On vacation - Grover Cleveland's Birthplace

Today, we went to see Grover Cleveland's Birthplace. We learned a lot of things about our 22nd president - like that he was the only president to have two non-consecutive terms, and that he'd been a bachelor when he first entered the White House. He married a young lady named Francis Folsom, and they had a small wedding with only 50 people at the White House. They had a piece of his wedding cake (a fruit cake) there - he mailed out fruitcakes to everyone who wasn't invited to the wedding. The Baby Ruth candy bar is named after Cleveland's daughter, Ruth, who died at age 12.

They had a lot of period items on display, including some items from the Cleveland family - including the baby cradle that the future president used as a child.  Cleveland's father was a minister - and their family had nine children! Grover was actually his middle name - he was born Steven Grover Cleveland.

 From the clothing that was there at the house, you get a picture of what kind of man the president was. He had a large velvety top hat, a little bow tie, and a great big broad coat that showed he had a large imposing barrel-chested figure. His walking cane was black with a gold handle. In his personal life and in the presidency, Grover Cleveland was an honest man. When it came time to campaign, he didn't campaign - prefering instead to let the people make their own decision as to whether he'd make  a good president. And he wasn't rich, either - his family was too poor to send him to college, making him one of the few non-college educated presidents. He still managed to make a success of himself though-  first becoming a lawyer, then a sheriff, then a governor, and of course, the president.

The lady who led the tour was very gracious - she had a masters in history, and had taught in younger years. She answered all our questions, and taught us a lot about the history of building, president, and how the place became a historical sight.