Update On First White House of Confederacy

We are having our usual busy summer at the First White House. We have had lots of visitors including two groups of International Students from Maxwell Air Force Base and people from many different States as well as right here in Montgomery.

We are making progress on the repairs upstairs. We have finished work in three upstairs bedrooms, the nursery, and the Relic Room. Next week we will move furniture back into Mrs. Davis's New York Bedroom and begin repairing the ceiling in the upstairs hall and do more painting there. And after that we will begin painting downstairs.

The outside of the House has been washed down and the outside driveway, sidewalk, brick wall and fence have all been pressure washed. The City has repainted the yellow curb markers. Everything just looks beautiful. The grass and plantings look great too. In short, the House looks loved and cared for.

It is so important for us to put our best foot forward at all times, wanting our tourists to have an enjoyable experience and for them to feel the ambience of this historical significance and importance of our Museum.

Please come and visit us if you have not been in a long time. We are eager to welcome you!

Fundraiser Tonight For First White House

The bi-annual fundraiser reception for the artifacts and relics in the First White House of the Confederacy will be tonight at the Alabama State Archives from 5:30 - 7:30. We are expecting 100 people and refreshments will be served.


Our speaker is S. Waite Rawls, III, Co-CEO of the American Civil War Museum which includes the Museum of the Confederacy and the Second White House. Waite is a graduate of the Virginia Military Institute and received his MBA and JD from the University of Virginia.


He joined the Franklin Civil War roundtable at age 9, an extraordinary feat as their age limit at the time was 18! I will tell you the story some time of how that came about...Waite is personable and will be speaking about the Second White House, which should be of great interest to our guests tonight.


We hope to raise much needed funds for the First White House as there is always much to do to keep our Museum House and its contents in mint condition. We hope if you are reading this, that you will plan a trip to Montgomery soon to visit the First White House. You will be warmly welcomed.


And of course, if you are in the vicinity, please join us tonight for what promises to be a delightful evening, weather wise and with great conviviality.

Regents of the White House Association of Alabama

There have been six Regents of the White House Association since  its inception in 1900, not counting Mrs. Jefferson Davis who was Queen Regent and remains so in perpetuity. Mrs. Davis's long-time family friend, Mrs. Jesse Drew Beale (Carrie Phelan Beale) was our first Regent. She served from 1900 to 1906, followed by Mrs. Isaac Ross from 1906 to 1919 and  Mrs.. Chappell Cory from 1919 to 1951. 


Mrs.. Fleming Rowell served as Regent from 1951 to 1980, and Mrs. John H. Napier, III was Regent from 1980 to 2009.  She now holds the title of Honorary Regent for Life. Anne Tidmore is the current Regent, having served from 2009 until the current time.


 All five of the past Regents have pictures hanging on the wall to the left as you enter the front hall. In addition Mrs. Cory's portrait hangs in the front hall on the right as you come in, and Mrs. Beale's hangs upstairs in the New York bedroom


Come and see us and enjoy the ambience of this very old historic house.

Upcoming Fundraiser For The First White House

The White House Association of Alabama is hosting a Reception on May 7, from 5:30 - 7:30 at the Alabama Department of Archives, with the proceeds to benefit the artifacts and collection in the First White House.


Our guest speaker will be S. Waite Rawls, III, Director of the American Civil War Museum in Richmond, Virginia. He will be speaking on the Second White House - Then and Now.


I know it will be a wonderful evening and we hope to have a large and enthusiastic crowd to enjoy the event and to hear Waite. There is no set admission price, but guests are encouraged to make a donation to the First White House of the Confederacy.


As a friend of mine once said: "If you come, bring; if you can't come, send"!!!

Arkansas Proposes Ending R.E. Lee Birthday

In the Montgomery Advertiser, Thursday, January 22, 2015, I read an article by Norman Merchant of the Associated Press saying that two Arkansas legislators had introduced a bill ending the holiday commemorating the birth of Robert E. Lee.

According to the article, Arkansas has recognized Lee's birthday since the 1940s and State lawmakers voted to recognize Martin Luther King's birthday in 1983. Two years later the State of Arkansas combined the celebration of King and Lee.

Norman Merchant reports that the Arkansas Governor, Asa Hutchinson had not decided whether to support the proposal, as of this past Wednesday

Alabama and Mississippi are the other two states to jointly celebrate King and Lee's birthdays on the third Monday in January. As of now, no bills have been filed in either of these two states to change the holiday.

In Virginia, Robert E. Lee's native State,  there is a separate holiday for Robert E. Lee. The Arkansas legislator does not envision doing that in Arkansas. As my Mother would say, I supposed he proposes to "let the cat die" on that one. Isn't it a shame that "political correctness" has become a phobia.

Robert E. Lee Birthday Party Big Success

Hello readers, I am happy to report that the annual Robert E. Lee birthday celebration at the First White House of the Confederacy, held Monday, January 19, 2015, was a great success! We had a fine crowd, including lots of children, and everyone had a good time.


 The Honorable Mark Anderson, our speaker, made an important talk, emphasizing Lee's  great challenge to his soldiers, with these words: "You cannot barter manhood for peace, nor the right of self-government for life or property...Let us then oppose constancy to adversity, fortitude to suffering, and courage to danger, with the firm assurance that He who gave freedom to our fathers will bless the efforts of their children to preserve it."


 The Judge ended his remarks by saying: "...as we remember and honor Robert E. Lee, the great Virginian, the great Southerner, the great American, the great man, let our response be that of Isaiah (Old Testament prophet) who said 'Here I am. Send me'."

Celebrating Robert E. Lee's 208th Birthday at Confederate First White House

Robert E. Lee's birthday is commemorated annually at the historic First White House of the Confederacy in Montgomery. Monday, January 19 is the date and folks from across the city and environs will gather at 11:00 that morning.




Our speaker will be the Honorable W. Mark Anderson, III., well-known speaker, historian, and friend of the First White House. His remarks are always thoughtful and insightful.


Robert E. Lee served in the U.S. Army for 32 years. When War came he chose to resign his commission and fight on the side of the Confederacy and his beloved State of Virginia.  He became the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia during the War, winning many battles against much larger Union armies.  By 1865, despite inflicting heavy causalities on the North, but unable to turn the tide, Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant on April 9, 1865.


After the war, Lee became President of Washington College, later named Washington and Lee University. He and his wife and all seven children are buried in the crypt of the Lee Chapel at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia.


It is always an honor and a privilege to remember General Lee as we do each year.