Comments on: Arlington House, Public History, and Tourism http://cwmemory.com/2009/10/26/arlington-house-public-history-and-tourism/ Reflections of a High School History Teacher & Civil War Historian Sun, 14 Mar 2010 18:20:13 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Kevin Levin http://cwmemory.com/2009/10/26/arlington-house-public-history-and-tourism/#comment-12786 Kevin Levin Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:04:38 +0000 http://cwmemory.com/?p=5248#comment-12786 Mine is the only essay dealing with Arlington. You've hit on a number of important points that worked to shape the early history of Arlington. The circumstances surrounding the death of young Meigs is indeed controversial, but no doubt contributed to a fairly strong push to have the cemetery overshadow any remembrance of the Lee family. It is also interesting how the burials of Sheridan and other high-ranking commanders within a few yards of the mansion contributed to this during the 1880s and 1890s. By the early 20th Century bushes had been placed around those graves to shield them from the view from the house. The whole postwar story is quite fascinating. Mine is the only essay dealing with Arlington. You've hit on a number of important points that worked to shape the early history of Arlington. The circumstances surrounding the death of young Meigs is indeed controversial, but no doubt contributed to a fairly strong push to have the cemetery overshadow any remembrance of the Lee family. It is also interesting how the burials of Sheridan and other high-ranking commanders within a few yards of the mansion contributed to this during the 1880s and 1890s. By the early 20th Century bushes had been placed around those graves to shield them from the view from the house. The whole postwar story is quite fascinating.

]]> By: margaretdblough http://cwmemory.com/2009/10/26/arlington-house-public-history-and-tourism/#comment-12785 margaretdblough Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:54:07 +0000 http://cwmemory.com/?p=5248#comment-12785 Kevin-Especially in light of that passage from the Reed novel, I hope someone is dealing with the role that the death of the young Brevet Major. buried in Section 1 of the National Cemetery, played in the placement of the cemetery on Arlington grounds. the actual circumstances of his death will always be controversial, but his father and many others in the Union Army, were convinced that the Major (Bvt) was murdered in cold blood by civilians or partisans in civilian clothes. Unfortunately for the Lees, the young man, as you know was John Rodgers Meigs and his devoted and devastated father was Montgomery Meigs. There is no doubt that the placement of the cemetery on Arlington grounds to make it impossible for the Lees to ever be able to live there again was very much revenge by a grieving father. <br><br><br>As I understand it, Montgomery Meigs was a Georgian by birth, who was raised from childhood in Pennsylvania. He ran afoul of John B. Floyd when the latter was Buchanan's Secy. of War & really was banished to the Dry Tortugas. Is there record, specifically of Gen. Meigs' attitude, before his son's death, towards those southerners who went with the Confederate army after receiving an education and career from the US government and taking an oath to support and defend the US Constitution? <br><br>I think the Meigs angle (The retaliation after John Meigs' death also resulted in the "Burnt District" in Virginia) brings in something that is very easy to lose in the beauty and peace of Arlington House-the hatred, rage and bitterness that can burn at their most intense in a civil war due to the very fact that such a war cuts across family lines, professional lines (although, in many ways, the tiny antebellum US army officer corps was a family, especially the West Point alumni, with biological and marital ties as well) with the former friends and relatives on either side of the divide regarding each other not merely as enemies but as traitors.<br><br>The slavery history is very important. That lovely and genteel lifestyle came at a terrible price for others. But I also think that George Washington Parke Custis needs to be seen as not just the builder of it but his attitude towards slavery needs to come forward as well. Lee often gets credit for freeing "his" slaves immediately before the war. They weren't Lee's slaves and never were. Lee was acting as executor of his father-in-law's will in freeing G.W.P. Custis's slaves. Lee may deserve a few points for not trying to have that portion of the will invalidated. That was quite common and the courts were very sympathetic to distressed heirs who saw dear deceased daddy (who the heirs would convince themselves was not quite right in the head when the will was made) trying to strip the estate of its prime assets. However, it was Custis, who worshipped the step-grandfather who raised him, who was determined to follow the precedent of Washington's will. Custis's will required that all 200 of the slaves he owned (he wasn't a very good manager but this made him a major slaveholder) be freed once the estate's other bequests were paid or five years after his death, whichever came first. Kevin-Especially in light of that passage from the Reed novel, I hope someone is dealing with the role that the death of the young Brevet Major. buried in Section 1 of the National Cemetery, played in the placement of the cemetery on Arlington grounds. the actual circumstances of his death will always be controversial, but his father and many others in the Union Army, were convinced that the Major (Bvt) was murdered in cold blood by civilians or partisans in civilian clothes. Unfortunately for the Lees, the young man, as you know was John Rodgers Meigs and his devoted and devastated father was Montgomery Meigs. There is no doubt that the placement of the cemetery on Arlington grounds to make it impossible for the Lees to ever be able to live there again was very much revenge by a grieving father.

As I understand it, Montgomery Meigs was a Georgian by birth, who was raised from childhood in Pennsylvania. He ran afoul of John B. Floyd when the latter was Buchanan's Secy. of War & really was banished to the Dry Tortugas. Is there record, specifically of Gen. Meigs' attitude, before his son's death, towards those southerners who went with the Confederate army after receiving an education and career from the US government and taking an oath to support and defend the US Constitution?

I think the Meigs angle (The retaliation after John Meigs' death also resulted in the “Burnt District” in Virginia) brings in something that is very easy to lose in the beauty and peace of Arlington House-the hatred, rage and bitterness that can burn at their most intense in a civil war due to the very fact that such a war cuts across family lines, professional lines (although, in many ways, the tiny antebellum US army officer corps was a family, especially the West Point alumni, with biological and marital ties as well) with the former friends and relatives on either side of the divide regarding each other not merely as enemies but as traitors.

The slavery history is very important. That lovely and genteel lifestyle came at a terrible price for others. But I also think that George Washington Parke Custis needs to be seen as not just the builder of it but his attitude towards slavery needs to come forward as well. Lee often gets credit for freeing “his” slaves immediately before the war. They weren't Lee's slaves and never were. Lee was acting as executor of his father-in-law's will in freeing G.W.P. Custis's slaves. Lee may deserve a few points for not trying to have that portion of the will invalidated. That was quite common and the courts were very sympathetic to distressed heirs who saw dear deceased daddy (who the heirs would convince themselves was not quite right in the head when the will was made) trying to strip the estate of its prime assets. However, it was Custis, who worshipped the step-grandfather who raised him, who was determined to follow the precedent of Washington's will. Custis's will required that all 200 of the slaves he owned (he wasn't a very good manager but this made him a major slaveholder) be freed once the estate's other bequests were paid or five years after his death, whichever came first.

]]> By: Kevin Levin http://cwmemory.com/2009/10/26/arlington-house-public-history-and-tourism/#comment-11897 Kevin Levin Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:04:38 +0000 http://cwmemory.com/?p=5248#comment-11897 Mine is the only essay dealing with Arlington. You've hit on a number of important points that worked to shape the early history of Arlington. The circumstances surrounding the death of young Meigs is indeed controversial, but no doubt contributed to a fairly strong push to have the cemetery overshadow any remembrance of the Lee family. It is also interesting how the burials of Sheridan and other high-ranking commanders within a few yards of the mansion contributed to this during the 1880s and 1890s. By the early 20th Century bushes had been placed around those graves to shield them from the view from the house. The whole postwar story is quite fascinating. Mine is the only essay dealing with Arlington. You've hit on a number of important points that worked to shape the early history of Arlington. The circumstances surrounding the death of young Meigs is indeed controversial, but no doubt contributed to a fairly strong push to have the cemetery overshadow any remembrance of the Lee family. It is also interesting how the burials of Sheridan and other high-ranking commanders within a few yards of the mansion contributed to this during the 1880s and 1890s. By the early 20th Century bushes had been placed around those graves to shield them from the view from the house. The whole postwar story is quite fascinating.

]]> By: margaretdblough http://cwmemory.com/2009/10/26/arlington-house-public-history-and-tourism/#comment-11896 margaretdblough Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:54:07 +0000 http://cwmemory.com/?p=5248#comment-11896 Kevin-Especially in light of that passage from the Reed novel, I hope someone is dealing with the role that the death of the young Brevet Major. buried in Section 1 of the National Cemetery, played in the placement of the cemetery on Arlington grounds. the actual circumstances of his death will always be controversial, but his father and many others in the Union Army, were convinced that the Major (Bvt) was murdered in cold blood by civilians or partisans in civilian clothes. Unfortunately for the Lees, the young man, as you know was John Rodgers Meigs and his devoted and devastated father was Montgomery Meigs. There is no doubt that the placement of the cemetery on Arlington grounds to make it impossible for the Lees to ever be able to live there again was very much revenge by a grieving father. <br><br><br>As I understand it, Montgomery Meigs was a Georgian by birth, who was raised from childhood in Pennsylvania. He ran afoul of John B. Floyd when the latter was Buchanan's Secy. of War & really was banished to the Dry Tortugas. Is there record, specifically of Gen. Meigs' attitude, before his son's death, towards those southerners who went with the Confederate army after receiving an education and career from the US government and taking an oath to support and defend the US Constitution? <br><br>I think the Meigs angle (The retaliation after John Meigs' death also resulted in the "Burnt District" in Virginia) brings in something that is very easy to lose in the beauty and peace of Arlington House-the hatred, rage and bitterness that can burn at their most intense in a civil war due to the very fact that such a war cuts across family lines, professional lines (although, in many ways, the tiny antebellum US army officer corps was a family, especially the West Point alumni, with biological and marital ties as well) with the former friends and relatives on either side of the divide regarding each other not merely as enemies but as traitors.<br><br>The slavery history is very important. That lovely and genteel lifestyle came at a terrible price for others. But I also think that George Washington Parke Custis needs to be seen as not just the builder of it but his attitude towards slavery needs to come forward as well. Lee often gets credit for freeing "his" slaves immediately before the war. They weren't Lee's slaves and never were. Lee was acting as executor of his father-in-law's will in freeing G.W.P. Custis's slaves. Lee may deserve a few points for not trying to have that portion of the will invalidated. That was quite common and the courts were very sympathetic to distressed heirs who saw dear deceased daddy (who the heirs would convince themselves was not quite right in the head when the will was made) trying to strip the estate of its prime assets. However, it was Custis, who worshipped the step-grandfather who raised him, who was determined to follow the precedent of Washington's will. Custis's will required that all 200 of the slaves he owned (he wasn't a very good manager but this made him a major slaveholder) be freed once the estate's other bequests were paid or five years after his death, whichever came first. Kevin-Especially in light of that passage from the Reed novel, I hope someone is dealing with the role that the death of the young Brevet Major. buried in Section 1 of the National Cemetery, played in the placement of the cemetery on Arlington grounds. the actual circumstances of his death will always be controversial, but his father and many others in the Union Army, were convinced that the Major (Bvt) was murdered in cold blood by civilians or partisans in civilian clothes. Unfortunately for the Lees, the young man, as you know was John Rodgers Meigs and his devoted and devastated father was Montgomery Meigs. There is no doubt that the placement of the cemetery on Arlington grounds to make it impossible for the Lees to ever be able to live there again was very much revenge by a grieving father.

As I understand it, Montgomery Meigs was a Georgian by birth, who was raised from childhood in Pennsylvania. He ran afoul of John B. Floyd when the latter was Buchanan's Secy. of War & really was banished to the Dry Tortugas. Is there record, specifically of Gen. Meigs' attitude, before his son's death, towards those southerners who went with the Confederate army after receiving an education and career from the US government and taking an oath to support and defend the US Constitution?

I think the Meigs angle (The retaliation after John Meigs' death also resulted in the “Burnt District” in Virginia) brings in something that is very easy to lose in the beauty and peace of Arlington House-the hatred, rage and bitterness that can burn at their most intense in a civil war due to the very fact that such a war cuts across family lines, professional lines (although, in many ways, the tiny antebellum US army officer corps was a family, especially the West Point alumni, with biological and marital ties as well) with the former friends and relatives on either side of the divide regarding each other not merely as enemies but as traitors.

The slavery history is very important. That lovely and genteel lifestyle came at a terrible price for others. But I also think that George Washington Parke Custis needs to be seen as not just the builder of it but his attitude towards slavery needs to come forward as well. Lee often gets credit for freeing “his” slaves immediately before the war. They weren't Lee's slaves and never were. Lee was acting as executor of his father-in-law's will in freeing G.W.P. Custis's slaves. Lee may deserve a few points for not trying to have that portion of the will invalidated. That was quite common and the courts were very sympathetic to distressed heirs who saw dear deceased daddy (who the heirs would convince themselves was not quite right in the head when the will was made) trying to strip the estate of its prime assets. However, it was Custis, who worshipped the step-grandfather who raised him, who was determined to follow the precedent of Washington's will. Custis's will required that all 200 of the slaves he owned (he wasn't a very good manager but this made him a major slaveholder) be freed once the estate's other bequests were paid or five years after his death, whichever came first.

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