Wilson Enjoying Summer Here Like a Veteran Resident
Title
Wilson Enjoying Summer Here Like a Veteran Resident
Creator
Unknown
Identifier
WWP20738
Date
1913 August 4
Description
Woodrow Wilson experiences his first summer in Washington, DC.
Source
Cary T. Grayson Papers, Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library, Staunton, Virginia
Language
English
Text
President Wilson has entered into the summer life of the National Capital with the tolerant spirit of a veteran resident. Declining to leave Washington while Congress is in session, he is making the best of the hot weather by a methodical program of work and recreation.
Fond of long automobile rides and golf, the President devotes two hours in the late afternoon to refreshing himself from days of congested engagements and conferences. In the evening he is frequently at his office, and though he has few callers, there is always a stack of correspondence or official papers for his examination.
Renovating the White House.
The White House, incidentally, is by no means the quiet and comfortable place these days that it appears, as a small army of paperhangers, painters, and carpenters are busily at work remodeling the interior. Practically the only rooms that have not been disturbed are those occupied by the President and his two house guests, Secretary Tumulty and Dr. Cary T. Grayson, USN, his physician. The big east room is being refinished, and those sections of the house hitherto open to the public have been closed for repairs. The house is being renovated in preparation for the wedding of Miss Jessie Wilson and Francis B. Sayre, which is to take place during the Thanksgiving season, the last week in November. It is not expected that the Wilson family will return from Cornish, NH, the summer capital, much before that time.
Bachelor Life an Ordeal.
Keeping “bachelor hall” is a trying ordeal for President Wilson, as he has rarely been away from the family circle for any extended period. No friends have been invited to visit him, and though occasionally he dines with a cabinet member, the President is content with the company of Secretary Tumulty and Dr. Grayson. With them he goes automobiling after the day’s work is done, and quite regularly they attend the theaters where stock company plays have been running.
Hopes to Depart in October.
In simple contrast to the winter season, the President wears a linen suit to the theater instead of evening dress. He has taken a fancy to the white suits of tropical fashion, and when he appeared recently in a duck suit, members of the cabinet and other official folk followed suit.
The President is hopeful that Congress will have passed both the tariff and the currency bills by October 1, and that he may spend two weeks of October in Panama and a month with his family at Cornish, NH.
Fond of long automobile rides and golf, the President devotes two hours in the late afternoon to refreshing himself from days of congested engagements and conferences. In the evening he is frequently at his office, and though he has few callers, there is always a stack of correspondence or official papers for his examination.
Renovating the White House.
The White House, incidentally, is by no means the quiet and comfortable place these days that it appears, as a small army of paperhangers, painters, and carpenters are busily at work remodeling the interior. Practically the only rooms that have not been disturbed are those occupied by the President and his two house guests, Secretary Tumulty and Dr. Cary T. Grayson, USN, his physician. The big east room is being refinished, and those sections of the house hitherto open to the public have been closed for repairs. The house is being renovated in preparation for the wedding of Miss Jessie Wilson and Francis B. Sayre, which is to take place during the Thanksgiving season, the last week in November. It is not expected that the Wilson family will return from Cornish, NH, the summer capital, much before that time.
Bachelor Life an Ordeal.
Keeping “bachelor hall” is a trying ordeal for President Wilson, as he has rarely been away from the family circle for any extended period. No friends have been invited to visit him, and though occasionally he dines with a cabinet member, the President is content with the company of Secretary Tumulty and Dr. Grayson. With them he goes automobiling after the day’s work is done, and quite regularly they attend the theaters where stock company plays have been running.
Hopes to Depart in October.
In simple contrast to the winter season, the President wears a linen suit to the theater instead of evening dress. He has taken a fancy to the white suits of tropical fashion, and when he appeared recently in a duck suit, members of the cabinet and other official folk followed suit.
The President is hopeful that Congress will have passed both the tariff and the currency bills by October 1, and that he may spend two weeks of October in Panama and a month with his family at Cornish, NH.
Original Format
Article
Files
Collection
Citation
Unknown, “Wilson Enjoying Summer Here Like a Veteran Resident,” 1913 August 4, WWP20738, Cary T. Grayson Papers, Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library & Museum, Staunton, Virginia.