You Already Saw the Studio and Gardens, Now for the House

The Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site
Cornish, New Hampshire

I have been to many National parks, and you might have seen many postings of mine (check Legend for Travel and Tourism sites), and I must say, this is among my favorite sites. I like everything about this place, the trails, the fabulous gardens, the grounds around the buildings, all the sculptures in the gardens and the studio. You must see the studio of the well-known August Saint-Gaudens, sculptor of the famous Shaw Memorial. The original Shaw Memorial is in Boston and is due to get a facelift soon, and that is what prompted me to post this now. In addition, I am posting photos of the interior of the house, taken last fall.

Previous posts are:
Home, Gardens and Studio of Augustus Saint-Gaudens

Patriot and the Sculpturer, Both are Well-known. One Didn't Come Back

Photos of the Shaw Memorial, the original memorial is in Boston.

  

I recently received notification regarding the real memorial, which is in Boston, Massachusetts, and this prompted me to write this post.

Lovely side porch where we wait to tour the house, all 4 rooms seen on our own.

The front door was closed, and we came in on the side. As you can see, two rooms are roped off.

Dining Room

This is Not my photo. It appeared on the Facebook page for the Augustus St. Gaudens National Park Historic Site on November 26, 2019. Lucky them, they moved the rope.

Two Parlors

Pantry and Kitchen






From the window at the above left, I took this picture.



Upstairs was closed.

Studio (above)

Top border of the studio.

Some of Mr. Saint-Gauden's work, shown in the studio.

Studio front.

"Abraham Lincoln: The Man" often called "Standing Lincoln." This statue is 12 feet and was commissioned in 1884 for the Lincoln Park in Chicago.

These two photos of the front were taken in 2013, but not shared, simply because you can't see inside the house. The other day, the Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site stated, that this tree, the Thorneless Honeylocust is 99 feet tall and 201.60 inches wide. It's the largest in all of New Hampshire.

See this view in 2018, the first photo in this blog.

The Patriot and the Sculpturer, Both are Well-known. One Didn't Come Back

Massachusetts 54th Regiment Memorial

During the fall, I took a detour from my own research of ancestors to that of finding out about some important people I've learned about through my New England travels. Three individuals were highlighted in a museum or a National Historic site. The first of these was Augustus Saint-Gaudens, of whom I blogged about his fabulous summer home and studio in New Hampshire. Because of his sculpture of the Massachusetts 54th Regiment Memorial also known as the Shaw Memorial (see left and below) in Boston, a piece of work that I had seen, now suddenly interested me enough to learn about Robert Gould Shaw (the officer on the horse). The trail of Mr. Shaw took me from New Hampshire to several places in Massachusetts, a nice hands-on method of learning.

I soon learned the history of the 54th, through reading and getting out the movie, "Glory" to watch. Eventually, I discovered that "When Shaw was five the family moved to a large estate in West Roxbury, adjacent to Brook Farm." That in its self was enough to excite me, because two months prior I wrote about my 2nd great-grandfather surveying Brook Farm. I wonder if my ancestor ever saw young Robert Gould Shaw.

Apart from his young life, I was curious as to where Robert Gould Shaw was buried. A discovery thanks to Find A Grave led me to Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts brought a huge smile and I knew within a few days, I would find his tombstone. Photos are below. 

The names of his parents, wife, and other family members are engraved on the back of the stone.

On the grounds of Augustus Saint-Gaudens' property is a near replica of his memorial in Boston.

While preparing this post, I realized I didn't have a photo of the original, in Boston. I have been by it many times, but there were always too many buses and tourists around. So on a very cold December day, my husband and I went to the city just so I could take the above picture. It was quite overcast, and this is definitely not my best shot. I'll try for another one, maybe when the trees are green.

The above photo of the Massachusetts 54th Regiment Memorial may be seen out this window. Behind it is the Boston Common. This was taken from inside the State House. No, I couldn't believe my luck when I looked out the window.

Links to Robert Gould Shaw's life and the Massachusetts 54th Regiment are below.

Thanks to Pam Seavey Schaffner for posting on Facebook a video done by the American History channel called American Artifacts Preview: Shaw Memorial.
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http://www.masshist.org/online/54thregiment/essay.php?entry_id=528

http://www.nps.gov/boaf/historyculture/shaw.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Gould_Shaw_Memorial

http://www.massmoments.org/moment.cfm?mid=157