Get to Know President Woodrow Wilson

President Woodrow Wilson, spent his formative years right here in Augusta. With President's Day just around the corner, here are some interesting facts about the 28th president of the United States.

1. Wilson experienced the Civil War in his youth. Born on December 28, 1856 in Virginia, young Thomas Woodrow Wilson was present in Georgia when Union troops entered his town and his mother tended to wounded Confederate soldiers at the First Presbyterian Church in Augusta where his father, Reverend Joseph R. Wilson, was pastor.^

2. Wilson left a mark on his boyhood home. One of the windows at his boyhood home in Augusta, GA has the word "Tom" etched in it; this is believed to have been made by Wilson, whose first name was Thomas, and he was called "Tom" or "Tommy" as a child.

3. The 1912 election wasn’t a popular landslide. Wilson won easily in the Electoral College against the divided Taft and Roosevelt factions, but his 42% popular vote total was the third-lowest winning tally in history.^

 

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4. Wilson made the first live remote national radio broadcast. In November 1923, shortly before his death, Wilson spoke to a national audience just before Armistice Day to try to persuade the country to reverse course and join the fledgling League of Nations from his Washington, D.C. home. The next day, 20,000 people showed up at his house to hear a few more words from the former President.^

 

On this day in 1918, President Woodrow Wilson arrived in France, marking the first official visit by a US president to Europe. While there he would promote his plan for a League of Nations. This book was written 5 years later. #onthisday #history #thisdayinhistory #woodrowwilson #president #presidentialhistory #wilson #france #leagueofnations #oldbooks #library #privatelibrary #athenaeum

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5. Wilson is the only U.S. President buried in Washington, D.C. The 28^th President is in a sarcophagus at the Washington National Cathedral.^

The Boyhood Home of President Woodrow Wilson will be open for tours on Monday, February 20, 2017 in honor of Presidents’ Day. Tours will be given on the hour and half hour between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Admission on Presidents’ Day will be buy one, get one of equal or lesser value for free. Regular admission prices are $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $3 for students K-12, and free for children under age 5.

 

Celebrate Presidents' Day at Georgia's Oldest Presidential Home on Monday, February 20th! Just one week from today.

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^Source: National Constitution Center