Executive Decisions: Talks and Events Around Presidents’ Day 2015
By Troy Segal
From colonial balls to Civil War Era speeches, salute the Commander-in-Chief with some smart events centered around Presidents’ Day 2015. These talks, tours and activities are sure to stimulate—whatever your political leanings.
Take a Hike: Hoof it around the Financial District—the oldest ’hood in Manhattan—visiting venues where Washington, Jefferson and other founding fathers dined, drank and did business on the George Washington’s Birthday Walk, followed by lunch and a lecture, Feb. 12…or take just a colonial financial tour of George Washington’s New York, Feb. 15. Both are sponsored by the Museum of American Finance.…Jump ahead fourscore and seven years, and about 20 blocks, to follow In the Footsteps of Abraham Lincoln and his wife Mary in a Municipal Art Society of New York trip around Lower Manhattan structures and sites the pair visited, Feb. 12.
Party Down: You are cordially invited to Washington’s Birthday Ball, which celebrates No. 1 in vintage style, with mid-19th-century libations, live music and dances (costumed guides show the steps). Mount Vernon Hotel Museum & Garden, Feb. 15.…The Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York are also giving a George Washington Birthday Ball, this one a fundraiser for the Fraunces Tavern Museum. It’s black tie, but tri-corn hats and colonial military garb are welcome as well. Union League Club, Feb. 20.
Words, Words, Words: Test your knowledge of historical facts and figures in this special Presidents’ Day Edition of the Big Quiz Thing game, New-York Historical Society, Feb. 16.…In 1860, Abraham Lincoln gave a mesmerizing speech at Cooper Union in New York—but it was the power of the 19th-century press that took that talk and used it to jump-start the former Illinois representative’s political career. Historian Harold Holzer elaborates at the Morgan Library & Museum, Feb. 19.…A panel of political experts discusses the bonds between U.S. presidents and their dads—and how the relationship with their First Fathers influenced the First Sons’ decision-making and policies. New-York Historical Society, Feb. 25.
Coming Home: Washington formally bid farewell to his Revolutionary War officers at what’s now the Fraunces Tavern Museum—which is holding an open house ($1 admission to view the rooms and memorabilia, including Washington’s teeth!) all day, Feb. 16.… Did you know Theodore Roosevelt was the only U.S. president to be born in New York City? Near Gramercy Park, his home (or at least a convincing replica of it) is now a museum, the Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site, with guided tours of its period-furnished rooms offered by the National Park Service five days a week.…Teddy’s cousin and fellow president Franklin Roosevelt lived in an Upper East Side double townhouse with wife Eleanor, their five kids and his mother before moving to Washington, D.C. Current owner Hunter College has carefully restored the building, and you can tour its exhibit-filled halls on Feb. 14, 21 & 28.