The Woodrow Wilson Boyhood Home is a
historic house museum
A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that has been transformed into a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a ...
at 419
7th Street in
Augusta, Georgia
Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navig ...
. Built in 1859, it was a childhood home of
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
(1856–1924), the 28th
president of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
and proponent of the
League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...
. The house is owned and operated by Historic Augusta, Inc., and was designated a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
on October 6, 2008.
Description and history
The Wilson Boyhood Home is located in downtown Augusta, at the northern corner of Telfair and 7th Streets. It stands adjacent to the Joseph R. Lamar Boyhood Home, which now serves as the visitors center for the house, and diagonally across the street corner from the First Presbyterian Church, for which it served as a manse
A manse () is a clergy house inhabited by, or formerly inhabited by, a minister, usually used in the context of Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist and other Christian traditions.
Ultimately derived from the Latin ''mansus'', "dwelling", from '' ...
. It is a two-story brick structure, with a side gable roof, five-bay front facade, and a pair of end chimneys. Located behind the house are a service building and carriage house, built about the same time of the house, also out of load-bearing brick. The main facade has a center entrance, sheltered by a portico supported by paired Tuscan columns. The entry is framed by sidelight windows and topped by a transom window. The interior has been restored to a c. 1860 appearance, and is decorated with period furnishings and Wilson memorabilia. One of the bedroom windows has the name "Tom" etched in it; this is believed to have been made by Wilson, whose first name was Thomas, and he was called "Tom" or "Tommy" as a child.
The house was built and occupied by the Wilsons in 1859. Until 1872 it was the home of Dr. Joseph Ruggles Wilson
Joseph Ruggles Wilson Sr. (February 28, 1822 – January 21, 1903) was a prominent Presbyterian theologian and father of President Woodrow Wilson, ''Nashville Banner'' editor Joseph Ruggles Wilson Jr., and Anne E. Wilson Howe. In 1861, as pastor o ...
, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, and his family, which included his son Thomas, born 1856 in Virginia. The younger Wilson spent his formative years here, experiencing the American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
and the Reconstruction Era
The Reconstruction era was a period in American history following the American Civil War (1861–1865) and lasting until approximately the Compromise of 1877. During Reconstruction, attempts were made to rebuild the country after the bloo ...
that followed. Wilson, later U.S. president from 1913 to 1921, was profoundly affected by these experiences.
The property remained the manse of the church, housing its ministers, until 1929, by which time the building had undergone a number of alterations and modernizing updates, but was in poor condition. After passing through a number of owners and uses, the property was purchased at auction by Historic Augusta in 1991, which then spent 10 years painstakingly restoring it to its 1860 appearance. It was opened as a house museum in 2001.
See also
* Woodrow Wilson Birthplace and Presidential Library, Staunton, Virginia
*Woodrow Wilson House (Washington, D.C.)
The Woodrow Wilson House was the residence of the twenty-eighth President of the United States, Woodrow Wilson after he left office. It is at 2340 S Street NW just off Washington, D.C.'s Embassy Row. On February 3, 1924, Wilson died in an upst ...
*Presidential memorials in the United States
The presidential memorials in the United States honor the various presidents of the United States and seek to perpetuate their legacies.
Living and physical elements
A presidential memorial may have a physical element which consists of a monum ...
*List of National Historic Landmarks in Georgia (U.S. state)
This is a List of National Historic Landmarks in Georgia. The United States National Historic Landmark program is operated under the auspices of the National Park Service, and recognizes structures, districts, objects, and similar resources acco ...
*
References
External links
*
Boyhood Home of Woodrow Wilson, at Historic Augusta, Inc.
official site
{{Augusta, Georgia
National Register of Historic Places in Augusta, Georgia
Historic house museums in Georgia (U.S. state)
Museums in Augusta, Georgia
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Georgia (U.S. state)
Houses completed in 1840
Woodrow Wilson
Wilson
Wilson may refer to:
People
* Wilson (name)
** List of people with given name Wilson
** List of people with surname Wilson
* Wilson (footballer, 1927–1998), Brazilian manager and defender
* Wilson (footballer, born 1984), full name Wilson Ro ...
Houses in Augusta, Georgia
Presidential museums in Georgia (U.S. state)
National Historic Landmarks in Georgia (U.S. state)