By 1930, the Kenmore Association had made significant progress in restoring Kenmore. Major projects included removing the modern attached kitchen, updating wiring and plumbing, and restoring windows, brickwork, and ornamental plasterwork, all completed for $19,372.57. (Mesick, 1992) This figure did not include the ongoing refurnishing of the house, highlighting the scale of the task.

    Building report on Kenmore talking about restoration work, May 1930
    Letter from Mrs. Vivian (Emily) White Fleming, asking for donations to the Kenmore appeal, September 29, 1930

    How was the Kenmore Association able to finance this costly restoration and refurnishing? These ladies knew how to raise money. In 1927, they established a restoration fund and began soliciting contributions.  

    We previously discussed the amazing partnership between Mrs. Smith secured with the Dromedary Cake Mix Company and their boxed gingerbread.   The arrangement allowed Dromedary to produce gingerbread mixes based on Mary Washington’s recipe.  In exchange, the Kenmore Association got all the gingerbread they could serve to visitors.  The company also donated mixes to be sold by the Association and various chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) for 25 cents a box.  The Association got half the money realized from these sales minus the shipping costs. 

    An 1940s-era advertisement for Dromedary gingerbread mix “made from the 200-year-old Recipe of George Washington’s Mother.”
    Mrs. Fleming and other having gingerbread, c. 1940s

    To help the various DAR chapters across the U.S. sell gingerbread, the Kenmore Association developed a visual program using the Bauch & Lomb Balopticon and trays of glass slides. Mrs. Smith worked with Mrs. Louise du Pont Crowninshield to select various photographers to assist in the project, including the well-known E.B. Thompson of Washington, D.C.  This was no inexpensive program to develop with balopticons running around $77 a piece and slides costing $1 to $3 per slide of which we have over three hundred. 

    Bausch & Lomb Balopticon Ad
    Box of glass slides created by the Kenmore Association, c. 1938

    This program featured black-and-white and colored glass slides documenting the restoration and refurnishing of Kenmore and its gardens. Its goal was twofold. First, it showed the groups the product of their previous fundraising efforts, and second, it gave them an understanding of the house, property, and its goals for the future. Groups from all over the country wrote to Mrs. Smith requesting that she send out the program, which consisted of the balopticon and a set of glass slides for their meetings.  Sometimes, Mrs. Smith would even join the program herself, presenting and answering questions about upcoming projects. 

    These glass slide presentations were eventually updated into paper guidebooks, films, and postcards featuring up-to-date Kenmore images. The slides were packed away in the closet for the last eighty-plus years, and now offer us a great source of documentation for the early years of The Kenmore Association and the restoration of Kenmore.

    Heather Baldus

    Collections Manager

    Sources

    Mesick, C.W. (1992). Kenmore Historic Structure Report. Albany

  • What in the World is Twelfth Night?: A Visit with the Ghost of Twelfth Night Past

    Usually, at this time of year preparations are well underway for our annual Twelfth Night at Kenmore: A Dramatic Performance.  The play takes place in January 1776, during the first Christmas season celebrated at Kenmore. Unfortunately, this year’s celebration of Twelfth Night at Kenmore is canceled due to winter weather.  However, if you are familiar with the performance, or have read some of our past blog posts, you might already know a thing or two about this once popular Christmastide holiday. While traces of Twelfth Night still exist today, the celebration is much diminished, if not entirely eclipsed, by Christmas and New Year’s. Why is this, exactly? When did we stop celebrating Twelfth Night?

    There is no single, short answer as to why Twelfth Night celebrations fell out of fashion. Rather, attitudes surrounding the Christmas season changed throughout history, and old traditions were often absorbed or re-imagined into something new. A very brief look into the history of the season sheds some light on why today’s Christmas traditions rose in popularity, while Twelfth Night celebrations became part of Christmas Past.

    Historic Kenmore on the eve of Twelfth Night. Credit: GWF Photo

    Many Christmas and Twelfth Night traditions are rooted in holidays celebrating the winter solstice. For example, Saturnalia, a holiday honoring the Roman god Saturn, took place in mid-December. During Saturnalia, the normal social order was temporarily overturned. Romans closed schools and businesses, held grand feasts, and in some families, a king or “Lord of Misrule” was chosen to rule over the household’s festivities.[1] In Scandinavia, people celebrated the winter solstice during the Nordic festival, Yule. Festivities included bonfires (or yule logs), evergreen decorations, and feasts. It wasn’t until the 4th century that the Roman church officially observed December 25th as Jesus’s birth date. Historians speculate that church officials chose this date precisely because so many popular winter celebrations occurred around that same time.[2]

    Saturnalia by Antoine Callet. Credit: Wikipedia

    If we fast forward in time, we see how some of these winter rituals were absorbed into the festivities of Twelfth Night. But first- what exactly is Twelfth Night? Typically celebrated on either January 5th or 6th, Twelfth Night, or Epiphany, is a Christian holiday that marks the end of the Twelve Days of Christmas and commemorates the Magi’s visit to Jesus. During the colonial era, the holiday season kicked off on December 25th and culminated on Twelfth Night. The twelve days after Christmas were full of games, music, dancing, feasts, and visiting with family and friends. Families often celebrated the season with a Twelfth Night Cake. Recipes called for a dried bean and pea to be baked into an elaborately decorated fruit filled cake. The man who found the bean was declared King for the night, while the woman who found the pea was declared Queen.

    Illustration of a Twelfth Night party by Robert Seymour. The woman on the far left serves pieces of a large Twelfth Cake. Credit: The Project Gutenberg

    Of course, there has always been debate surrounding how the Christmas season should be celebrated, and practices varied from place to place and person to person. In the 17th century, New England Puritans (echoing sentiments from Cromwellian England) viewed Christmastime celebrations as rowdy, excessive, and downright bacchanalian. Massachusetts went as far as to outlaw celebrations between 1659 and 1691.[3]

    The Twelfth Night party’s “King” and “Queen” sit on chairs overlooking the crowd. Dancing, drinking, and mumming (costumed acting) are in full swing. Puritans disapproved of these festive antics. Credit: Wikipedia

    During the 19th century, Queen Victoria influenced a shift in popular opinion towards a more family-focused Christmas season. In 1850, Godey’s Lady’s Book, a popular American magazine, published an image of the royal family gathered around a Christmas tree. While German immigrants had already introduced the Christmas tree tradition to America, this image fascinated the English and American public alike, and it further popularized the practice. In the American version of the print, editors removed Victoria’s tiara and Albert’s royal sash, and the group came to embody the ideal American family at Christmas.[4]

    Godey’s Lady’s Book illustration. Credit: Wikimedia Commons

    These changing ideals shaped the Christmas season during the Victorian era, and combined with rapid industrialization and commercialization, they sparked the beginning of a number of now familiar traditions. For example, improvements in mass printing technology popularized the practice of sending Christmas cards. In 1843, Charles Dickens published A Christmas Carol, a tale promoting charity, good will, and the virtues of a domestic family Christmas. Thomas Nast, who made popular the modern image of Santa Claus, published his first Santa cartoons in the 1863 edition of Harper’s Weekly.

    You might be asking, where then, does this leave the Twelve Days of Christmas and our Twelfth Night celebrations? As we’ve seen, changing ideals during the 19th century promoted a holiday season focused on children and family. Modern industry and commercialization further bolstered shopping and gift giving habits, and a twelve day holiday certainly didn’t fit within the parameters of the new industrialized era. The once twelve day celebration now culminated on one, and it was celebrated with visits from Santa and gifts for children, rather than with feasts and parties for adults.

    However, some Twelfth Night traditions live on during the modern Christmas season, albeit under new guises. Between Christmas and New Year’s, people may decorate their homes with greenery, raise a toast with a glass of wassail, or host extravagant parties with family and friends. If you visit New Orleans during the carnival season (beginning with Epiphany and ending on Mardi Gras) you might celebrate by eating “King Cake,” where the lucky person who finds the plastic baby figurine inside their piece of cake is crowned “king” for the day! That sounds a little familiar, doesn’t it?

    Ann Waters

    Manager of Interpretation and Visitor Services

    [1]“Saturnalia,” HISTORY, A&E Television Networks, Last modified December 18, 2020, Accessed December 22, 2021, https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-rome/saturnalia

    [2] Stephen Nissenbaum, The Battle for Christmas (New York: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2010), 4.

    [3] Bruce David Forbes,“Christmas,” In America’s Favorite Holidays: Candid Histories, 1st ed. (University of California Press, 2015), 28.http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/j.ctv1wxrr3.5

    [4] Ibid., 34.

  • Dig These Dishes! We Recreate an 18th Century Table Setting Using Only Artifacts.

    Dig These Dishes! We Recreate an 18th Century Table Setting Using Only Artifacts.

    On a typical day at George Washington’s Boyhood Home at Ferry Farm, visitors experiencing the house tour are ushered into the main hall upon which a dining table is set out before them with 18th-century reproductions of plates, glassware, wine bottles, and serving dishes. This setting creates an interactive experience for our visitors, transporting them back in time to the mid-18th century when the Washington family lived here on site.

    Last month, however, an unexpected sight greeted a tour group as they entered the hall. The dining table was set, not with reproductions, but actual plates, jugs, and serving dishes that could very well have graced the Washington family’s dinner table over 250 years ago.  The principal difference is that nothing on the table was complete – all were fragmented versions of the originals. 

    Dining table in Hall set up for dinner.

    The setting was a special photoshoot for The George Washington Foundation and an occasion to display and highlight the array of vessels, many mended, residing in the Archaeology Department’s collection.  Everything on the table was archaeologically recovered from either Ferry Farm or Historic Kenmore and represent vessels that date to the Washington family’s occupation of Ferry Farm or Betty Washington Lewis’ time at Kenmore. 

    The Archaeology Department at Ferry Farm has been mending vessels over the past couple of years for our museum displays at the Ferry Farm and Kenmore Visitor Centers. This mending was also done for research purposes as the curatorial department worked to furnish the replica house with accurate, period-relevant household items.

    So what is on the table? Creamware and white salt-glazed plates and serving dishes, glass tumblers and wine glasses, German stoneware jugs, dark green glass wine bottles, a porcelain teacup, coarse earthenware porringers, forks and knives with bone handles, silver spoons, and Mary Washington’s creamware enamel-painted punch bowl.  Many of the ceramic tablewares and a few of the glass tumblers were mended using archival glue.  Some of the objects were able to stand on the table unaided, while others needed mounts for support, such as the wine glass.

    Fragments of dinner and glasswares

    To help envisage the original shape of some of the fragmented vessels and make them recognizable, we first sculpted their shapes out of foam, covered them with fabric, and then attached the incomplete vessel fragments in their correct positions. This process allowed us to present a more “complete” and familiar view of some of the tablewares, such as the two large stoneware jugs, the creamware pepper pot, the glass tumbler, and the two wine bottles. All of these items would have been very difficult to display simply using the fragments themselves. 

    Having such an array of different ceramic styles on the table is more a function of what we have mended in our collection versus what Mary might have actually had on her table.  But for our purposes, we are happy showcasing all of the different ceramic types presently in our possession.

    Welcome to the Washington dining table! Enjoy!

    Judy Jobrack, Archaeologist
    Co-Field Director

  • A Day in the Life of a Historic Interpreter at Ferry Farm [Video]

    In this video, we meet historic interpreter Gary Haynes and follow him during his workday at George Washington’s Ferry Farm.

  • National Parks, National Historic Landmarks, and the National Register of Historic Places, Oh My!

    Throughout my time as a museum professional, I have worked at several different museums each with different classifications, rules, and operating procedures. Before entering the museum world, I used to think that most museums operated in a similar way. However, that could not be further from the truth. One of the most common questions I have gotten since leaving the National Park Service for the private sector has been some variation of: “Why can’t I use my National Park Pass here?” It is an understandable question that I am here to answer.

    Museums can be categorized by many different subjects. For example, there are art museums, history museums, science museums, zoos, gardens and more! There are also different categories on how museums operate, fundraise, and are preserved. For example, George Washington’s Ferry Farm and Historic Kenmore are both historic house museums. They are owned by The George Washington Foundation, a private, non-profit organization that is charged with caring for the properties. Ferry Farm and Kenmore are funded by your donations, admission fees, and fundraising events. However, the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C. is a National Park Service (NPS) property, operated by the government and funded, in part, with tax-payer dollars.

    Aerial view of the Washington Monument

    In addition to the NPS sites, the United States government also created the National Register of Historic Places. The National Register of Historic Places is a list of places that are worthy of preservation but are not necessarily and, in fact, are not usually operated by the U.S. government. Sites on this list are able to apply for certain grants and funding through the NPS. They also receive certain tax breaks and can work towards becoming a National Park Site. Fun fact, there are almost 100,000 properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places!

    Of those 100,000 National Register properties, some also have the distinction of being National Historic Landmarks. Landmarks are sites that are again, not necessarily government-run, but have been recognized by the federal government as being nationally significant, meaning they correlate to a significant part of our nation’s history. These properties are also able to apply for certain grants and tax breaks. Not all properties on the National Register of Historic Places and not all properties listed as National Historic Landmarks are museums and not all of them are open for public visitation. However, being on these lists adds a layer of protection should the owners of that property need assistance in preserving the site.

    Marker noting Historic Kenmore’s designation as a National Historic Landmark in 1970.
    Marker noting George Washington Ferry Farm’s designation as a National Historic Landmark in 2000.

    Along with National Register and National Historic Landmark status, there are also several types of Easements that can be put in place to protect historic sites. Two types of easements often used in the museum world are Conservation Easements and Preservation Easements. These easements are agreements between the government and a property’s stewardship organization that allow for the government to step in and take over the operation of a property if the private owners are not caring for it properly or it becomes endangered in some fashion. Easements also allow the government to have approval over major changes to the properties to ensure they maintain their historic or natural significance. Private easements can also be created between two parties such as a historic site and a local conservation organization to protect the natural areas of a historic site.

    The George Washington Foundation is a 503(c) (3) non-profit. This designation gives our organization certain tax exemptions. We are a private foundation that operates the two historic sites. These sites are not National Park Service sites and do not receive direct taxpayer funding from local, state, or federal governments. Both Historic Kenmore and George Washington’s Ferry Farm are on the National Register of Historic Places and also are both National Historic Landmarks. Additionally, Ferry Farm is under a conservation easement with the National Park Service. All of this means that while we still operate as a private foundation, there are several layers of protection to ensure these treasured historic properties are preserved and protected for decades to come.

    Ferry Farm
    Kenmore

    As a private organization, we rely on admission fees and your generous donations to fund our sites. We are not part of any National Park or state park pass system. Your ticket purchase helps preserve and promote the legacies of these two sites. Perhaps that is why we are so appreciative for each and every guest who visits. If you would like to support The George Washington Foundation, please consider a donation. We hope to see you at the National Historic Landmarks of Historic Kenmore and George Washington’s Ferry Farm soon!

    Elizabeth Hosier
    Manager of Interpretation and Visitor Services

  • The Seven Easy Pieces of Furniture – Episode 3: Blanket Chest Lid [Video]

    Furnishings posts logo finalIn this final video of this series, Fredericksburg, Virginia-based furniture maker Steve Dietrich demonstrates the methods he used to make the lid for a blanket chest in the reconstructed Washington house at Ferry Farm.

    Watch other videos and read more about rebuilding the Washington house here.

  • The Unlikely Curator: What a Rodent’s Nest Reveals about Historic Kenmore

    Rodents are usually seen as one of a museum’s greatest enemies. They damage valuable artifacts and buildings, leave a mess wherever they go, and frighten unsuspecting visitors. Like most museums, Historic Kenmore does its best to make sure no pests make their home in the 18th century plantation house. But, before it became a museum in the early 20th century, Kenmore was not always rodent-free.

    Kenmore's East Portico
    The east portico of Historic Kenmore shows some neglect to the house and its surroundings. The Howard family, who lived in Kenmore for a long period following the Civil War and was perhaps living in the house when our rodent of interest built its nest, invested a lot of money in refurbishing the house.

    In 1989, archaeologists found a mouse or rat’s nest during an investigation of Kenmore’s walls and floors for architectural artifacts. In a recent video, our archeologists and curators carefully picked apart the nest found so long ago and made a cursory analysis of its parts.  This blog post delves more deeply into the history revealed by this rodent – Kenmore’s unlikely curator – and its nest.

    The “indoor excavation” at Kenmore in 1989 provided present-day archaeologists at the Foundation a unique opportunity to study artifacts that rarely survive in the elements. Whatever rodent built this nest was a skilled architect in its own right, tightly weaving together bits of cloth, paper, and miscellaneous fluff from around the house to create a soft, structurally sound home of its own. The material came from dozens of sources, each giving insight to life at Kenmore in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

    Fabric
    Patterned fabric from the nest

    When it comes to fabrics, both the people living at Kenmore and the rodent had pretty good taste. While most of the cloth from the nest was a neutral white, beige, or brown, several scraps featured patterns popular from the late 19th through the early 20th century, like a red cloth with cream specks, and another with red and yellow flowers. Most of the cloth in the nest probably came from sheets, towels, or rags, but the few patterned scraps may have once been part of a dress or apron. A few threads are woven around a stiff, curved string, perhaps as part of an eyelet or fastener on a piece of clothing.  Other fibers came from webbing used in upholstering furniture. The rest of the threads, yarn, and fibers are too small to tell where they came from, but it’s clear that the resident rodent had plenty of textiles from which to choose.

    Newspaper 1
    A series of newspaper ads includes a date of September 6, 1877.

    Newspaper 2
    A scrap of a cartoon features an old man carrying what appears to be a baby.

    A few other gnawings in the nest were less comfortable than threads and cloth. A bit of nutshell, wood splinters, tiny rib bones, and even two insect wings were part of the rodent’s eclectic collection. While these finds make up a small portion of the nest, it appears that the rodent had quite a literary bent. Over a hundred tiny scraps of paper lined the nest. About half of them were marked, while the others have print from books and newspapers. Some of the pieces are so small that not even an entire letter can be seen, but a few are large enough to make out some sentences, determine date of publication, or even identify the book from which the scrap came.

    Newspaper 3
    A section entitled “Recent Inventions” includes a convertible handbag and seat patented in 1915.

    Newspaper 4
    An advertisement on the opposite side of the newspaper discusses Christmas Savings funds from Farmers and Merchants State Bank.

    One newspaper scrap advertises Christmas saving funds from the Farmer’s and Merchant’s State Bank. On the other side under “Recent Inventions,” Katherine Minehart’s “Combined Hand-bag and Seat” from 1915 is described. A much earlier bit of newspaper announces the opening of a store on September 6, 1877. The scrap from a book may be even older. The words on both sides are Christian lyrics, and were compiled into a book called Union Hymns by the American Sunday School Union. The book and several editions were published in 1835, 1845, and 1860.

    Given the short lifespan of most rodents (around 1-7 years), it’s most likely that the nest builder lived in the early 20th century, and scampered off with bits and pieces of discarded old paper and fabric. Except for a few newspapers, this rodent tended to use items with a past. The absence of any plastic in the nest indicates that it probably wasn’t built much past the early 1900s.  Indeed, since the latest scrap found in the nest dated from 1915, the nest itself would have been built in that year or thereafter, just a few years before the house began its transformation into a museum focusing on the lives of 18th century patriots Betty and Fielding Lewis.

    The stories of those who lived at Kenmore after the Civil War are not as detailed, but thanks to an unlikely curator, we are given a glimpse into the wardrobes and literary tastes of Kenmore’s late Victorian-era inhabitants.

    Abby Phelps, UMW Student
    Fleming Smith Scholar