Ranking Wilson

Ranking the President’s of the United States can be a very complex endeavor – however the Siena Research Institute does it every few years or so. Their most recent results came out in 2010. They typically survey a large number of historians and politicos and ask them to rate the presidents on 20 different categories on a scale of 1 to 5. They then weigh these categories to come up with the overall result and compare.

Despite my lack of knowledge about President Wilson, he appears to fall near the top of the pack in every incarnation of this survey – for 2010 he is overall ranked #8 (2 positions lower than where he sat for the prior 28 years!). I guess those 14 points really made an impact! Let’s take a look at where he fell in each category:

Background (family, education, experience): 8th
Party Leadership: 8th
Communication Ability (speaking, writing): 9th
Relationship with Congress: 16th
Court Appointments: 8th
Handling of US Economy: 8th
Luck: 15th
Ability to Compromise: 37th
Willing to Take Risks: 9th
Executive Appointments: 10th
Overall Ability: 8th
Imagination: 5th
Domestic Accomplishments: 9th
Integrity: 11th
Executive Ability: 10th
Foreign Policy Accomplishments: 10th
Leadership Ability: 12th
Intelligence: 4th
Avoid Crucial Mistakes: 29th
Your Present Overall View: 10th

Overall Ranking: 8th

In so many of these categories Wilson ranked 8^th, 9^th, or 10^th – at least it is consistent! There are 4 categories that really stand out to me from the above that warrant some discussion. First, Intelligence. While you can’t really complain about being ranked 4^th overall, I find it hard to believe that he is 4^th, behind Jefferson, Madison, and Lincoln in that order. Wilson was the most educated President up through his time for sure – he was the only president to have held a doctorate degree! While I can’t disagree that Jefferson and crew were smart, I would have truly expected Wilson to rank first. Second and Third, Communication Ability and Relationship with Congress. Again, while these aren’t bad, I think they could have been better. Wilson was known for his speeches – he was one of the few presidents to regularly use the special room at the Capitol to meet with Congressmen and was the first in QUITE some time to actually give his State of the Union in person to Congress. Finally, Foreign Policy Accomplishments. There was such uproar when Wilson went to Europe to work on the peace accord following the end of WWI – because he was to leave the country for such a lengthy period of time. While the USA did not end up ratifying his League of Nations, much of the peace stipulations that Wilson instigated were signed and implemented.

What do you think of these rankings – agree/disagree? Do you think Wilson should be in the top 10?

 

Data obtained from the 2010 Siena Research Institute's 5th Presidential Expert Poll. 2010.

 

Copyright © 2014 by The Maiden’s Court

Weekend Cooking: Edith Bolling Wilson’s Tea Cakes

This weekend’s cooking was designed to enhance my feature this past week of President Woodrow Wilson – with a recipe from his wife, Edith’s, collection. I happened across the recipe entirely on accident. While I was looking for some information about the last house that Wilson lived in I came across their newsletter, which happened to include this little recipe along the side. Mrs. Wilson is noted for frequently serving these tea cakes at White House events until WWI and rationing came around.

Edith Bolling Wilson’s Tea Cakes
Makes approximately 5-6 dozen (depending on size & thickness)

Ingredients:
¼ cup butter (½ stick)
2 cups brown sugar
5 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon nutmeg
8 cups (un-sifted flour)
Sugar for dusting

Directions:
1) In a large bowl, cream butter with brown sugar.

2) Beat in eggs, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt.

3) Stir in flour until dough is smooth; chill for 4 hours.

4) Preheat oven to 375°F.

5) Place dough on a floured surface and roll out thin (¼ to ½ inch thickness); cut out shapes with cookie cutters.

6) Dust cookies with sugar.

7) Bake on a greased cookie sheet for about 6 to 10 minutes.

*Serve with fruit or a flavorful ice cream.

I have never had a tea cake before, and after much time online searching for “tea cakes” I found a vast variety as to what a tea cake could be. So quite frankly, I have no idea if these came out right or not! I found one other person who indicated their tea cakes were Edith Wilsons, but they look very different – and they didn’t post their recipe.

In my uneducated opinion on tea cakes, these were ok. I think they would probably be good served as described with a “flavorful ice cream”. I would probably place the ice cream on top and it would provide moisture to the cake. They came out sort of like a gingerbread cookie consistency, but the dough was much drier and that made it very difficult to roll out. It has a very mild spice taste. Also, I could have entirely ruined the recipe by cutting the ingredients amounts in half (since I didn’t have 8 cups of flour).

I would love to hear if any of you have experience with a tea cake and could tell me what they are supposed to come out like. Maybe mine weren’t so bad after all! Also, if anyone tries out this recipe, I would love to hear how yours come out.

Weekend Cooking is hosted by Beth Fish Reads. Any post remotely related to cooking can participate.

 

Copyright © 2014 by The Maiden’s Court

The Woodrow Wilson House–Virtual Tour

L. Contemporary Image of Wilson on Porch. R. Current Image of Wilson House (Photo Credit: Todd A. Smith)

The Woodrow Wilson House is the home that the President and his second wife, Edith, moved into following the end of his presidential career. The house, located on S Street, was the home of the former president from 1921 to his death in 1924; his wife continued to reside there until her death in 1961. Upon Mrs. Wilson’s death, the house was given over to the National Trust for Historic Preservation and has been maintained in the manner it was when the President lived there in the 1920’s. Wilson was the only president who continued to live in Washington D.C. following his presidential retirement, so it is certainly a site you could visit while checking out the other D.C. sites.

The Garden of the Woodrow Wilson House – Photo Credit: Mr. T in DC Flicker

The Woodrow Wilson House maintains a blog where they periodically discuss pieces that are within their collection. They also host regular events (some of which are free) – such as the upcoming Vintage Game Night and they recently hosted author A. Scott Berg, author of the new book, Wilson.

Wilson Drawing Room – Photo Credit: Todd A. Smith

There is a great collection of images and description of a tour at the following blogs: The World is Our District and Turn-of-the-Centuries.  There are also some images from Tim Evanson’s Flicker of many detailed images of the Wilson House.

You can also watch these short video tours from American Artifacts of the home and learn more about the Wilsons post-presidency:

American Artifacts Episode–General House Tour

 

American Artifacts Episode–Featuring Artifacts from Wilson’s Closet

 

American Artifacts Episode–The Wine Cellar

You can also keep up on the happenings at The Woodrow Wilson House on Facebook and Twitter.

The house is currently opened for tours Tuesday through Sunday at $10 for adults and $5 for students/children.  Located at 2340 S St NW, Washington, D.C.

Looking Toward Dining Room – Photo Credit: Todd A Smith

 

Copyright © 2014 by The Maiden’s Court

Wilson Boyhood Home Virtual Tour

Wilson Boyhood Home, Augusta GA –
Photo Credit: Historic Augusta, Inc

Following their time in Virginia, the Wilson family, including 2 year old Tommy Woodrow Wilson (he was going by Tommy at that point) moved to Augusta, Georgia. This house was also known as The Manse and was the home of the Presbyterian pastors on the local parish. The Wilsons remained here for approximately 11 years before again relocating to Columbia, South Carolina. The Manse in Augusta stands as the home that Woodrow Wilson lived in the longest.

Wilson’s Parlor – Photo Credit: Historic Augusta, Inc

The Manse was acquired by Historic Augusta, INC in 1991 and restoration was undertaken to restore the home to its state in the 1860’s when the Wilson’s lived there.

Best Room – Photo Credit: Historic Augusta, Inc

When you visit The Manse your admission includes a 45 minute guided tour of the house. Tickets are $5 for adults and Free-$3 for children depending on age. You can also view the house gardens which are kept up with seasonal selections that would have been used in gardens during the time the Wilsons lived in the house.

Gardens at Boyhood Home – Photo Credit: Historic Augusta, Inc

You can watch a mini video tour of the home below:

You can check out more about the Wilson Boyhood Home at their website.

 

Copyright © 2014 by The Maiden’s Court

Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library & Museum Virtual Tour

Woodrow Wilson, 28th President – Photo Credit: Harris & Ewing

The Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Museum is a great place to find out more about this early 20^th century president. The Library and Museum are located in Staunton, VA, about 2.5 hours outside of Washington D.C. There are many great things to see and do at this museum – even with your children.

The Manse – Wilson’s Birthplace – Photo Credit

The library is housed within the home that Woodrow Wilson was born in – known as The Manse. The president’s father was a Presbyterian minister, and this was the minister’s home for that parish. Although the President was born there, they only lived there for approximately two years following his birth before they relocated to Georgia. After they left, the home went through several states of remodeling, and it wasn’t until the 1940’s that they began being restored to the way the house was in the 1850’s, the way the home was when the Wilson’s lived there. There has been a trend to restore historic homes to their original state in recent years (such as Montpelier, the home of James Madison). You can take a guided tour through the Birthplace home.

Woodrow Wilson Museum – Photo Credit

After you are done touring the Birthplace, you can make your way over to the Museum. The museum is located in the mansion next door to the Birthplace. First thing to do is take a self-guided tour of more than a half dozen galleries that trace different segments of the President’s life. These mainstay exhibits include: the Wilson family, Princeton years, Governor of New Jersey, Presidency, WWI, Treaty of Versailles, and the League of Nations. There is an interactive experience that lets you get into the feel for the warfront during WWI. For the younger children there is a children’s exhibit area and interactive scavenger hunts. The first floor is the museum; the second floor houses the research library; the third floor is the archives. There are many traveling exhibits that rotate through this museum as well and you can check out their calendar of events for these and other special events.

Wilson’s Pierce Arrow Limousine – Photo Credit

And the President’s famous Pierce Arrow limo is there as well. This was provided to him as part of the Presidential fleet following his return to the USA following his time in Paris working on the Treaty of Versailles. When he left the Presidency, his friends purchased the car from the government for Wilson and his wife then gifted it to the Woodrow Wilson Birthplace Foundation following his death.

Boxwood Garden of The Manse – Photo Credit

Also, located behind The Manse is a boxwood garden that you can stroll through – although not original to the site. The garden is kept up by The Garden Club of Virginia, who keeps up many other historic gardens in the state.

There are more than two dozen document collections housed at Museum and Library – access which can be granted through arrangement. However, should you want to access some of these documents from the comfort of your own home, you can do that too! Among the collections available in the eLibrary is the correspondence of Edith Wilson, the President’s second wife. They have copies of the original documents as well as typed reproductions. The website for the Library and Museum also offers a plethora of information on the President that you can explore to learn more.

And if you want to see more of the Museum, Library, Garden, and Collections – check out this short video tour:

The tickets for the Library and Museum are $14 for adults and $Free-$7 for children (depending on age).

Have you ever visited this Library and Museum?

 

Copyright © 2014 by The Maiden’s Court

Book Review: Wilson by A. Scott Berg

Wilson by A. Scott Berg
Unabridged, 32 hr. 29 min.
Simon & Schuster Audio
Jeremy Bobb (Narrator)
September 10, 2013
★★★★☆

Genre: Non-Fiction, Biography

Source: Received from Publisher for Review as Part of Audiobook Jukebox Solid Gold Reviewer Program

“One hundred years after his inauguration, Woodrow Wilson still stands as one of the most influential figures of the twentieth century, and one of the most enigmatic. And now, after more than a decade of research and writing, Pulitzer Prize-winning author A. Scott Berg has completed Wilson--the most personal and penetrating biography ever written about the 28th President.

In addition to the hundreds of thousands of documents in the Wilson Archives, Berg was the first biographer to gain access to two recently-discovered caches of papers belonging to those close to Wilson. From this material, Berg was able to add countless details--even several unknown events--that fill in missing pieces of Wilson’s character and cast new light on his entire life.

From the scholar-President who ushered the country through its first great world war to the man of intense passion and turbulence , from the idealist determined to make the world “safe for democracy” to the stroke-crippled leader whose incapacity and the subterfuges around it were among the century’s greatest secrets, the result is an intimate portrait written with a particularly contemporary point of view – a book at once magisterial and deeply emotional about the whole of Wilson’s life, accomplishments, and failings. This is not just Wilson the icon – but Wilson the man.”

The period of time in which Wilson was President is a time I was not all that familiar with and I knew even less about this President. Surprisingly I did know about his stroke while in office and how integral his wife, Edith, was at keeping his illness a secret. When I saw this title available for review, I knew that I had to take advantage to learn more about this remarkable man.

The book covered Wilson’s life from childhood through death, with intense focus on his time as President of Princeton and as President. Both of these periods were very interesting. I’m glad that the author spent ample time discussing his Princeton time period; it gave a precursor view of what he might be like as US president. The time he spent overseas while working on the peace to end WWI was fascinating and most interesting was seeing just what he was up against while trying to obtain a reasonable peace. As mentioned above, I knew that Wilson suffered a stroke while in office. His medical history was indeed discussed throughout the book creating a build-up of understanding that lead up to his stroke and the drama surrounding how that was handled while he was in office.

With regard to both of Wilson’s wives, I feel that Berg spent enough time introducing the reader to both of them and showing how they affected Wilson’s life/decisions. Ellen was his support structure in getting him through Princeton and into the White House, while Edith was his support in the White House and during his illness.

There was only one aspect that I found a little jarring while reading this book and that was the first chapter. This wasn’t titled as an introduction, it was titled Ascension, but it somewhat served as one. It jumped right in to a period where Wilson was President of the US and already married to his second wife. I found it confusing as to where we were or placing it chronologically. The second chapter however begins back with the early life of Wilson – so in essence I just forgot about the first chapter and moved on. It would have been better titled as an introduction or without the chapter all together.

Overall this book certainly covers all the necessary aspects to get an excellent understanding of Woodrow Wilson as both a man and the President. Are there areas that could be explored further? Yes; but for the average person who wants to understand that time period and this President, I think it served its purpose.

★★★★☆

The narrator of this book did an admirable job narrating this non-fiction work. I find that non-fiction can be a very tough book type to turn into an audiobook production. While he didn’t need to voice different characters, he still kept the book flowing without causing the reader to fall asleep.

Author A. Scott Berg also has written Kate Remembered, Lindbergh, Goldwyn, and Max Perkins. You can visit Berg’s website for additional information about the book. If you would like to preview the story before reading it, why not try out this excerpt of the book?

Berg’s website also includes some great additional reference material such as timelines, audio clips of speeches, and photos.

You can watch this video clip of the author, A. Scott Berg, speaking about his book:

My reviews of other books by this author:

• Lindbergh

Reviews of this book by other bloggers:

• The Oligarch Kings
• Booking Mama

Here are some choices for purchasing the book: Amazon, B&N, RJ Julia (my fav indie bookstore).

 

Copyright © 2014 by The Maiden’s Court