Built in 1856, the Ulysses S. Grant House is located on Wood Street in Burlington, New Jersey. General Grant’s wife, Julia, and their four children lived here during the final year of the Civil War.
It is thought that President Abraham Lincoln invited General and Mrs. Grant to join him and the First Lady at Ford’s Theater on the night of April 14, 1865 to see the play Our American Cousin. The theory is that John Wilkes Booth meant to kill not only President Lincoln, but also General Grant, Secretary of State William Seward and Vice President Andrew Johnson, with the intent of eradicating the Federal government. Having declined the offer, General Grant was in residence in Burlington when he learned of President Lincoln’s assassination. Allegedly, General Grant stood on the balcony of this Wood Street home that he was renting and informed the townspeople that Lincoln had been shot. A historical marker stands in front of the house, there is also a small faded sign on the porch that reads, in part, “Home of Gen. U. S. Grant.”
What fascinated me about the property is that it is a private residence that was last purchased in 1987. I wonder if the people who purchased it were aware, at the time, of its historical significance or was that only revealed to them at a later date? I have lived in my 1906 home for nearly as long. After all the time that I have spent within its walls, I still think about those who did the same before me. Does the family in Grant’s house still listen for the sound of his boots on the wood floor or the tears that were surely shed when news of President Lincoln’s murder was delivered to their doorstep?
The amount of time that General Grant’s family spent in this home greatly pales in comparison to the current owner’s almost four decades. And yet, this will forever be known as Grant’s house and not the “Smith’s.” By all accounts, the people who presently reside here do not mind if you stop to take photographs, as long as you do it respectfully. This, along with the fact that the property is wonderfully maintained, tells me that even if they acquired the house not knowing who had once crossed its threshold, they have become its steward, graciously allowing all of us to view it now and imagine it then.
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