President Martin Van Buren’s Home: Lindenwald
Not too long ago, he took a day off and we headed to Kinderhook and Claverack for some adventures, starting with a tour of the National Historic Site: Lindenwald, President Van Buren’s home for the last quarter of his life.
He was the eighth president of the United States, and he described Lindenwald as the place where he spent “the last and happiest days of my life, a farmer in my native town.”
Lindenwald
The front of the thirty-six room mansion, was described by our delightful tour guide, Ann, as a unique mix of Gothic, Italianate, and Georgian. Ann, an extremely informed and interesting guide, fed us all kinds of tidbits, including the fact that Van Buren founded the Democratic Party–never knew that(!).
Washington Irving wrote A History of New York here at Lindenwald, before Van Buren owned it, but he later became friends with Van Buren during the President’s retirement.
The entire dining room is papered with French, hand-painted wall paper. When the National Park Service rescued Lindenwald in 1974, the wallpaper was in terrible shape. They discovered that the French company still existed and they ordered replacements for damaged areas.
Get a load of this molding–amazing, right? I guess they knew how to do molding back in the 19th century.
The Van Alen Home
Also on the property, the one-room school house–Ichobod Crane, named after the school master in Washington Irving’s tale, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.
Kinderhook
We drove into the town of Kinderhook to track down Van Buren’s Grave. We saw this amazing house along the way. Kinderhook, by the way, means “children’s corner” in Dutch.
Hendrick Hudson named it for the Mohican children he saw on shore while exploring the Hudson River in the early 1600s.
Van Buren’s Gravesite
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LOVE your scarf! What a wonderful place to visit…on the bucket list. 🙂
What a lovely day! I'd love just 5 minutes in that linen shop! Your scarf is beautiful. I'm close to 1/2 Dutch, so I always enjoy learning more about their culture/history. Enjoyed the tour, Diana!
Beautiful tour and so informative … what a fun day you must have had. Love your silk scarf. That stack of quilts are beautiful and I was thinking Hudson Bay even before I read your comment.
Thanks for sharing.
Audrey Z. @ Timeless Treasures
Gorgeous scarf! It's so special when you get something special at a special spot1 I enjoyed the tour with you. The little Dutch girl inside of me was delighted!!!
I really enjoy doing tours like this, so I enjoyed this post. Loved the linens and the aprons. And that's a very nice photo of you and your husband.
Diana, Thanks for another great field trip! As usual, gorgeous photos! Hugs, Cecilia
Wonderful tour – amazing home! Love it! I do appreciate you sharing with Home and Garden Thursday,
Kathy