Talk:Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial

Merge?
Is there some reason not to merge this article with Arlington House? --JohnPomeranz 05:46, 7 March 2006 (UTC)

WP:ARCHA assessement
I gave it a "start" rating rather than everyone else's B because it's pretty light on the architecture side of things. --Mcginnly | Natter 13:17, 10 January 2007 (UTC)

Return to Arlington
The article says "Lee was concerned for the safety of his wife who was still residing at the mansion and convinced her to vacate the property, at least temporarily. ... Neither Robert E. Lee nor his wife were ever to set foot on the property again." I'm no authority, but according to an article titled "The Battle of Arlington" in the November 2009 issue of Smithsonian magazine, "... Mary Lee managed a farewell visit to Arlington in June 1873. Accompanied by a friend, she rode in a carriage for three hours through a landscape utterly transformed, filled with old memories and new graves. 'My visit produced one good effect,' she wrote later that week. 'The change is so entire, that I have not the yearning to go back there & shall be more content to resign all my right in it.'" Lodonian (talk) 20:47, 20 November 2009 (UTC)

Correct. Robert E. Lee never returned to Arlington House, but Mary Lee did. This is documented in several sources. - Ben Franklin 75.74.180.52 (talk) 14:28, 23 November 2013 (UTC)

The article says: "Robert E. Lee made no attempt to visit or restore his title to Arlington before his death in 1870." The same article in the Smithsonian outlines very clearly the legal efforts Lee used to attempt to retrieve Arlington. This statement is inaccurate. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.159.211.151 (talk) 18:36, 3 October 2019 (UTC)

Original photograph
There is a photograph from 1864 that would be a great addition to this page, but am not sure about its copyright. Here is the image: http://www.mikelynaugh.com/VirtualCivilWar/New/Originals2/pages/ArlingtonHouse1.html I don't know where Mike Lynaugh got the image, but would sure be nice to use here! User:taborgate (talk) 13:35, 5 April 2010 (UTC)

George and Martha Washington's silhouettes
I have a set of silhouettes of George and Martha Washington exactly like the ones that are in the Robert E. Lee house. I saw them there in 1990 on a visit to Washington and I am wondering what year they are and what the worth is. Can you please help me with this. They are in the exact frames and are numbered. They are Tillimit Art of Boston, MA...Thank you in advance for any help you may provide. Cindy —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.195.54.140 (talk) 22:18, 17 October 2010 (UTC)

GWPC, the step-grandson and adopted son of GW and only grandson of MCW... "Jacky" Parke Custis
I improved the following... George Washington Parke Custis, the step-grandson and adopted son of George Washington and only grandson of Martha Custis Washington... Custis' father, John Parke Custis... ("Jacky" Custis died in 1781 at Yorktown after the British surrender.) - Brad Watson, Miami 71.196.11.183 (talk) 16:29, 9 July 2012 (UTC)

April 17, 1861: Lincoln decided to offer Lee command and State of Virginia seceeded
I corrected an error and added some info, so it now reads... On April 17, 1861, just days after the American Civil War began with the Battle of Fort Sumter on April 12–13 (surrender on the 14th), the Virginia Legislature voted to seceed from the Union. (Citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia ratified by popular vote on May 23 the Commonwealth's articles of secession, essentially finalizing separation from the Union. See: Secession in the United States and Virginia in the American Civil War.) Also on April 17, US President Abraham Lincoln decided to offer the Command of the Union Army to Robert E. Lee. The next day, Lee, who at that time was a colonel who had served in the United States Army for 35 years, was offered command of the Federal Army by Francis Preston Blair (at Blair House) during a visit to Washington. Lee had disapproved of secession, but decided that he could not fight against his native State of Virginia. Instead of accepting the Union command, he resigned his commission in the Army in a letter written at Arlington House on April 20. - Brad Watson, Miami 71.196.11.183 (talk) 18:34, 9 July 2012 (UTC)

Words missing?
'After the civil war, the original acres were cut in half because of the many new monuments and no more work yard.' Valetude (talk) 10:48, 13 October 2013 (UTC)

"Federal City", "Washington City", "Executive Mansion"
When L'Enfant first designed the new American Capitol, it was referred to as "Federal City". When Lincoln was president, it was referred to as "Washington City" and later became known as Washington DC. After the "President's House" was first lived in by President John Adams, at sometime(?) it became known as the "Executive Mansion" and then (under President Teddy Roosevelt[?]) the White House. - Ben Franklin 75.74.180.52 (talk) 14:33, 23 November 2013 (UTC)

Woods
IMHO, this section needs tightening badly, but I have no time for it.Jweaver28 (talk) 19:12, 6 December 2013 (UTC)

Slavery and the War of 1812
When I visited the gardens about 18 months ago, I remember an interpretive plaque about the slave quarters, which specifically mentioned Eliza Gray as saving many items from Mt. Vernon, I think during the War of 1812. However, I also remembered a mention of Martha Washington's fear of being poisoned by slaves freed in her husbands's will (which delayed manumission until expiration of her life estate). Martha Washington died a decade before the War of 1812, but I can understand looting during that war, since British troops looted and burned the new capital. I've tried researching this for a couple of hours, and edited the G.W.P. Custis article a bit, but got sent on a number of rabbit tracks, perhaps because of the site's statutory focus on the Lees/Civil War era. I can't spend more time on this matter in the near future and soon will be away from local history collections. If I can't get back to this matter, I hope someone else can.Jweaver28 (talk) 19:20, 6 December 2013 (UTC)

Possible contradiction re. Lee freeing Arlington slaves?
The article states that Lee freed the slaves at Arlington House in December 1862. However, according to the first two paragraphs of the Civil War section, Arlington House was occupied by Union troops in May 1861. I think this should be elaborated on. Did Mary Lee take the slaves with her when she left the place before May 24? If so, what happened to Selina Norris Gray, who was left behind? Was she also freed in absentia? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 178.48.1.101 (talk) 11:42, 23 November 2016 (UTC)

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Slavery
I am surprised that there is no mention of slavery in the first section. Presumably the work was done by slaves, who also lived there. ♥ L'Origine du monde ♥  ♥ Talk ♥ 00:56, 11 July 2021 (UTC)

James Parks
Why is this narrative not included in the article?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Parks_(freed_slave) 67.182.13.30 (talk) 14:45, 20 January 2023 (UTC)