Washington Headquarter's National Park makes for a wonderful day trip. For a small admission fee you are able to see the Washington Museum and take a tour of the Ford Mansion, in which Washington occupied during the winter months of the American Revolution, 1779-80. During that period the continental army had to stay with civilians during the winter months and resumed fighting in the spring. The large estate with a fourteen bedroom mansion held Mrs. Jacob Ford Jr, her four children, General and Mrs. Washington, along with servants, slaves, guards, and aides. Mrs. Ford and her children were given two rooms in their house to reside, while General Washington and company resided in the rest of the house. Click Washington Headquarters for the official link.Take a peak inside this beautiful mansion!
“To his Excellency General Washington.”
By: Phillis Wheatley
"Proceed, great chief, with virtue on thy side,
Thy ev’ry action let the goddess guide.
Thy ev’ry action let the goddess guide.
A crown, a mansion, and a throne that shine,
With gold unfading, WASHINGTON! be thine.”
The soundtrack compliments this video so well.It creates a mood that influences the way you view the slideshow.
ReplyDeleteI think the poem and the video make for an interesting contrast. The short poem mentions action and shining glory, but the video shows a mansion (while clearly large and fine in its own way) as it was used by real people, doing daily tasks.
ReplyDeleteI like the graininess of the film and the yellowed light... I think with the music the poem seems like an honor song/ march to a hero... I like it a lot.
ReplyDeleteGreat job on the video, I think it fits the individual and the location. I also agree that there is an interesting contrast between the poem and the mansion. When discussing historical figures I try to push students to see that men and women of the past were ordinary and extraordinary at the same time. Based upon many elementary school curriculums Washington has been elevated to almost a god-like status. Students know about his military successes and the story of him chopping down his father's cheery tree, but they fail to see him as simply a man. I think that if students are able to identify with historical figures they are better able to understand the events of the past and more likely to ask the question, "Who was this guy G.W.?"
ReplyDeleteThanks! I got the idea for the drum cadence from the brochure, because there was a picture of a man in uniform hold a drum, and from the tour of the Washington museum that is behind the Ford Mansion. The museum had the military routes and the riffles and weapons used during the war, along with other artifacts from the war. However, when I went on the tour of the mansion it had no trace of a war inside. It was a home. I wanted the video to represent everything that I saw at Washington's Headquarters, a beautiful mansion and a present war.
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