A Trip to Hyde Park
When I was a kid, Poptarts ran a promotion where they put two presidential trading cards in each box. I collected them all, and that is what sparked my interest in all things presidential.
I was especially interested FDR, because he served longer than anyone else and because of the era when he was president. So, I;ve been meaning to go visit his estate for years, but my vacation time and the weather (there is walking involved) never seemed to match up until now.
Yesterday, I went up to Hyde Park, to visit the FDR National Historic Site and Val-Kill, the home of Eleanor Roosevelt.
It was amazing.
I started at the Wallace Visitors Center, where I got my ticket for the guided tour of Springwood, FDR's family mansion. It's $14, and it includes the guided tour of the mansion, admission to the FDR library and museum and access to the grounds.
The day actually started with a short documentary about FDR and Eleanor which lasted about twenty minutes. It was interesting because two of their grandchildren were interviewed, which gave us an insight into their personal lives, which I found interesting.
After that, we met at the floor mosaic map of the area (which is beautiful) and walked over to Springwood. Along the way, we stopped at the entrance to the Rose Garden, where Eleanor, FDR and two of their dogs are buried.
I think the park ranger stopped there to make sure we were all still in one group. He told us a story about FDR's dog, Fala, and her secret service code name (The Informer, because everyone knew what she looked like so if they saw Fala, they knew FDR was nearby.).
The park ranger was extremely informative and had lots of interesting stories.
Once we entered Springwood, we immediately got an insight into FDR's life through his hobbies. The entrance hall is filled with things he collected.
For instance, as a boy, FDR hunted small game and then stuffed and mounted them. One cabinet is filled with these. He also studied the War of 1812, and along one wall there are portraits of all the American naval commanders of that war. FDR also collected political cartoons from the Revolutionary War and War of 1812 eras, and they were on another wall.
The political cartoons almost caused an international incident. When the King and Queen of England visited, FDR's mother Sara, whose house this was until her death, wanted to have the cartoon taken down before the royal couple's arrival, since most of those cartoons were anti-British.
Well, in the rush to get things done, people forgot to do that.
George VI comes into the house, and heads directly for the wall of political cartoons, reading each one. (Some of them are in French, by the way) He then walks over to FDR and says, "I say, you have some that aren't in my collection."
I'd post pictures, but it was so dark in there, that most of the pictures didn't come out. We got to see the dining room, living room, library, and Sara's study. On the second floor, we got to see the various bedrooms and the elevator that Roosevelt used after being stricken with polio.
On display in the hallway on the second floor were several paintings of ships at sea, which makes sense since the entire family loved sailing.
The tour of the house took about an hour. We exited the tour on the second floor, and, as I walked down the steps, I couldn't help but notice the incredible view of the valley.
After the house tour, we were on our own, allowed to wander the grounds. I went to the stable and the Rose Garden. The garden was beautiful, and as I said, that is where FDR and Eleanor were laid to rest.
From there, I went to the library and museum. Right now, the library is undergoing renovations, so most of the public space isn't open. However, they have a spectacular photo exhibit on the lives of Eleanor and FDR on display there.
It really is a biography of the two told through pictures. It starts with their childhoods and goes all the way through to their deaths. Rare color photos are included, as are two EXTREMELY rare photos of FDR in his wheelchair.
FDR didn't allow people to photograph him in his wheelchair, so only about four photos of him in it exist.
Along one wall is a series of photographs of FDR from each year of his presidency. You can see how the office aged him, especially in 1944 and 1945.
At the end of the exhibit is a short movie called Eleanor Remembers. It's an audio interview of Eleanor with pictures and film clips.
The exhibit was great.
I stopped at the cafe for lunch and then went off to Val-Kill.
The admission fee at Val-Kill is $8.
Val-Kill is much smaller than Springwood. Eleanor used it as her home when FDR was away because her mother-in-law, Sara, who she didn't get along with, lived in Springwood, so Eleanor never really felt like that was home.
After FDR's death in 1945, Eleanor moved to Val-Kill permanently.
As with the FDR estate, here, the tour starts with a documentary, though this one focus mostly on Eleanor's life after FDR's death and her work at the U.N. and for civil rights.
For instance, I didn't know that, in the 60's, the KKK had put a bounty on Eleanor's head and tried to kill her when she went to Tennessee to help civil rights activists.
After the movie, we went on a forty minute or so tour of the house. We were only allowed on the first floor here. I'm not sure if thats due to renovations or whatnot, but it was fine.
The park ranger guiding us here was also informative and entertaining. The house was full of books and photos of Eleanor's family and friends. Much of the furniture is not the original (unlike Springwood), because Val-Kill didn't become part of the park system for a good fifteen to twenty years after Eleanor;s death, and many of the items were auctioned off or taken by family members.
By this time, it was well after 4:00 pm, and time to leave, so I could catch the train back to NYC.
A Vanderbilt mansion is also part of this park complex, but I chose not to see it. The folks at the Wallace center tell you that it is difficult to see all three: the FDR stuff, Val-Kill and Vanderbilt in one day. They advise that you pick two.
Since I was there for the Roosevelts, my decision was easy.
And I think they were right. I got to wander around and take my sweet time.
This was an excellent day trip for me, and I will be going back.
Note: If you live in or near NYC, during the Spring and Summer, the park offers The Roosevelt Ride. They will pick you up at the Poughkeepsie train station and take you to the park in shuttle bus and, at the end of the day, take you back to the station. Reservations are required. The shuttle bus ride is free.
This is what I did, and it was really nice. When you make that reservation, they automatically book you for tour times, so you don't have to wait if the tour sells out.
I cannot recommend this trip enough. Go. It's an interesting place, full of history and beauty.
I was especially interested FDR, because he served longer than anyone else and because of the era when he was president. So, I;ve been meaning to go visit his estate for years, but my vacation time and the weather (there is walking involved) never seemed to match up until now.
Yesterday, I went up to Hyde Park, to visit the FDR National Historic Site and Val-Kill, the home of Eleanor Roosevelt.
It was amazing.
I started at the Wallace Visitors Center, where I got my ticket for the guided tour of Springwood, FDR's family mansion. It's $14, and it includes the guided tour of the mansion, admission to the FDR library and museum and access to the grounds.
The day actually started with a short documentary about FDR and Eleanor which lasted about twenty minutes. It was interesting because two of their grandchildren were interviewed, which gave us an insight into their personal lives, which I found interesting.
After that, we met at the floor mosaic map of the area (which is beautiful) and walked over to Springwood. Along the way, we stopped at the entrance to the Rose Garden, where Eleanor, FDR and two of their dogs are buried.
I think the park ranger stopped there to make sure we were all still in one group. He told us a story about FDR's dog, Fala, and her secret service code name (The Informer, because everyone knew what she looked like so if they saw Fala, they knew FDR was nearby.).
The park ranger was extremely informative and had lots of interesting stories.
Once we entered Springwood, we immediately got an insight into FDR's life through his hobbies. The entrance hall is filled with things he collected.
For instance, as a boy, FDR hunted small game and then stuffed and mounted them. One cabinet is filled with these. He also studied the War of 1812, and along one wall there are portraits of all the American naval commanders of that war. FDR also collected political cartoons from the Revolutionary War and War of 1812 eras, and they were on another wall.
The political cartoons almost caused an international incident. When the King and Queen of England visited, FDR's mother Sara, whose house this was until her death, wanted to have the cartoon taken down before the royal couple's arrival, since most of those cartoons were anti-British.
Well, in the rush to get things done, people forgot to do that.
George VI comes into the house, and heads directly for the wall of political cartoons, reading each one. (Some of them are in French, by the way) He then walks over to FDR and says, "I say, you have some that aren't in my collection."
I'd post pictures, but it was so dark in there, that most of the pictures didn't come out. We got to see the dining room, living room, library, and Sara's study. On the second floor, we got to see the various bedrooms and the elevator that Roosevelt used after being stricken with polio.
On display in the hallway on the second floor were several paintings of ships at sea, which makes sense since the entire family loved sailing.
The tour of the house took about an hour. We exited the tour on the second floor, and, as I walked down the steps, I couldn't help but notice the incredible view of the valley.
After the house tour, we were on our own, allowed to wander the grounds. I went to the stable and the Rose Garden. The garden was beautiful, and as I said, that is where FDR and Eleanor were laid to rest.
From there, I went to the library and museum. Right now, the library is undergoing renovations, so most of the public space isn't open. However, they have a spectacular photo exhibit on the lives of Eleanor and FDR on display there.
It really is a biography of the two told through pictures. It starts with their childhoods and goes all the way through to their deaths. Rare color photos are included, as are two EXTREMELY rare photos of FDR in his wheelchair.
FDR didn't allow people to photograph him in his wheelchair, so only about four photos of him in it exist.
Along one wall is a series of photographs of FDR from each year of his presidency. You can see how the office aged him, especially in 1944 and 1945.
At the end of the exhibit is a short movie called Eleanor Remembers. It's an audio interview of Eleanor with pictures and film clips.
The exhibit was great.
I stopped at the cafe for lunch and then went off to Val-Kill.
The admission fee at Val-Kill is $8.
Val-Kill is much smaller than Springwood. Eleanor used it as her home when FDR was away because her mother-in-law, Sara, who she didn't get along with, lived in Springwood, so Eleanor never really felt like that was home.
After FDR's death in 1945, Eleanor moved to Val-Kill permanently.
As with the FDR estate, here, the tour starts with a documentary, though this one focus mostly on Eleanor's life after FDR's death and her work at the U.N. and for civil rights.
For instance, I didn't know that, in the 60's, the KKK had put a bounty on Eleanor's head and tried to kill her when she went to Tennessee to help civil rights activists.
After the movie, we went on a forty minute or so tour of the house. We were only allowed on the first floor here. I'm not sure if thats due to renovations or whatnot, but it was fine.
The park ranger guiding us here was also informative and entertaining. The house was full of books and photos of Eleanor's family and friends. Much of the furniture is not the original (unlike Springwood), because Val-Kill didn't become part of the park system for a good fifteen to twenty years after Eleanor;s death, and many of the items were auctioned off or taken by family members.
By this time, it was well after 4:00 pm, and time to leave, so I could catch the train back to NYC.
A Vanderbilt mansion is also part of this park complex, but I chose not to see it. The folks at the Wallace center tell you that it is difficult to see all three: the FDR stuff, Val-Kill and Vanderbilt in one day. They advise that you pick two.
Since I was there for the Roosevelts, my decision was easy.
And I think they were right. I got to wander around and take my sweet time.
This was an excellent day trip for me, and I will be going back.
Note: If you live in or near NYC, during the Spring and Summer, the park offers The Roosevelt Ride. They will pick you up at the Poughkeepsie train station and take you to the park in shuttle bus and, at the end of the day, take you back to the station. Reservations are required. The shuttle bus ride is free.
This is what I did, and it was really nice. When you make that reservation, they automatically book you for tour times, so you don't have to wait if the tour sells out.
I cannot recommend this trip enough. Go. It's an interesting place, full of history and beauty.