Domesticating History: The Political Origins of America's House Museums (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781560988366)

Celebrating the lives of famous men and women, historic house museums showcase restored rooms and period furnishings, and portray in detail their former occupants' daily lives. But behind the gilded molding and curtain brocade lie the largely unknown, politically charged stories of how the homes were first established as museums. Focusing on George Washington's Mount Vernon, Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House, Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, and the Booker T. Washington National Monument, Patricia West shows how historic houses reflect less the lives and times of their famous inhabitants than the political pressures of the eras during which they were transformed into museums.

Author: Patricia West
ISBN-10: 1560988363
ISBN-13: 9781560988366
Publisher: Smithsonian Books
Language: English
Published: 05/17/1999
Pages: 256
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.75lbs
Size: 8.98h x 5.92w x 0.74d

Review Citation(s):
Univ PR Books for Public Libry 01/01/2000 pg. 103 - Recommended/Special Interest