W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 2006 Birthing Washington: Objects, memory, and the creation of a national monument Seth C. Bruggeman College of William & Mary - Arts & Sciences Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the American Studies Commons, Museum Studies Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Bruggeman, Seth C., "Birthing Washington: Objects, memory, and the creation of a national monument" (2006). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539623499. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21220/s2-nvqt-y969 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. BIRTHING WASHINGTON Objects, Memory, and the Creation of a National Monument A Dissertation Presented to The Faculty of the American Studies Program The College of William and Mary in Virginia In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Seth Charles Bruggeman 2006 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. APPROVAL SHEET This dissertation is submitted in partial fulfillment of The requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Seth Charles Bru Approved by the Committee, August 2006 Scott R. Nelson, Chair Barbara Carson 'Carson P/dyf?yfA Patricia West, Curator Martin Van Buren National Historic Site National Park Service Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS vi LIST OF FIGURES viii ABBREVIATIONS x ABSTRACT xi INTRODUCTION: BIRTHING WASHINGTON 2 The Washingtons at Popes Creek 5 Washington’s Birthplace Remembered 7 The Curious Case of Building X 13 The Legacy of Building X and the Failure of Radical Signification 16 Objects, Memory, and Public History at Washington’s Birthplace 18 I. THE FIRST STONE 31 Birthplaces, Monuments, and Memory in the Early Republic 34 Historical Objects and the Romantic Imagination 43 Saints, Relics, and the Systematization of Medieval Object Fetishism 49 Sacred Past, Secular History: Origins of the Historic Object 54 Charles Willson Peale and the Persistence of Object Fetishism 59 Objects, the Occult, and the Relic in the United States 62 George Washington Parke Custis, Re-enactor 69 II. COSTUMED LADIES AND FEDERAL AGENTS 72 The Colonial Revival in Form and Theory 76 Of Dollhouses and Historical Meaning 84 Josephine Wheelwright Rust and the Wakefield National Memorial Association 93 iii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Horace Albright’s ‘New’ National Park Service 104 Cooperation and Conflict: Making Washington’s Birthplace, 1930-1932 109 The Gendered Meanings of Authenticity 115 III. BUILDING X 126 Early Archeology and Initial Concerns 134 The Memorial House: A Replica by Any Other Name 137 Building X Uncovered 143 “Conclusion: the design at Wakefield is not authentic” 146 The Rodnick Report 154 Signs and Meaning at Washington’s Birthplace 161 Building X and Remembering 167 IV. A CONTEST OF RELICS 172 Symbols, Icons, and Indices 176 The Log House Tea Room and the Persistence of Symbolic Relics 183 Louise du Pont Crowninshield and a New Professionalism 188 New Leaders, New Relics 197 Indexicality and the Stamp of Authenticity 207 V. FRAMING THE COLONIAL PICTURE 213 A Visit to Washington’s Birthplace, Circa 1950 218 Race, Class, and Conflict at Washington’s Birthplace 225 “Uncle” Annanias Johnson, Living Relic 231 The Rebirth of Living History 236 Breathing the ‘Breath of Life’ Into American Museums 241 iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. MISSION 66 and the Path to Living History in the NPS 247 A Visit to Washington’s Birthplace, Circa 1970 252 The Circle Completed 256 AFTERWORD 260 BIBLIOGRAPHY 309 VITA 324 v Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS With absolutely no offense intended to our first president, never would I have imagined prior to this project that I might write my dissertation, let alone anything else for that matter, about George Washington. Blame and thanks for that entirely unforeseen turn of events goes to Heather Huyck and Rich Lowry who, together, set me on the path to Wakefield. There I met a wonderful cast of characters who, while assisting my research of the administrative history that inspired this project, demonstrated with good humor and admirable commitment how prominent Washington’s memory remains in the Northern Neck today. I extend thanks to the entire staff of the George Washington Birthplace National Monument with special gratitude to Superintendent Vidal Martinez, Ranger Dick Lahey, Resources Manager Rijk Morawe, and Ranger Roberta Samuel. Beyond the birthplace, a number of individuals deserve special mention for answering my questions and asking their own. Katie Rust recalled for me summers in Marblehead in the commanding presence of her late husband’s grandmother. Fredericksburg historian Paula S. Felder provided crucial insights regarding Charles Hoppin’s role in the WNMA’s public relations campaign. And NPS Photo Archivist Tom DuRant brightened a grey day at the NPS Harpers Ferry Center with good cheer and a peek at Horace Albright’s home movies. Most of the research undertaken in the course of this project unfolded in the archives at Washington’s birthplace, a small room staff affectionately call the “cage.” When not locked in the cage, I received vital assistance from employees at the National Archives in Washington, D.C., College Park, MD, and Philadelphia, PA. The ladies of the Westmoreland County Museum and Library provided valuable help as did the research staff at the Hagley Museum and Library in Wilmington, DE. Librarians and interlibrary loan staff at the College of William & Mary’s Swem Library, Mary Washington University’s Simpson Library, and the University of Kansas’s Watson Library kept me in books. It is impossible to list all of the good folks at the College of William & Mary who, in one way or the other, contributed to this endeavor. From the American Studies Program, Grey Gundaker, Chandos Brown, and Rich Lowry played formative roles in shaping how I understand objects and memory. Kim Phillips helped me navigate a host of bureaucratic inconveniences thus affording me the time and sanity to bring this project to completion. Arthur Knight was generous enough to answer a late need for committee expertise. Barbara Carson and Cary Carson, also gracious committee members, have provided immeasurable support and kindness on and off campus for my entire graduate career. Patricia West, curator at the Martin Van Buren National Historic Site, agreed to comment on this dissertation despite a million more deserving demands on her time. And Scott R. Nelson, from William & Mary’s history department, walked me through the entire process without ever letting me know that a dissertation can be anything less than excellent. He is a model chair, a superb scholar, and a good friend. vi Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. I reserve final thanks for those whom I can never thank enough. Charles and Deborah Bruggeman are my parents and friends. Any good that I do is a credit to their unfaltering love and support. Hilary Iris Lowe improved every page of this manuscript with her editorial acumen and sustaining companionship. vii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. LIST OF FIGURES 1. THE NORTHERN NECK 277 2. GEORGE WASHINGTON PARKE CUSTIS 278 3. THE FIRST STONE 279 4. WASHINGTON APOTHEOSIS PITCHER 280 5. WASHINGTON RELIC JEWELRY 281 6. WAR DEPARTMENT MONUMENT 282 7. 1876 COLONIAL KITCHEN 283 8. JOSEPHINE WHEELRIGHT RUST 284 9. INSPECTING WAKEFIELD 285 10. THE WASHINGTON FAMILY BURIAL GROUND 286 11. THE WESTMORELAND COUNTY MUSEUM AND LIBRARY 287 12. 1896 EXCAVATION 288 13. 1926 EXCAVATION 289 14. WAKEFIELD CHINA 290 15. BUILDING X 291 16. MEMORIAL HOUSE COMMEMORATIVE TABLET 292 17. LOG HOUSE EXTERIOR 293 18. MEMORIAL HOUSE FURNISHINGS 294 19. WAKEFIELD LADIES 295 20. WNMA GREENHOUSE 296 21. MEMORIAL HOUSE BASEMENT 297 22. POSTWAR TOURISTS 298 viii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 23. MAP OF WASHINGTON’S BIRTHPLACE, 1933 299 24. APPROACHING THE MONUMENT 300 25. SUPERINTENDENT HOUGH 301 26. HACKBERRY TREE 302 27. COLONIAL CROPS 303 28. COLONIAL CROP LAYOUT 304 29. BUILDING X MARKED 305 30. LIVING HISTORY AT WASHINGTON’S BIRTHPLACE 306 31. PUPPET SHOWS 307 32. LIVING HISTORY TODAY 308 ix Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABBREVIATIONS ccc Civilian Conservation Corps CIP Comprehensive Interpretive Plan FAC United States Fine Arts Commission GEWA George Washington Birthplace National Monument Archives GWBMA George Washington Birthplace Memorial Association HFC National Park Service Harpers Ferry Center HFCA National Park Service Harpers Ferry Center Archives MVLA Mount Vernon Ladies Association NAB National Archives Building, Washington,