holland house

July 2010:  It all started when we drove to my old apartment in Old Town Alexandria and simply parked the car to walk around my old neighborhood.  We came upon this beautiful property that I had never noticed when I lived there in my distracted 20's -- right across the street from my apartment.  A man was gardening outside of the brick wall and noticed me being nosy glancing in the old wooden door propped open to see the garden.  Turns out he was the friendly owner and he seemed to appreciate our curious and enthusiastic nature, and invited Gary, the kids and me in to see the grounds.  He gave us a tour of his amazing garden and the next thing we knew he invited us to see the inside of the house.

Part of it was built in 1750!  Some was added in the early 1800's and the rest in the later 1800's.  The painting above the fireplace is an original of our founding father, George Washington.  The owner showed us a book from the 1500's in his library, we saw original wood floors, and molding on the walls.  He took us back outside and gave us more information on the property.  George Washington had surveyed it hundreds of years ago....During a remodel a few years back they uncovered a layer of rutted gray stone which was part of the original outdoor steps. It was purposely left exposed as the remodel continued all around it.  The Thomas Jefferson statue was life sized.  Note the carriage house in the last photo, used to store buggies.  There was also a small barn for the animals.  It was an incredible stroke of luck and we all loved the experience.

What a great experience of seeing history for our children.  I could never have planned this as a home school field trip!

It really struck me being back east how much history that part of our country holds.  Made me appreciate all of the antique trips my parents took us on, when I was a child, as they hunted for treasures.  It's much harder to find those treasures now.  And my parents found some amazing deals in the 70's.