Those who believe in special dispensations of Fate affecting human
affairs must feel that there has ever been watching over the Hermitage
some kindly guardian angel to protect it from the wasting touch of time
and especially to frustrate the numerous and varied efforts that have
been made to utilize it for some purpose which would have made it
impossible to maintain it as a national shrine for patriotic Americans.
Andrew Jackson had been dead hardly ten years before it was proposed to
convert his old home into a military school. Immediately following the
War Between the States, during the Reconstruction period, it was
suggested that it would be an ideal location for a home for Federal
soldiers. Later it was selected as the proper place for a Confederate
veterans' home. Then some misguided persons wanted to establish a reform
school and penal farm there. Still later a movement was started to
convert the plantation into a model farm for educational purposes. These
were but a few of the plans advanced for making use of the Hermitage;
but in every instance a benevolent Providence intervened and helped to
preserve it as simply the home of the patriotic old pioneer Tennessean
whose burning love for his country transcended every other emotion.
When General Jackson died in 1845 he left the entire Hermitage estate to
his adopted son, Andrew Jackson, junior. When the old General made his
last will in 1843 one of his closest friends, Major W. B. Lewis, who
felt no restraint in volunteering his advice, offered the suggestion
that for the protection of the interests of the adopted son's wife and
children it might be advisable to leave a part of the estate to them in
some such way as to insure their continued comfort and security "in case
his son's speculations should continue to be unsuccessful." But
Jackson's sense of loyalty to his adopted son was so great that he
refused to entertain this suggestion. "No," he said firmly, "that would
show a lack of confidence in Andrew;" and, pointing to his wife's tomb
in the garden, he continued: "If she were alive she would wish him to
have it, and to me her wish is law." But the General's loyalty did not
exceed his frankness, and in the preamble of his will he sets forth the
lamentable fact that "my estate has become greatly involved by my
liabilities for the debts of my well-beloved and adopted son, Andrew
Jackson, Jun."
The exact condition of Jackson's estate at the time of his death was set
forth in detail in a communication from a Nashville citizen which was
printed in a daily paper in 1889: "At the death of General Jackson he
owed but two debts of any magnitude, one of them $15,000 to Frank Blair
of Washington, the other to General Planchin of New Orleans. His estate
consisted of the Hermitage, then containing about 1,200 acres, on which
he had about 100 negroes besides stock of all kinds. Besides this he
owned his plantation in Mississippi which the adopted son and heir
afterward sold with the negroes then on it for $40,000. This left the
Hermitage, with the negroes and all else on it, clear and free after
paying the $21,000 of debt, with a surplus of $19,000 in cash. So, to
sum it all up, the estate at the General's death was worth, clear of
debt, somewhere near $150,000. This was well known by those near him and
was generally believed by the community. It has been repeatedly stated
by his opponents that the General was deep in debt when he died in 1845,
if not insolvent. This is a great mistake, as I have endeavored to show
from the facts here given, which are from my own knowledge received from
my intimate business relations with the adopted son and heir, Andrew
Jackson, Jr."
Andrew Jackson, junior, in retrospect presents rather a pathetic
picture. As the President's adopted son he had every opportunity before
him; but apparently the germ of success was simply not in him. General
Jackson lavished affection and attention on him throughout his childhood
and youth, and a real son could not have been reared more tenderly. "I
have no doubt he will take care of us both in our declining years," the
General wrote Rachel in 1813. And in 1832 he wrote an old friend that
"Andrew is now married and I mean to throw the care of the farm on him.
I shall never more pester myself with this world's wealth." But, somehow
or other, something always seemed to be going wrong with the things to
which Andrew gave his attention. All accounts agree in describing him as
exceptionally amiable and engaging in his personality; he was well
educated, being a graduate of the old University of Nashville; he was
charming socially; he was beloved and venerated by his family--but he
seemed unable to develop the rugged aggressiveness and forcefulness of
his illustrious namesake, and gradually the estate bequeathed him by
General Jackson slipped between his fingers. Cholera took off 26 of his
slaves in one year; another year there was a calamitous crop failure;
ill-advised kindness led him to endorse friends' notes--with the usual
result; and an unwise business venture cost him the $15,000 he had
invested in it.
An estate of $150,000 was a notably large bequest back in 1845; but by
1853 the heir's fortunes were so shrunken that he was reduced to the
necessity of mortgaging the Hermitage to secure a $15,000 debt, and in
1856 he was forced to the sad extremity of placing the estate on the
market--having already sold off all of the land except 500 acres.
Naturally, the first prospective purchaser to whom the historic property
was offered was the State of Tennessee. In fact, General Jackson seems
to have foreseen some such contingency and before he died had told his
son that if ever it became necessary for him to sell the Hermitage he
should first offer it to his native state. The offer was made, and the
state General Assembly passed the following act authorizing its
purchase:
Whereas, it is good policy in a republican government to encourage the
habits of industry and to inculcate sentiments of veneration for those
departed heroes who have rendered important services to their country
in times of danger; and
Whereas, Tennessee acknowledges no superior in feelings of patriotism
and devotion to the Union in whose cause the lamented Andrew Jackson
acquired so much distinction; therefore
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee that
the governor of the state be empowered and it is hereby made his duty
to purchase for the State of Tennessee 500 acres of the late residence
of Andrew Jackson, deceased, including the mansion, tomb and other
improvements, known as "The Hermitage."
Be it further enacted that whenever the said purchase is made and the
title to said property secured to the state that the governor is
hereby authorized to cause the bonds of the state to be issued and to
endorse the same in an amount not exceeding $48,000, the proceeds of
which to be appropriated by him to carrying into effect the provisions
of this act: Provided, that the governor and the secretary of state
upon investigation shall be satisfied said price is not exhorbitant.
Be it further enacted that the governor of the state be authorized and
required to tender the said property to the General Government of the
United States upon the express condition that it be used as a site for
a branch of the Military Academy at West Point; and in the event the
General Government does not accept the tender thus made in two years
from the expiration of this session of the General Assembly, then the
governor shall be authorized and required to have fifty acres laid
off, including the tomb, mansion and the spring and the spring houses,
and expose the balance to public sale either as a whole or in lots, on
time or for cash as to him may seem best, and make his report to the
legislature of 1859-1860.
Andrew Johnson was governor of the state at this time and was the
sponsor of the plan to tender the Hermitage mansion and grounds to the
Federal government as a site for a branch of the military academy. In
due season he made the tender as instructed, and in 1857 the Committee
on Military Affairs of the United States Senate, through Tennessee's
Senator James C. Jones, accepted the offer. But the war clouds were
gathering. There was mounting sentiment in the North against a federal
military school in the South. Thus, Tennessee retained title to the
historic property.
The price the state actually agreed to pay Andrew Jackson, junior, for
the property was $50,000; but Mr. Jackson was to continue to occupy it
for two years beyond the time of the sale, and so the state held out
$2,000 in lieu of rent. Tennessee may not have been willing to recognize
any superior in patriotism and devotion to General Jackson, as so
eloquently expressed in the enabling act, but she was not above driving
a hard bargain with his adopted son. Mr. Jackson, in accordance with the
terms of the trade, remained at the Hermitage until 1858 and then
removed to Mississippi.
From 1858 to 1860 the Hermitage was without an occupant, and suffered as
tenantless houses usually suffer. There was nothing further said about
using it as a military school, nor was there any agitation of the plan
to offer it for sale "as a whole or in lots." Fortunately for coming
generations of American citizens, the property remained intact; but the
old house stood there vacant and decaying until 1860 when Isham G.
Harris, the new governor of Tennessee, sent to Mississippi to request
Mr. Jackson to return and be its custodian. Mr. Jackson had not been
especially prosperous in his new home, and he was glad to return and
reëstablish himself in the Hermitage as "tenant at will." His household
at this time consisted of himself and wife, his daughter Rachel, his two
sons, Andrew and Samuel, his wife's widowed sister Mrs. Adams and her
three sons.
When Tennessee cast her lot with the Southern Confederacy in July, 1861,
it did not take long for the young men of the Hermitage household to
join the Confederate forces. Five brave-hearted young soldiers walked
out the broad front door of the Hermitage, mounted their horses and rode
off to the front. Only one returned. Andrew, III, who had been educated
at West Point, was commissioned colonel of the First Tennessee Heavy
Artillery, and he was the lone survivor after four years of war, more
than half of which was spent in prison at Camp Chase. Samuel, a captain,
was killed at Chickamauga and lies buried in the family burial plot in
the Hermitage garden. None of the Adams boys survived the war. One was
in the Confederate Navy, one was a casualty at the siege of Vicksburg,
and the other died in Kentucky fighting with General John Morgan.
Andrew Jackson, junior, with his wife and daughter and Mrs. Adams
remained at home in the Hermitage and watched the waves of the war roll
back and forth around them. In 1862 after the fall of Fort Donelson
(named, incidentally, for Daniel A. Donelson, a general in the
Confederate Army and a nephew of Mrs. Rachel Jackson), Nashville fell
into the hands of the Federal troops and was never regained by the
Confederates. During the Federal occupation of Nashville and the
surrounding country, General George H. Thomas placed a cavalry guard
over the Hermitage to protect it from damage or despoliation; and to
this thoughtful foresight on General Thomas's part may be attributed the
fact that the old home of Andrew Jackson did not suffer the fate of so
many other historic houses in the South during the four years of war.
In April, 1865, Andrew Jackson, junior, stepped finally from the stage
where he had played such a sad and ineffectual rôle. Just a few days
after the news of Lee's surrender reached the Hermitage he accidentally
shot himself while hunting, and died the next day. Perhaps the summons
of death was not entirely unwelcome to this saddened and impoverished
old man, who had spent his last days as a guest in the decaying old home
amid whose pristine splendor he had been the petted and pampered son of
its distinguished and honored master. Again the words of the funeral
service were heard in the Hermitage parlors, and friends bore his
remains to the little graveyard in the corner of the garden. Here he
sleeps, with his sons at his side, close in the shadow of the monumental
tomb of the great man who adopted him, who gave him his name and who
strove so earnestly to make another Andrew Jackson of one in whose veins
flowed none of the red Jackson blood.
Mrs. Sarah York Jackson, with her son Andrew, and her sister Mrs. Adams,
remained at the Hermitage in the combined position of custodian and
guest of the State. The daughter, Rachel, had married Dr. John M.
Lawrence and removed to a nearby farm. The state, apparently, forgot
that it owned the historic old mansion; and, as the occupants' means
were limited, it gradually deteriorated. Soon after her husband's death
Mrs. Jackson held an auction at which were sold the furnishings of the
dining room. These were bought, for the most part, by neighbors and
residents of Nashville; and when the Hermitage was rescued and reclaimed
most of this furniture was restored to its original place either by
purchase or by gift. Mrs. Jackson died in 1887 and she was succeeded as
custodian by her son who, in the same year, married Miss Amy Rich, a
native of Ohio who was teaching school in the neighborhood.
[Illustration: The Hermitage Church as it appears today.]
[Illustration: Interior of the old Hermitage Church. The Jackson pew
was near the front on the left-hand side.]
[Illustration: View of Mrs. Jackson's tomb with its eloquent
epitaph.]
[Illustration: The tomb of General Jackson and his wife in the
Hermitage garden. Members of the adopted son's family are buried in
the plot in the background. In the lower right corner is the
headstone of the grave of Uncle Alfred "faithful servant of Andrew
Jackson."]
From time to time, as the years went by, various suggestions were
advanced with reference to making some use of the Hermitage property,
but none of them gained much support or aroused much interest. For two
decades after 1865 most of the efforts of the state of Tennessee were in
the direction of recuperating from the ravages of four years of war, and
no serious consideration was given any plan for doing anything definite
with the Hermitage. Things just drifted along, with the old mansion
house gradually taking on an increased shabbiness, weeds and sprouts
springing up in the once well-kept lawn, and other signs of
deterioration increasing.
Finally, however, in 1888 affairs were brought to a head by a proposal
that the house and farm be converted into a home for Confederate
soldiers. This movement gained instant popularity, and so great was the
appeal of the idea that it was generally considered that when the
state's General Assembly met in 1889 some action would be taken to
convert the Hermitage into a soldiers' home.
It was then, as a sort of emergency defensive measure, that the Ladies'
Hermitage Association was hastily organized; and too much can never be
said in tribute to the work done by this association in saving Old
Hickory's home from misuse or destruction. The idea of an organization
of women to preserve and beautify the old place seems to have originated
in the mind of Mrs. Amy Jackson, wife of Colonel Andrew Jackson, III,
inspired by the successful experience of the Mount Vernon Association in
rescuing Washington's home on the Potomac; and she quickly enlisted the
aid of kindred spirits who worked with a fervor and tenacity worthy of
Andrew Jackson himself until they had accomplished the desired end.
The people of Tennessee, naturally and justly, had a feeling of
veneration and devotion for the Confederate veterans; and it required
courage to appear before the public in the rôle of opposing the
soldiers' home movement. Colonel and Mrs. Jackson, however, had
associated with them in their apparently hopeless task some tireless and
enthusiastic workers. There was Mrs. D. R. Dorris of Nashville, whose
husband was a newspaper man and who was herself an accomplished
publicist; there were Mr. and Mrs. William Alexander Donelson, Mr.
Donelson being a son of Andrew Jackson Donelson, General Jackson's ward,
secretary and friend. From the time of Mrs. Jackson's conception of the
idea of a memorial association, these zealots never relaxed their
vigilance nor abated their efforts; and it is primarily due to them and
their far-seeing vision and untiring enthusiasm that the Hermitage is
today preserved for all the world as a historic shrine.
Mrs. Jackson was not a native of Tennessee, and after she got the ball
started to rolling she took but little active part in the promotion work
following an initial brush with a group of the Tennessee legislators
whom she sharply charged with a lack of veneration for Old Hickory's
memory. They promptly retorted with mumbled but fervent invective
against damned Yankees impeding a movement for a Confederate veteran's
home; and she was wise enough then to withdraw from the controversy,
which bade fair to become heated. Colonel Jackson, himself a Confederate
veteran, was invulnerable to any possible criticism as to a lack of love
for the South, and he proved a tireless worker in the cause. Mrs. Dorris
worked day and night and kept up a barrage of publicity in the
newspapers which was of inestimable value in swaying public sentiment;
and Mr. Donelson, with considerable of the diplomacy and political
shrewdness inherited from his distinguished father, set himself to work
at the task of pledging sufficient votes from the members of the
Assembly to save the Hermitage.
Gradually the merit of the proposal gained for it new supporters among
the prominent people of Nashville. Mass meetings were held; the
newspapers rallied to the cause. One by one, opponents in the Assembly
were won over, until at last a majority was assured. But even then, the
final result was a compromise. It was the original desire of the ladies
to acquire the house and the entire estate, and the statement was boldly
made that they were not looking for a gift, that they wanted to buy the
property from the state--although they themselves were not quite sure
just how they were going to buy anything when they didn't have any
money. At last, however, it was agreed--after long and sometimes stormy
debate--that the state would retain the larger part of the farm (475
acres) and erect a special building on it for the soldiers' home,
granting to the women's organization control of the Hermitage mansion
house and twenty-five acres of ground, including the garden, with the
injunction to "adorn, beautify and preserve" it.
It was a great disappointment to the ladies when they got only the
relatively small tract of twenty-five acres immediately adjacent to the
house; and through the following years the association never lost sight
of its original aim. In 1923 its tenacity of purpose was first rewarded
by having the General Assembly of the state convey to the board of
trustees an additional 232½ acres of the original tract, to the end that
the association "be permitted and encouraged to preserve and beautify
same, so as to display the respect, love and affection which a grateful
state and people cherish for their illustrious hero and statesman,
Andrew Jackson." It was stipulated at the time of this conveyance,
however, that there should be no interference with or infringement on
any of the rights or uses of the land then held and used by the
Confederate soldiers' home so long as the home should continue to exist.
But in 1934 the number of inmates in the home had dwindled to eleven, so
these few tottering old men were transferred to another state
institution; and then all the remaining acres were turned over to the
management of the Ladies' Hermitage Association. Thus, at last, the
association achieved its original aim to have the whole property under
its direction--the mansion house and the entire 500 acres.
The state in its conveyance of the property adopted the excessive
precaution of providing for the creation of a board of nine trustees
(male in gender), these to be commissioned by the governor upon the
recommendation of the association. This, it will be recalled, was back
in 1889 before the days of equal suffrage, when the activities of mere
women were supposed to require the strong guiding hand of a masculine
supervisory body; but, be it said to their everlasting credit, the
trustees have tacitly taken the position that their powers and duties
are purely nominal and honorary. The legal title to the property rests
in them; but the administration and management are vested in the ladies'
organization, and whatever credit is due for the rescue and preservation
of the Hermitage is distinctly to be attributed to the unflagging labors
of the patriotic and devoted women who have constituted its membership
and corps of officers since it was organized.
The Ladies' Hermitage Association was formally organized on May 15,
1889, under a charter that had been granted on February 19th of that
year. At the organization meeting directors were elected and the
association was definitely launched as an active body with Mrs.
Nathaniel Baxter as its first regent. Following the example of the Mount
Vernon Association, it was planned to make the organization truly
national in its scope by appointing vice-regents in every state of the
union. Accordingly an impressive list of vice-regents was made up,
including such distinguished women as Mrs. Grover Cleveland, Mrs. Potter
Palmer, Mrs. A. K. McClure and others, who, it was hoped, would be
interested in the movement. The hope that women in other states would
join in the work, however, proved to be without foundation; and the
women of Tennessee soon reconciled themselves to the realization that
whatever was done would have to be done without outside assistance.
Although the promoters of the association were successful in their
efforts to prevent such use of the Hermitage as would destroy the
possibility of maintaining it as an historic shrine, the state was
strangely reluctant and niggardly in carrying out its part of the deal.
In substance, the state transferred to the ladies' association the
responsibility of managing the property; but did not, at that time,
appropriate one cent for its maintenance. In 1895 the state, in a burst
of belated generosity, appropriated $50 per month for the upkeep of the
Hermitage. This was increased to $1,200 per year in 1911, to $1,800 in
1915 and to $2,000 in 1919, at which later figure it now remains; but
for its whole life the Ladies' Hermitage Association has been to all
intents and purposes entirely self-supporting, and in raising funds for
the purchase of the original furniture and historic relics it had no
financial aid whatever from the state.
Immediately after acquiring the property the association broadcast an
appeal to the American public for funds; which appeal, printed in
booklet form, was given the most widespread distribution. After reciting
the fact that the association had been entrusted by the state with the
management of the property, the booklet stated:
The association proposes to keep in continual repair the house, tomb
and grounds; for many years nothing has been done in this regard.
There is consequently great need for a repair fund, and the first
money collected into the treasury will be devoted to restoring to its
original beauty the grand old historic mansion, the tomb, and to
adorning the grounds. The association also wishes to purchase the
relics and furniture now at the Hermitage and owned by Colonel Andrew
Jackson, and which have been pledged to said association. These relics
are both valuable and interesting, and a large sum of money will be
required to purchase them. It will be readily seen that to put the
homestead in thorough repair, to purchase the relics, to create an
endowment fund by which the association is to become self-sustaining,
a large sum of money will be required. The association is national in
its character, as Andrew Jackson was national in his reputation. He
belonged to the people, and to them the association now appeals for
assistance in this great work. The by-laws require a membership fee of
one dollar; by this means the association hopes to realize at least
$150,000, as it is the belief that there are fully that many citizens
of the United States who would gladly give that sum to the restoration
of Old Hickory's home. Contributions are invited of any sum from one
dollar or less to any great sum a munificent benefactor may be willing
to give. We hope that this appeal will strike the keynote of
patriotism and that in a very few years the home of Andrew Jackson,
the beautiful Hermitage, will be the Mecca of all true patriots in the
United States, and of historic interest to the touring stranger.
Despite the eloquence of this fervent appeal and the sanguine
expectations expressed, the effort to enlist financial support was
signally ineffective and devoid of results. All the true patriots, so
confidently invited to join in the movement, seemed fully willing to let
somebody else pay for restoring of Old Hickory's home. No munificent
benefactor stepped forward to volunteer the donation of any great sum.
To their pained surprise and chagrin, the ladies were forced to the
conclusion that they themselves by their own efforts would have to raise
the money needed. And so they fell to work at the proverbially hopeless
task of pulling themselves up by their own bootstraps.
In 1889 the association must have viewed the task ahead of it with
something akin to terror: A tumble-down house, a neglected and
weed-grown lawn and garden, dilapidated fences and out-houses--and an
empty treasury. Window-panes were broken out; the woodwork had not known
the touch of a paint-brush for forty-five years; the stately columns
were rotting and awry; window shutters were off their hinges, flapping
in the wind; the roof leaked so badly that the plastering was falling
off the walls and ceiling; the wallpaper was hanging in tatters; the old
dining-room was used as a place for storing sacks of wheat, with space
left for General Jackson's old carriage; the rear lawn had been plowed
up and cultivated. Here was a rehabilitation job of sickeningly great
proportions--and the fledgling organization did not even have enough
cash in hand to start grubbing up the young elm and mulberry sprouts
that covered the front lawn.
But the ladies, buoyed up by their zeal and devotion, never lost heart.
They would not permit themselves to be discouraged at the magnitude of
the task confronting them. By dint of holding entertainments and
concerts and balls and resorting to other money-making expedients they
slowly accumulated enough to begin the work of making the most
immediately necessary repairs. It was an Herculean task, and the marvel
is that they had the courage and pertinacity to attempt it and stick to
it in those early days when financial help was so hard to get.
One of the earliest sources of revenue for the association was the
staging of excursions to the Hermitage. This was before the days of good
roads and automobiles and the place, located twelve miles from the
center of Nashville, was distinctly inaccessible. There was a railroad
station two miles from the house, and the plantation's steamboat landing
was located just back of the soldier's home building three miles away.
The first excursion was made by way of both rail and steamboats from
Nashville, and was given on the occasion of the annual meeting of the
National Educational Association in that city in July, 1889. This was
the very first activity of the new organization, and it was on this
occasion that the Hermitage was first thrown open as a public
institution. "Pleasure wagons" met the trains and steamboats and
transported the visitors to the house; and during the four days' session
of the educational association more than a thousand people drove up the
driveway, bordered with its towering cedars, and visited Old Hickory's
old home.
A noteworthy feature of this first official visitation of the Hermitage
by the public was that just before the first wagon-load of pedagogical
excursionists drove up to the front door of the mansion house there was
born there the last of the Jackson name ever to be given birth within
the walls of the Hermitage. The new arrival was named Albert Marble
Jackson, in honor of the president of the educational association; and a
committee of the visiting educators with a flourish presented the little
fellow with a primer, placing his baby hands upon it when he was but a
few hours old. All of the visiting ladies, of course, had to pick up the
new baby and cuddle it; and his old nurse never tired of recounting the
fact that after the visitors had gone poor little Marble was "as red as
a beet" from all the manhandling he had received during the day. Not
until he had been given a sedative (in the form of a mild toddy) was he
finally sung to sleep that night, after as strenuous a day as any
new-born baby ever experienced. It was this baby, grown to be a handsome
young man, who had the honor of unveiling Andrew Jackson's bust in
Statuary Hall in the Capitol at Washington in 1928.
Another promotional activity of the Ladies' Hermitage Association,
launched in 1890 and continued until recent years, was the brilliant
ball given each year in celebration of Jackson Day--January 8th, the
anniversary of the Battle of New Orleans. An interesting feature of this
ball each year has been the lighting, for only a few seconds, of the
historic candle found in Lord Cornwallis's tent at the time of his
surrender. The candle was presented to General Jackson during the height
of his fame and was one of his most prized possessions. He made it a
practice during his lifetime to light it briefly on every Eighth of
January, and it was in honor of this ceremony of his that the practice
was perpetuated in the Jackson Day balls. This old candle, brown with
age, is one of the many interesting things to be seen now in the museum
at the Hermitage.
When the Hermitage property was turned over to the association in 1889
it was in such a state of decay that it was hard to determine just where
to start the work of repair. The roof was leaking, the woodwork needed
painting, the wallpaper was hanging in shreds on the dampened and moldy
walls. One of the first works of restoration involved the repair of the
hand-painted scenic wall paper that adorned the lower hall. This paper
was threatened with complete destruction when the ladies' association
took over the management of the property; and an expert wallpaper man
spent two weeks repairing it and putting it back in place. At the same
time the wall paper all over the house was restored and renovated, as it
was considered a matter of primary desirability and importance to
preserve the original paper which had been selected by General Jackson
and sent to the Hermitage when it was rebuilt in 1835. An excellent job
of restoration and repair was accomplished, this being particularly
noticeable in one of the guest rooms on the second floor. The paper in
this room, in the old-fashioned block design, showed recurring bunches
of roses; but the dampness of the walls had caused large patches of it
to fall away and be lost. An artist was employed who so skilfully
reproduced the design in fresco on the wall that it is today hard to see
where the paper ends and the painting begins.
[Illustration: Earl's portrait of General Jackson mounted on _Sam
Patch_.]
[Illustration: The old family carriage.]
Again in 1930 the scenic paper in the hall was the subject of
preservative treatment at the hands of one of the world's foremost
experts in this kind of work. Skilfully the paper was removed from the
walls, which were then lined with canvas. The canvas was then covered
with plain white paper, on which was mounted the scenic paper. Due to
the ravages of time and the petty vandalism of misguided souvenir
hunters some small parts of the paper were missing, but these were
carefully reproduced and the lower hall now presents the same gay
appearance it did when President Jackson came home from Washington in
1836 to inspect his rebuilt and refurnished home.
During the early days limited funds necessarily restricted the work that
could be done; but as the years went by the income gradually increased,
and each succeeding regent of the association took pride in performing
some necessary part of the work during her administration.
In 1907 the association received its greatest single gift of money from
an outside source--an appropriation of $5,000 from the United States
government. It was during this year that President Roosevelt visited the
Hermitage, and he immediately became much interested in its
attractiveness and importance as a national shrine.
President Roosevelt was a genuine admirer of Andrew Jackson. In his book
about the War of 1812 he said that "Jackson is certainly by all odds the
most prominent figure that appears during this war;" and later in the
same book he says that Andrew Jackson "with his cool head and clear
eyes, his stout heart and strong hand, stands out in history as the
ablest general the United States produced from the outbreak of the
Revolution down to the beginning of the great Rebellion."
In an informal address delivered on the occasion of his visit to the
Hermitage, President Roosevelt complimented the ladies' organization on
what it had done to preserve it "as a place of national pilgrimage for
all citizens who wish to learn, to study, who wish to quicken their
patriotism in the present by visiting the abode, the living place of one
of the great patriots of the nation's past." With his customary
impulsiveness he then and there declared that he would see to it that
the national government made a contribution to the expense of
maintaining what he described as "the home of one of the three or four
greatest public men that any nation has developed in the same length of
time."
In his very next message to Congress President Roosevelt said: "I
solemnly recommend to the Congress to provide funds for keeping up the
Hermitage, the home of Andrew Jackson, these funds to be used through
the existing Hermitage Association for the preservation of the historic
building which should be ever dear to America." Honorable John Wesley
Gaines, then a member of the board of trustees of the Hermitage was the
representative in Washington of that Congressional district of Tennessee
affectionately known as "the Hermitage District;" and he promptly
introduced a bill following the recommendation of the President, which
bill soon passed, granting $5,000 to the association. This money was
utilized in making some highly desirable improvements about the place,
foremost of which was the enlargement of the caretaker's cottage so as
to render unnecessary his occupation of any part of the house. The
Hermitage then, for the first time, was open in its entirety to
visitors.
The chief source of revenue of the association is the admission fee
charged at the door of the house; and as thousands of visitors pass
through the broad front door every month, the income from this source is
not inconsiderable. At first a fee of ten cents was charged, the amount
being made small since there was really but little to see except the
bare house and it in a sadly run-down condition. This fee, however, was
increased to 25 cents in 1899, after some of the original furniture had
been installed, and at this figure it has remained.
The funds derived from the admission fees are augmented by the sale of
pictures, pamphlets and souvenirs. A few years ago an unusually severe
storm blew down a number of century-old cedar trees that had been
planted by General Jackson himself along the driveway; and from these
fallen trees has been obtained a supply of wood from which may be
supplied novelties for a long time to come.
Naturally one of the first aims of the association was to acquire from
Colonel Andrew Jackson, III, the furniture and the personal relics of
General Jackson which he had inherited and which he still had in the
house. This furniture constituted the original furnishing of the old
house, placed there by General Jackson himself, and included the bed on
which he died and the appurtenances of his room just as he had left
them. All these furnishings and relics had been left to Colonel Jackson
by his mother, and it was the desire of the association to preserve them
intact and keep them in their original place.
Colonel Jackson was agreeable to the sale, and gave the association a
four-year option on them at a price of $17,500; but the finances of the
organization were totally inadequate to handle a deal of such
proportions at that time. Accordingly a compromise arrangement was made
whereby Colonel Jackson and his wife were retained as custodians of the
property, and the association agreed to pay them at the rate of 3% on
the agreed value of the furniture and relics. The state had retained the
tillable part of the farm, and Colonel Jackson could not look to that as
a means of support; and although the struggling association could not
keep up its payments to him with any degree of regularity, thereby
working a hardship and inconvenience on him, he permitted the option to
remain in force until July, 1893, hoping that the organization would be
able to raise the necessary funds. An effort was made to get the state
to appropriate $15,000 for this purpose, and the governor sent a special
message to the General Assembly recommending the appropriation. But the
watchdogs of the state treasury could not see any political juice to be
squeezed out of such a measure, and they proceeded to make spread-eagle
orations about the folly of spending a small fortune for relics when
there was so much "practical good" that could be done with the money. So
the appropriation was defeated, and upon the expiration of the option
Colonel Jackson and his wife removed from the Hermitage, taking with
them all its furnishings and leaving only the bare walls.
With the Hermitage left bare and unoccupied, the ladies were confronted
with the acute problem of what to do with the historic mansion they had
worked so hard to get. Uncle Alfred, the ancient retainer of the Jackson
family, remained in his cabin, the sole vestige of life on the place;
but it was out of the question to expect this tottering old black
octogenarian to care properly for so valuable a piece of property. For
want of some more expedient means of immediately meeting the difficulty,
the regent and secretary of the association planned temporarily to
occupy the house themselves until suitable permanent arrangements could
be made. A few simple pieces of furniture were installed, a cook was
engaged to prepare their meals, and bravely the two ladies assumed
occupancy of the deserted house.
The first day passed pleasantly enough, but the gathering shadows of
night, when they were left alone in the house, suddenly brought home to
the ladies a sharp realization of their lonely situation. They retired
early and went to sleep, but they were awakened during the night by an
unearthly din--from the pantry came the sound of crashing pans and
dishes, there was a sound of chains being dragged across the upstairs
hall, there was a noise like a war-horse being ridden headlong through
the upper rooms. In short, there were all the standard evidences of a
real, old-fashioned ghost! The second night brought the same
experience--and then, for some reason or other, the regent and the
secretary officially decided that it would be wise to engage a regular
caretaker to look after the property, and they discreetly returned to
their homes in Nashville.
So a man was employed who was a combination carpenter and gardener and
handy man, and for the next two years work was concentrated on improving
the appearance of the place, especially in the garden. Then in 1895 a
young farmer of the neighborhood, Mr. T. L. Baker, was engaged as
caretaker, and he and his wife moved onto the premises and took charge.
At this writing Mr. Baker is still the custodian, and the appearance of
the Hermitage and grounds today is to a great extent a tribute to his
faithful and efficient work.
Despite all its early discouragements, the association never lost sight
of the fact that the most important thing before it was the restoration
to the Hermitage of the original furniture and relics still in the
possession of Colonel Jackson. Without them the house was just an empty
shell. In 1897, while the Tennessee Centennial Exposition was being held
in Nashville, Colonel Jackson wrote to the association suggesting that
they buy and exhibit at the exposition the historic old Jackson family
carriage. After some dickering the coach was purchased for $100 and put
on display at the exposition, where it attracted much attention. It is
now to be seen in the carriage house at the Hermitage, and constitutes
one of the most interesting features of the display there. Visitors who
drive to the Hermitage in their automobiles from all parts of the
country seem fascinated by the clumsy-looking old coach with its high
wheels, denoting muddy roads, but with its pink satin lining, indicating
that it was a vehicle of quality.
The purchase of the old carriage served to reopen negotiations with
Colonel Jackson, and from that time on the association continued to
purchase the furnishings piecemeal until there had been acquired all the
original furniture and most of the relics desired. With the aid of Mrs.
Rachel Jackson Lawrence and Uncle Alfred, both of whom were familiar
with the arrangement of the furniture in the early days, every piece was
put in its original and proper place. Today the Hermitage stands unique
in being the country's only national shrine which is fitted throughout
with the original furnishings, which gives an authentic impression of
the exact conditions under which its famous occupant lived his everyday
life.
Wisely enough, the first purchase of furniture made by the association
embraced the bedroom furnishings of General Jackson's own room--the bed,
dresser, washstand, couch, table, chairs, fender and andirons, all the
portraits and the carpet. The price paid was $1,000. The furniture used
in the downstairs hall was next purchased; and then, room by room, as
the money became available, the purchases were continued until all the
rooms were equipped with their original furnishings.
In 1894 one of the most important improvements was made when a modern
heating plant was installed which eliminated the damage caused by
excessive dampness within the house. The heating plant is now located at
a safe distance from the building, for the purpose of reducing the fire
hazard to a minimum. In fact, the most painstaking precautions have been
employed to prevent fire. The house is not wired for electricity, and no
artificial lighting of any kind is used. The place is closed to visitors
when the light of the sun fades in the late afternoon. Danger from fire
originating within the building seems to have been entirely eliminated;
and as the caretaker's home and outbuildings are at a safe distance from
the house, the probability of fire being communicated from that source
is remote.
By the narrowest of margins the Hermitage escaped from the blighting
hand of those who would have made of it a military academy, a reform
school or a state institution, or in some other way prevented its being
maintained as a place where admiring American citizens may go and admire
the memory of the man who lived there during the history-making days of
his dramatic career in public life. But today, thanks to the diligence
of a little handful of far-seeing zealots of forty years ago whose
patriotic devotion has been the inspiration of those who have so
faithfully worked to bring their dream to fulfilment, the Hermitage is
preserved in perpetuity as a shrine to which the footsteps of admiring
thousands have beaten paths from all over the nation.
Andrew Jackson was a meteoric figure in the life of the country; he was
the first to give actuality and realization to the theory that the most
humbly born individual might aspire to and reach the President's chair.
Well did President Roosevelt say: "His career will stand evermore as a
source of inspiration for boy and man in this republic," and it is a
priceless privilege that patriotic fathers may bring their sons to the
stately old home of the grand old man who wore his patriotism as a
flaming badge and who knew no motive more impelling than his passionate
love for his country.