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Newest Exhibition "The
White House Garden " Opens at Polk Presidential Hall
COLUMBIA TN- On Wednesday, September 9, 1846, James K. Polk wrote
in his diary, “At 9 O-Clock this morning, accompanied by the
Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of War, & the Atto.
Gen’l, I rode out in my carriage to meet the Regents of the
Smithsonian Institute on the Public grounds lying West of the Capitol
and South of the President’s House, with a view to locate
the site of that Institution. I met the Regents on the grounds,
and spent nearly an hour with them on foot in examining the grounds.”
Thus would be the start of our nation’s largest museum complex,
and it is therefore fitting that the Polk Home host a traveling
exhibit from that Institution. “The White House Garden”
will open at Polk Presidential Hall on April 17th. This exhibit,
hosted and developed by the White House Historical Association and
the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service, will look at the history
of the White House gardens.
The stately grounds of the White House have served as an impressive
stage for everything from elegant weddings and royal receptions
to Easter egg hunts and President Eisenhower’s personal putting
green. “The White House Garden,” an exhibition developed
and supported by the White House Historical Association and organized
for travel by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Services
(SITES), will open at Polk Presidential Hall.
“The White House Garden,” which originally debuted
at the U.S. Botanic Garden in Washington, D.C. in 2008, will come
to Polk Presidential Hall from April 17th-June 13th before continuing
on a twenty-city national tour through 2012. Visitors to the exhibit
will be introduced to this fascinating historic landscape through
an outstanding collection of photos, drawings, maps, and even family
and business correspondence. The exhibit will even feature a panel
recently installed to incorporate the Obama family’s influence
on the White House landscape.
Since the 1790’s, presidents, first families, renowned landscape
architects and countless other Americans have contributed to the
development of the formal gardens and parkland surrounding the “people’s
house,” shaping the land into an extraordinary, one-of-a-kind
national treasure and the oldest continuously landscaped garden
in the U.S.
The White House garden during the Polks’ tenure in the White
House marked the end of the “old” garden first planned
by Thomas Jefferson and implemented by James Monroe. The gardens
were hardly elegant in comparison to today. The trees planted in
earlier administrations were still dwarfed by the huge mansion.
There were many flower beds scattered around the grounds which neatly
framed the building, but ornamental flowers rarely decorated the
state rooms, as common belief still prevailed that flowers in close-quarters
gave off unhealthy vapors. Open lawns of green grass dominated the
landscape and were hand-cut when knee-high. Close-cutting was completed
by a herd of sheep and then rolled flat by gardener John Ousley.
A vegetable garden supplied most of the needs of the table, and
through the summer and fall, the cooks were busy “putting
up” fruits and vegetables and making preserves. The Polk gardens
were as practical as they were ornamental.
Visitors to the exhibit will learn about the daunting challenges
posed by the indigenous landscape, and how the garden evolved over
its 200 year history. It will illustrate the various roles the White
House gardens have played in the international and domestic affairs
of each administration. More than 500 trees planted on the grounds
which were first documented by first daughter Amy Carter as part
of a school project are also highlighted. Among them is the ancient
magnolia planted by Andrew Jackson in memory of his late wife Rachel.
The White House Historical Association, established in 1961, is
a nonprofit organization whose goal is to enhance the understanding,
appreciation, and enjoyment of the White House. All proceeds from
the association’s trusts, publications, and other items are
used to fund acquisitions of historic furnishings and artwork for
the permanent collection, assist in the preservation of the public
rooms, and further its educational mission.
SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and
research programs with millions of people outside Washington D.C.
for more than 50 years. SITES connects Americans to their shared
cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art,
science, and history, which are shown wherever people live, work,
and play.
Tickets for “The White House Garden” can be purchased
separately or included with admission to the Polk Home historic
site. The adult ticket rates are $7 for admission to the historic
site, $5 for the Presidential Hall exhibition, and $10 for a combined
ticket. Discounts are available for senior citizens, children, and
groups of ten or more. Located at 301 W. Seventh Street in downtown
Columbia, the Polk Home is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday-Saturday
and from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. For additional information,
call the Home at (931) 388-2354.
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