President’s Park (White House) - Books

Presidential Places Gary Ferris From the Publisher: You might assume that all presidential sites are maintained by the National Park Service, but the park service maintains only about 30 such properties. The rest of these historic sites are not united in any formal or informal way. Presidential Places now fills that void.The guide is divided into sections for each president. These sections include birthplaces, childhood homes, adult homes, schools attended, as well as the places where the presidents married, worked, worshiped, vacationed, retired, died, and were buried. Also included are presidential libraries, museums, major monuments, and a section that lists sites relevant to numerous presidents, such as the White House and Camp David. Each entry includes address, telephone number, hours, admission fees, and a short description of the site’s role in that president’s life. There is also a geographical index to show the locations that can be easily included in any travel itinerary.One attractive feature of the book is a shaded box for each site that allows visitors to write the visitation date and any appropriate notes, thereby creating a personal travelogue. This feature also provides a place to use dated rubber stamps that resemble old-fashioned postage stamps, available for public use at all National Park Service sites. From The Critics: Library JournalThis highly useful book is a guide to historic places of interest relating to all the American presidents. Included are, among other things, presidential birthplaces, where they lived, where they went to school, the churches they attended, where they are buried, and the monuments, museums, and libraries dedicated to their lives and administrations. Ferris, a director at the Pennsylvania Red Cross, lives near the Valley Forge National Historic Park, just one of the scores of presidential sites mentioned. This book is a rich source for all things relating to the lives and legacies of the presidents, from Jimmy Carter’s Smiling Peanut statue to Grant’s Tomb and the youthful haunts of Truman, Lyndon Johnson, Lincoln, and both Roosevelts. It should be useful for both scholars and lay readers.--Michael A. Genovese, Loyola Marymount Univ., Los Angeles Our Price: $15.95

From Mount Vernon to Crawford: A History of the Presidents and Their Retreats Kenneth T. Walsh From the Publisher: B>From the chief White House correspondent for U.S. News and World Report, a fascinating and unique look at our presidents’ retreats, hideaways, and homes.In Air Force One, Kenneth T. Walsh looked at presidential history from the unusual and illuminating vantage point of the presidents’ planes. Now he focuses on the various retreats where our commanders-in-chief have gone to escape the hustle and bustle of Washington, chronicling the important decisions that were made and the historic events that have occurred at them. Moreover, he describes what these sites reveal about the characters of the presidents and the times in which they lived. From George Washington (Mount Vernon) to George W. Bush (Crawford ranch), from FDR (Hyde Park) to JFK (Hyannisport), almost every single president has had a beloved place where he could really be himself. Based on Walsh’s interviews with four of the living presidents, as well as scores of officials and staff, From Mount Vernon to Crawford is a fascinating glimpse into this largely unexamined facet of American government. Kenneth T. Walsh has covered the White House since 1986 and he has won the two most prestigious honors for reporting on the presidency. He is also the former president of the White House Correspondents’ Association. The author of three books, he has served as adjunct professor of communication at American University in Washington, D.C., and often appears on TV and radio as a commentator. He lives in Bethesda, Maryland. List Price: $$24.95 Our Price: $19.96

Following in Lincoln’s Footsteps: A Complete Annotated Reference to Hundreds of Historical Sites Visited by Abraham Lincoln Ralph Gary From the Publisher: From Abe Lincoln’s law offices to the sixteenth president’s White House office; from the address in Springfield, Illinois, where he and Mary Todd made up after a premarital spat, to the window he jumped out of in order to avoid a quorum call in the Illinois General Assembly, to the spot where he first heard the news of Robert E. Lee’s surrender -- this unprecedented volume of Lincoln lore takes you there. In it, Ralph Gary, avid Lincoln scholar, also answers dozens of lingering questions about Lincoln’s life as he sifts for the truth among the many disputes that continue to rage among Lincoln experts and enthusiasts. A longtime member of notable Lincoln societies, Gary has scoured county courthouse records and the writings of Lincoln’s contemporaries as well as thousands of other books written on Lincoln’s life and work to compile the most complete and up-to-date guide to Lincoln historical sites ever published. Included in the book are detailed maps and diagrams of the cities and buildings that Lincoln called home, so that Lincoln admirers, Civil War buffs, and all lovers of American history can readily walk in the footsteps of one of America’s most popular presidents. In addition, several appendices illuminate surprising similarities between the lives of Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis, of Lincoln and John F. Kennedy, and even of Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee. A comprehensive and engaging guide, Following in Lincoln’s Footsteps not only provides all the essential places and dates in the remarkable life and career of the frontier lawyer who became president but also relates, often with little-known details, the many surprising stories these historical sites tell. Our Price: $16.00

Following in Lincoln’s Footsteps: A Complete Annotated Reference to Hundreds of Historical Sites Visited by Abraham Lincoln Ralph Gary From the Publisher: From Abe Lincoln’s law offices to the sixteenth president’s White House office; from the address in Springfield, Illinois, where he and Mary Todd made up after a premarital spat, to the window he jumped out of in order to avoid a quorum call in the Illinois General Assembly, to the spot where he first heard the news of Robert E. Lee’s surrender -- this unprecedented volume of Lincoln lore takes you there. In it, Ralph Gary, avid Lincoln scholar, also answers dozens of lingering questions about Lincoln’s life as he sifts for the truth among the many disputes that continue to rage among Lincoln experts and enthusiasts. A longtime member of notable Lincoln societies, Gary has scoured county courthouse records and the writings of Lincoln’s contemporaries as well as thousands of other books written on Lincoln’s life and work to compile the most complete and up-to-date guide to Lincoln historical sites ever published. Included in the book are detailed maps and diagrams of the cities and buildings that Lincoln called home, so that Lincoln admirers, Civil War buffs, and all lovers of American history can readily walk in the footsteps of one of America’s most popular presidents. In addition, several appendices illuminate surprising similarities between the lives of Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis, of Lincoln and John F. Kennedy, and even of Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee. A comprehensive and engaging guide, Following in Lincoln’s Footsteps not only provides all the essential places and dates in the remarkable life and career of the frontier lawyer who became president but also relates, often with little-known details, the many surprising stories these historical sites tell. Our Price: $30.00