From George Washington to Barack Obama, U.S. presidents have slept, studied and taken their first steps in North Carolina. They’ve vacationed here, played golf and visited sites on tourists’ must-see lists.
As the state awaits a new moment in history with the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, political junkies of all persuasions can dig into our presidents’ pasts at places across North Carolina.
James K. Polk
The history: Our 11th president was born on a 150-acre farm south of Charlotte in 1795. The oldest of 10 children, he lived there until 1806, when his family moved to Tennessee. Nine years later, Polk transferred from a Tennessee academy to the University of North Carolina, where he graduated with honors in 1818.
Sites to see:
- President James K. Polk State Historic Site. In Pineville, about 12 miles from convention headquarters in Charlotte, the site features period log structures and furnishings similar to those from Polk’s childhood. Exhibits explore the Mexican-American War, the Oregon boundary dispute, the annexation of California and other events that marked Polk’s single term as president (he did not seek re-election). An exhibit that explores the convention process is on display through November. www.nchistoricsites.org/polk/main.htm
- UNC-Chapel Hill. Polk Place, a tree-lined quadrangle in the heart of the historic campus, is named for the distinguished alumnus. Morehead Planetarium and Science Center displays a bronze statue of Polk in its art rotunda. www.unc.edu
- State Capitol. A monument on the grounds honors Polk, Andrew Jackson and Andrew Johnson as “Three Presidents North Carolina Gave the Nation.” President Harry S. Truman spoke at its dedication in 1948. www.nchistoricsites.org/capitol/default.htm
Andrew Johnson
The history: In 1808, our 17th president was born in downtown Raleigh in a kitchen at Casso’s Inn, a bustling business where both of his parents worked. After apprenticing as a tailor, he traveled the South, returned to Raleigh, then moved with his family to Tennessee in 1826.
Sites to see:
- Andrew Johnson Birthplace. A highway marker across the street from the Capitol approximates the original site of the kitchen. In honor of the Johnson sesquicentennial, Harry S. Truman attended ceremonies at the house, which is now located at Raleigh’s Mordecai (pronounced MOR-duh-kee) Historic Park. www.raleighnc.gov/mordecai
- State Capitol. “Three Presidents North Carolina Gave the Nation” monument.
Andrew Jackson
The history: About 30 miles south of Charlotte, a historic marker in Waxhaw places the birth of our seventh president “a few miles southwest of this spot” in 1767. That could land you in South Carolina, which is consistent with Jackson’s own account, but North Carolina has yet to give up its claim. In any case, Jackson went on to study law in Salisbury with prominent attorney Spruce Macay and was admitted to the Rowan County bar in 1786. He moved to Tennessee while it was still part of North Carolina.
Sites to see:
- Museum of the Waxhaws and Andrew Jackson Memorial. With its focus on the region’s history and Scots-Irish heritage, the museum illuminates Jackson’s boyhood and influences on his world view as a young Patriot and future president. www.museumofthewaxhaws.com
- Salisbury. Stroll down Jackson Street, supposedly named for Old Hickory. A highway marker at the Rowan Public Library notes Jackson’s tenure with Macay. And the Rowan Museum has a warrant for his arrest on a complaint that was settled out of court. visitsalisbury.com
- Greensboro. Before moving to Tennessee, Jackson stayed at the family home of his friend John McNairy. The McNairy House has been relocated to the grounds of the Greensboro Historical Museum, whose collection includes native daughter Dolley Madison’s famous red velvet dress and photos of presidential campaign visits. greensborohistory.org
- Cherokee. Visit the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, Oconaluftee Indian Village and Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual, or watch a summer performance of the outdoor drama “Unto These Hills,” for a Native American perspective on the president who administered the Indian Removal Act of 1830. www.cherokee-nc.com
- State Capitol. “Three Presidents North Carolina Gave the Nation” monument.
Woodrow Wilson
The history: Our 28th president was the son of a minister who was pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Wilmington from 1874 to 1885. The future Nobel Peace Prize winner attended Davidson College, a top liberal arts college about 20 miles north of Charlotte, during the 1873-74 academic year. He withdrew because of illness and spent the next year convalescing at his family’s home in Wilmington.
Sites to see:
- Davidson College. Wilson is rumored to have planted a tree in the college arboretum. He also played center field on the baseball team, but note that Wilson Field is named for T. Henry Wilson Jr., Class of 1951, and not the president. www.davidson.edu
- Wilmington. First Presbyterian Church is near the riverfront in the historic port city; a marker notes the site of the manse where the Wilsons lived. Also, John Bellamy’s home is now the Bellamy Mansion of History and Design Arts. www.wilmingtonandbeaches.com
Abraham Lincoln
The history: The official story places the birth of our 16th president in a log cabin in Kentucky. An alternate story suggests that Nancy Hanks gave birth to the future president in the North Carolina foothills of Bostic, about an hour’s drive from Charlotte.
Site to see:
- The Bostic Lincoln Center: The center makes its case at a library on Depot Street and with visits to Lincoln Hill, site of another log cabin. www.bosticlincolncenter.com
Presidential visits
Business and pleasure alike have brought presidents to the state. First and foremost was George Washington, who spent the night at a dozen North Carolina inns plus a couple of homes on his tour of Southern battlefields in 1791. Most of the structures are gone, but state historic markers note where they stood (search “Washington’s Southern Tour” at www.ncmarkers.com for a complete list).
On his April 20-21 visit to New Bern, Washington stayed at John Wright Stanly’s house and was wined and dined at Tryon Palace, the young state’s first capitol. The Stanly house and a reconstructed palace are now part of the Tryon Palace historic site. www.tryonpalace.org On a second swing through the state, Washington stopped by Salem Tavern on May 31 and stayed until the wee hours of June 2. The tavern, rebuilt in 1784 after a fire, is now the Salem Tavern Museum. www.oldsalem.org Visitors can also trace Washington’s footsteps at Guilford Courthouse National Military Park in Greensboro. www.nps.gov/guco
President James Monroe revived the idea of touring the country, and his 1819 Southern tour brought him to New Bern, a city that specializes in preserving and presenting its history. Like Washington, Monroe visited St. John’s Masonic Lodge and worshipped at Christ Episcopal Church; he also was entertained at the Coor-Bishop House on East Front Street. And in 1948, Air Force One landed at Cherry Point Air Station so that vacation-bound President Harry S. Truman could worship at First Baptist Church. www.visitnewbern.com
Ten presidents have stayed at The Grove Park Inn Resort & Spa in Asheville during in its 99-year history. The most recent was Barack Obama. Candidate Obama spent the night at the luxury lodge in October 2008, then returned with his wife for a 2010 weekend getaway. The inn’s guest list also includes presidents William Howard Taft, Woodrow Wilson, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Richard M. Nixon, George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton. www.groveparkinn.com
Biltmore, George W. Vanderbilt’s palatial home, has been another popular stop on presidents’ Asheville itineraries. William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Richard M. Nixon, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama all made their way there. The mansion might even have made them feel a bit house poor: Biltmore House, America’s largest home, has 250 rooms while the Executive Residence has a mere 132. www.biltmore.com
Other mountain resorts have presidents’ names on the guest register: Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover at the Green Park Inn in Blowing Rock (www.greenparkinn.com), Coolidge and Franklin D. Roosevelt at the 1927 Lake Lure Inn and Spa in Lake Lure (www.lakelure.com), and Jimmy Carter at the Nu-Wray Inn (www.nuwrayinn.com) in Burnsville. President Carter also spent the night at the Fearrington House Inn in Pittsboro after a 1996 book signing and dined with owner R.B. Fitch in the resort’s restaurant (www.fearrington.com).
Given the popularity of golf among presidents — according to Golf Digest, 15 of the last 18 have hit the greens — it’s no surprise that several have found their way to Pinehurst, America’s original golf resort. Warren G. Harding, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Gerald R. Ford, George H.W. Bush and Richard M. Nixon all teed up on the famous greens. And Harry S. Truman, a non-golfer, stayed at the resort; his secretary of state, George C. Marshall, had a home in the Village of Pinehurst. www.pinehurst.com
A passion for history brought Franklin Delano Roosevelt to Roanoke Island on Aug. 18, 1937. “The Lost Colony,” now the nation’s longest-running outdoor drama, had premiered in July, and the president attended the performance on the 350th anniversary of the birth of Virginia Dare, the first English child born in America. Roosevelt traveled to Elizabeth City by train, then to Manteo by Coast Guard cutter, and watched the symphonic drama from an open car. thelostcolony.org
Presidents have also chalked up scores of political visits — including a few of interest on the travel front. Theodore Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Gerald R. Ford and George H.W. Bush all campaigned at the State Fair, where a candidate can always find a crowd and something deep fried on a stick. And Lyndon B. Johnson took advantage of a giant photo op when he visited Thomasville in 1960: He greeted supporters from the 10½-foot-wide seat of the town’s iconic Big Chair.
Learning experiences
- Wake Forest University: President Harry S. Truman broke ground on the university’s Winston-Salem campus in 1951 and dined with university benefactors Charles and Mary Babcock (R.J. Reynolds’ daughter) at their home, which is now Reynolda House Museum of American Art. Two decades later, Gerald R. Ford gave the address for the graduation of his oldest son, Michael Gerald Ford, now Wake Forest’s associate dean for campus life. And Presidents Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush have all stayed at Graylyn Estate, the university’s elegant conference center. www.wfu.edu, www.graylyn.com, www.reynoldahouse.org
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: President Gerald R. Ford took a summer law course here in 1938, then returned in 1942 for the U.S. Navy’s Pre-Flight School training program. One of his contemporaries recalls seeing Ford in the audience at a Kate Smith concert: future President Ronald Reagan was in her troupe. Also, George H.W. Bush completed his pre-flight training in Chapel Hill. www.unc.edu
- Duke University: President Richard M. Nixon graduated with a law degree from Duke in 1937. The Durham university was a proposed site of a Nixon library, but the president wanted a stronger museum component than what the university had in mind. Other Duke law school alums with ties to presidential politics: Kenneth Starr, whose investigation of President Bill Clinton opened the door to impeachment; and Sam Seaborn, deputy communications director for president Josiah Bartlet on the TV drama “The West Wing.” www.duke.edu
- Western Piedmont Community College: Speaking of President Nixon, the Senator Sam J. Ervin Jr. Library and Museum honors the chairman of the Senate Watergate committee in his hometown of Morganton. The museum-library re-creates Sen. Sam’s personal library and documents the career of this “country lawyer”/constitutional expert whose Washington tenure began with the censure of Sen. Joe McCarthy and ended with Nixon’s resignation. www.samervinlibrary.org
The name’s the thing
- Washington, N.C.: At least 20 U.S. municipalities have named themselves for President George Washington, but this Pamlico River town did it first. www.visitwashingtonnc.com Nearby Washington County is also named for our first president. gowildnc.org
- Jefferson: The Ashe County seat is named for Thomas Jefferson, as are the town of West Jefferson and Jefferson Mountain State Natural Area. www.ashechamber.com, www.ncparks.gov/Visit/parks/moje/main.php
- Madison County and the town of Madison (in Rockingham County): Both are named for James Madison. www.visitmadisoncounty.com, ncnorthstar.com
- Monroe: East of Charlotte, the Union County seat is named for James Monroe. www.visitmonroenc.org
- Jackson County and the city of Jacksonville (the Onslow County seat): Both are named for Andrew Jackson. www.mountainlovers.com, www.onslowcountytourism.com
- Taylorsville: The Alexander County seat is probably named for Zachary Taylor. www.visitalexandercounty.com
- Lincoln and Lincolnton: The county and its seat, which are northwest of Charlotte, are named for Abraham Lincoln. www.lincolnchambernc.org
- Grover: Grover Cleveland claimed North Carolina’s 11 electoral votes in 1884, and this tiny town could hardly resist taking his name when it incorporated the next year — especially since it’s in Cleveland County. (For the record, “Cleveland” honors Revolutionary War hero Benjamin Cleaveland.) tourclevelandcounty.com
On the table for May
Dinnerware from the six White House services created by Lenox will be on display in Kinston, home to the only fine bone china plant in the United States. The designs date from Woodrow Wilson’s second term, when Lenox became the first American-made dinnerware to grace the president’s table. Since then, five of the six presidents who have created full china services have chosen Lenox (President Lyndon Johnson went with Castleton China). The china will be on view May 1-31 at the Kinston-Lenoir County Visitor’s & Information Center. visitkinston.com