Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant 18th President of the United States (1869-1877)

Grant sites that I have seen: 

Grant Birthplace Point Pleasant, OH

                                        

Grant Boyhood home and schoolhouse Georgetown, OH
                                         

 Grant National Historic Site - Grants 'White Haven" Home in St. Louis, Missouri

Grants 'Hardscrabble' cabin St. Louis, Missouri

Grant headquarters Petersburg, VA

McLean House (where Lee surrendered to Grant, ending the Civil War) Appomattox Court House, VA
                                    

Grant deathsite at Grant's Cottage Saratoga Springs, NY
                                          

Gravesite at Grant's Tomb New York, NY

Historical marker for Grants birthplace Point Pleasant, OH

Grant's birthplace home in Point Pleasant, OH

My son Grant visits the birthplace of his namesake. I revisited Grant's birthplace near his birthday in 2017 with my kids to attend the birthday festivities.

My boys admiring the cannon

My kids meet General's Grant and Custer

My kids at Grant's birthplace in April 2017

Display case at Grant's birthplace

Me at Grant's birthplace in September 2011






















Grant was born in this room

The Grant memorial church near the birthplace sits on the foundation of Jesse Grant's tannery

Grant's birthplace is a nice little site. It's in a quiet little town on the Ohio River.

Grant's boyhood home. Georgetown, OH. September 2011

This baby crib in Grant's boyhood home is original and actually once held and infant Grant. September 2011

About 20 miles east of Point Pleasant is the home where Grant spent most of his childhood. It was here that young Grant left when he went to West Point.

Grant's father Jesse Grant had this building build across the street from the Grant Boyhood Home. It was used as a tannery. This is how the Grants made their money.

The following pictures are from my return trip to Georgetown in November 2018

My kids

The large rock that a preteen Grant moved for a neighbor using horses and ropes

My son Grant in front of President Grants boyhood room.

Anamatronic teenage Grant

Grant's school house

My kids at the new Grant statue in Georgetown

Grants Schoolhouse. Grant actually went to school here as a kid. Georgetown, Ohio September 2011

Fireplace in Grant's Schoolhouse. The bench to the left side is original and was used during Grant's time here as a student. September 2011

Walking up to Grant's White Haven home

'White Haven' was originaly Grants father in law, Frederick Dents, plantation house. Dent considered himself a southern gentleman. It is now the "Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site" in St. Louis, Missouri

Inside White Haven. No original furniture still exists. Very little replica furniture in here either.

A large red barn on the property has a very cool museum that is worth checking out.

Entrance to Grant's Farm amusement park. Across the street from the "Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site" aka "White Haven". The park was closed for the season when we stopped by. There is a Log Cabin that Grant built in the park. He built it on what was part of his father in laws land. The cabin is called "Hardscrabble".  I have heard that a bus in the park will drive you past the cabin slowly without stopping. After asking around at the White Haven visitors center I found out that you can actually see the cabin from the road. So we drove by it a couple times and tried to get some pics.

The best picture of Grant's "Hardscrabble" home that I could get.

All in all the "Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site" was a nice stop. I was surprised that they hadn't filled the house with furniture from that time. It was mostly empty. In that it reminded me of Madison's Montpelier home and Lincoln's Cottage in DC. But I was able to look past that to appreciate the history that took place in the house. There was a cool video of Grant, his wife and father in law arguing over slavery at the dinner table in the house. And a modern looking museum was also on the property that I really enjoyed. Being able to at least see "Hardscabble" over the fence was a nice added bonus. Threw all my research for the trip I didn't think that I would be able to see it at all.

As the sign says, Grant used this house as headquarters during the 9 month siege of Petersburg

My parents and my boys at Grants headquarters

The McClean House Appomattox Court House, VA. The house in which Lee surrendered to Grant, ending the Civil War

I would highly recommend a visit to Appomattox Court House to any history buff. When I visited in 2010 there was a Confederate soilder reinactor who gave a nice talk in without breaking character. It was one of the highlights of the trip in which we got to see tons of historical sites.
Ulysses S. Grant held no political office before being elected President. He was the General that made Robert E. Lee surrender. Lee was making the Union look silly in the east. Grant started winning some big victories in the west. Grant would eventually come to the east to fight Lee as Commander of the Union Army. Lincoln went through many Generals before Grant took the job.

Me at the Grant Cottage in Saratoga Springs, NY. This is the house where President Grant spent his final 6 weeks. He was broke, and needed to finish his memoirs so that his family would have a means to get by after he's gone.

The Grant Cottage quickly made it into my top 5 of all Presidential sites. The home seems to be frozen in time  to the moment that President Grant died. Not only that but pretty much all the furniture is original to that day.

At the time that Grant was diagnosed with throat cancer, he was broke. Suckered into a skeem that lost him all of his money. He worked hard his final weeks to finish his memoirs. So that his family would have some security after his death. A friend offered the Grants use of the Cottage in their time of need.

The spot on the porch where Grant spent most of his time.

Picture of Grant and family on the porch.

Grant's favorite chair at the cottage, it is the chair that he was pictured in

This cabinet contains a bunch of the stuff that Grant used while here.

By candle light Grant would work on his memoirs at night while sitting on one of these chairs, and proping his feet up on the other. They were re appolstered in the 1960's. But not ever used since, which is why they look so new.

Original funeral flower arrangements

The room in which Grant died. Shortly after his death, Grant's son went to the clock on the fireplace and stopped it perminately

The Bed in which President Grant died

Just a short walk from Grant's Cottage is the Over view of the Valley below Mt. MacGregor.

At the spot where Grant last viewed the Valley

It was probably the most amazing view I've ever seen.

Me at Grant's Tomb. This thing is huge!

Ulysses and Julia Grant

U. S. Grant and I

I visited Grant's Tomb on June 10, 2012. I can now say with complete confidence who is buried in Grant's Tomb.

Grant was a failure at every profession that he tried in life, except for the military. Even as President he was personally honest, but he appointed crooked people to important jobs. His administration goes down in history with the likes of Warren Harding, Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton as one of the most scandalous.

During the Civil War, word got out that Grant liked to smoke cigars. In fact he had been an occational, casual smoker at that point. People all over the country sent him congratulatory cigars when he would win a battle. Since he had so many he became a very heavy smoker, and got throat cancer, which would kill him in 1885.