My photographer was up and at ’em by the dawn’s early light on Saturday morning November 16. 2024. From my position alongside the television set in our room at the Holiday Inn Express in Mentor, Ohio, I watched as Tom quietly got ready to take on the day. He did his best to stay stealth as his wife, Vicki, and ten-year-old granddaughter, Reese Fiscelli, were still sound asleep.
While my cameraman and I are accustomed to non-stop stimulation during our Presidential adventures, an incredible day like we experienced at Hiram College on Friday had put the two girls into history overload. But since the day’s first scheduled stop, which was the James A. Garfield National Historic Site, didn’t open until ten o’clock, we had more than enough time for Vicki and Reese to recharge their batteries.
Although Vicki has accompanied my photographer and I on a countless number of trips since 2013, this ‘Life of Garfield Tour’ was Reese’s first adventure with her grandfather and me. I loved watching the fourth grader as she interacted with Tim Garfield and his friends during the previous day’s visit at Hiram College. And now, as Day Two was about to begin, I was anxious to see her reaction when we visit the other two sites left on the Garfield Trail, which was the President’s ‘Mentor Farm’ known as Lawnfield, and the Garfield Memorial in Lake View Cemetery.
From the moment Tom’s wife rolled out of the sack around eight-fifteen until we left the hotel, it seemed as though “Nana” was moving in slow motion. I laughed to myself when my photographer kept mentioning she needed to pick up the pace, which was followed by, “We’re only two miles from the house. We have plenty of time to get there by ten o’clock. See Reese, this is what we have to put up with when we travel with your Papa.”
Finally, at 9:42am, we were in the Jeep and ready to rock and roll. Miraculously, everything seemed to be back on schedule, until I heard a voice from the driver’s seat say, “We need to find Reese something to eat, and they didn’t have free breakfast at that hotel. Please find a place where we can pick up a couple of bagels.” I nearly fell out of my camera case. But Tom kept his cool; he scoured the internet for a minute or so, and he set his GPS for a place called Bruegger’s Bagels, which was roughly five miles down the road.
Once the two girls had their bagels in hand, we arrived at the James A. Garfield National Historic Site at 9:58am. That’s right – even with all of the foot-dragging, lollygagging, and a visit to an out-of-the-way bagel shop, we were still two minutes early. And in a sense, we were even earlier than that as the first tour of the home didn’t start until 10:15am.
Reese shook with anticipation as our tour guide, Jeff, led us from the Visitor Center Museum to Lawnfield, the historic home of President James A. Garfield and his family. I was excited as well; after all, it had been over five years since my last visit to the historic home and I wondered what changes to the decor had been made to the interior.
After moving his growing family out of the Hiram home, James Garfield purchased the large farmhouse in front of us in 1876. Garfield not only needed the extra room so he could teach his young sons about farming, but he also moved to a different county for political reasons as well. A year or so after moving in, Garfield had an additional eleven rooms added to the home to accommodate his ever-expanding family, which included his mother, Eliza. During the Presidential election of 1880, James conducted what became the first successful ‘Front Porch Campaign’ from the home, which became dubbed ‘Lawnfield’ by the media who camped out on the lawn to cover the campaign.
On February 28, 1881, President-elect Garfield walked out of the front door of Lawnfield for the last time as he boarded a train for Washington and into the history books. Before he left, Garfield stood before a large and enthusiastic crowd of admirers and said, “What awaits me I cannot now speak of; but I shall carry to the discharge of duties that lie before me, to the problems and dangers I may meet, a sense of your confidence and your love, which will always be answered by my gratitude. Neighbors, friends, constituents… farewell.” James A. Garfield left his home, and Mentor, behind for good.
Following the President’s death from an assassin’s bullet on September 19, 1881, Lucretia Garfield, now a 49-year-old widow, returned to her Mentor farmhouse where she continued to raise their children. Four years after the assassination, the former First Lady and her family added a Memorial Library wing to the home, which set a precedent for Presidential libraries. Mrs. Garfield lived on and off at Lawnfield for the rest of her life, which ended in California on March 14, 1918. Joseph Rudolph, who was Lucretia’s brother, lived in the home until his death in 1934. Two years later, the Garfield children donated the house and its furnishings to the Western Reserve Historical Society to use as a museum.
Once we had followed Jeff into the home, I thought Reese was going to faint from excitement. At one point, I heard the ten-year-old say to her grandmother, “I can’t believe how big and beautiful this house is. I need to ask my daddy to build us a house like this one. It’s the most amazing home I’ve ever seen.”
There were a handful of rooms inside Lawnfield that were decorated for Christmas, including the Parlor and Memorial Library. But it was when we entered the decorated Dining Room that I nearly fell out of Tom’s hand from laughter. As we stood in the room where the Garfield’s ate their meals, Reese commented on the food on the Garfield’s table. Seconds later, I heard my photographer say, “I don’t think that’s a ham, Reese. I think that might be squirrel.” The youngster was stunned and replied, “Awwwww, don’t say that. I love squirrels.”
Since a photo is worth a thousand words, please take a moment to check out our morning at Lawnfield, as well as the Visitor Center Museum behind the home, with 37,000 words-worth of images.
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At roughly 12:20pm, our time at Lawnfield had come to an end. To commemorate the visit, Vicki asked Reese what she wanted as a souvenir from the gift shop. The youngster didn’t hesitate – she selected a stuffed toy squirrel, which she named Mollie. “I’ll save one squirrel from becoming stew”, Reese said with a big smile.
For me, the visit to the historic home was a memorable experience. After having met Tim Garfield the previous day, I was honored to stand in the footsteps of not only his great-great-grandfather who became President, but his great-grandfather, James R. Garfield, as well. I agreed with Reese when she said Lawnfield was one of the most beautiful homes she had ever seen.
As beautiful as the interior was, filled with furnishings and belongings of which eighty percent were owned and used by the Garfield’s, it was the front porch I loved the most. When I stood there and looked out towards Mentor Road, I envisioned thousands of people standing in front of me. They were hooked on every word emitted from my resin mouth. Suddenly, it was as though I could hear the voice of Republican candidate Garfield as he spoke to his friends, neighbors, and countrymen who had come to his home.
“Here are the school-fellows of twenty-eight years ago. Here are men and women who were my pupils twenty-five years ago… I see others who were soldiers in the old regiment which I had the honor to command… How can I forget all these things, and all that has followed? How can I forget…the people of Portage County, when I see men and women from all its townships standing at my door? I cannot forget these things while life and consciousness remain. The freshness of youth, the very springtide of life… all was with you, and of you, my neighbors, my friends, my cherished comrades… You are here, so close to my heart… whatever may befall me hereafter…”
To be Continued…
** THIS POST IS DEDICATED TO REESE FISCELLI, WHOSE ENTHUSIASM AND LOVE FOR HISTORY HAS MADE HER PAPA PROUD. ANOTHER TORCH HAS BEEN PASSED! **
