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walt whitman house

“O Camden! My Camden!”

Nov 16th, 2009
by lisar.
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While doing a little Whitman “googling” earlier today, I came across a 2005 article from the New York Times by Charles McGrath.  Aptly titled “O Camden! My Camden!”, McGrath reflects on the state of Camden (as well as the other Whitman locales).  Before embarking on a bit of a chronology of Whitman’s different “homes” and locations, McGrath provides his prediction of what a modern revision of “Song of Myself” could possibly include.  He suggests:

You black-topp’d highways! You white-strip’d lanes for passing, cruising and breaking down!

You teeming toll plazas! You capacious token baskets! You springy barriers that leap up for E-ZPass!

You welcoming rest stops! You lead-free pumps! You food courts featuring Roy Rogers, Carvel and Mickey D’s! You Sunglass Huts!

I salute you all! And I embrace my fellow travelers, each and every one, as I ride side by side with you in your Denali, and you with me in my Silverado pickup!

While these revisions don’t exactly strike me as particularly Whitman-esque, McGrath uses them to motivate a discussion of how some of today’s historical Whitman sites are acknowledged by tourists and visitors.  According to his research, the Whitman homestead in Huntington, NY remains a very popular site for visitors.  In addition to a visitor center, the house itself embodies the historical “feel” of authentic nineteenth-century life, complete with chamber pots and a lack of electrical outlets.  McGrath calls the Huntington site a “regular fixture on the school field-trip circuit.”

McGrath contrasts the popularity of the original Whitman home with that of his final abode here in Camden.  Although 328 Mickle Street attracted the likes of Oscar Wilde and Bram Stoker when Whitman resided there, today it boasts a rather lackluster visitor rate.  The Walt Whitman House has far fewer visitors than the home in Huntington, but, as McGrath points out, its “feel” is a great deal more literary.  Personally, I’m struck by the authenticity of seeing piles of paper on Whitman’s bedroom floor and the window by which he sat for that famous portrait by Thomas Eakins.  Despite its not quite being a “regular fixture” for field-trips (as McGrath classifies the Huntington house), it seems to embody much more of the Whitman spirit we’ve come to know and appreciate in Whitman’s work.

Portrait by Thomas Eakins

Portrait by Thomas Eakins

There are likely many factors contributing to the difference in popularity between Huntington and Camden.  After attending the Walt Whitman House Dedication Ceremony last week, I’m hoping that the new label of “literary landmark” might help attract this kind of recognition.  It seems that even though Whitman’s legacy is so well-known and reputable today, the little row house in Camden remains a bit of a “hidden jewel” so-to-speak.

“O Camden! My Camden!”

Nov 16th, 2009
by lisar.
Comments are off for this post

While doing a little Whitman “googling” earlier today, I came across a 2005 article from the New York Times by Charles McGrath.  Aptly titled “O Camden! My Camden!”, McGrath reflects on the state of Camden (as well as the other Whitman locales).  Before embarking on a bit of a chronology of Whitman’s different “homes” and locations, McGrath provides his prediction of what a modern revision of “Song of Myself” could possibly include.  He suggests:

You black-topp’d highways! You white-strip’d lanes for passing, cruising and breaking down!

You teeming toll plazas! You capacious token baskets! You springy barriers that leap up for E-ZPass!

You welcoming rest stops! You lead-free pumps! You food courts featuring Roy Rogers, Carvel and Mickey D’s! You Sunglass Huts!

I salute you all! And I embrace my fellow travelers, each and every one, as I ride side by side with you in your Denali, and you with me in my Silverado pickup!

While these revisions don’t exactly strike me as particularly Whitman-esque, McGrath uses them to motivate a discussion of how some of today’s historical Whitman sites are acknowledged by tourists and visitors.  According to his research, the Whitman homestead in Huntington, NY remains a very popular site for visitors.  In addition to a visitor center, the house itself embodies the historical “feel” of authentic nineteenth-century life, complete with chamber pots and a lack of electrical outlets.  McGrath calls the Huntington site a “regular fixture on the school field-trip circuit.”

McGrath contrasts the popularity of the original Whitman home with that of his final abode here in Camden.  Although 328 Mickle Street attracted the likes of Oscar Wilde and Bram Stoker when Whitman resided there, today it boasts a rather lackluster visitor rate.  The Walt Whitman House has far fewer visitors than the home in Huntington, but, as McGrath points out, its “feel” is a great deal more literary.  Personally, I’m struck by the authenticity of seeing piles of paper on Whitman’s bedroom floor and the window by which he sat for that famous portrait by Thomas Eakins.  Despite its not quite being a “regular fixture” for field-trips (as McGrath classifies the Huntington house), it seems to embody much more of the Whitman spirit we’ve come to know and appreciate in Whitman’s work.

Portrait by Thomas Eakins

Portrait by Thomas Eakins

There are likely many factors contributing to the difference in popularity between Huntington and Camden.  After attending the Walt Whitman House Dedication Ceremony last week, I’m hoping that the new label of “literary landmark” might help attract this kind of recognition.  It seems that even though Whitman’s legacy is so well-known and reputable today, the little row house in Camden remains a bit of a “hidden jewel” so-to-speak.

My Visit to the Walt Whitman House and Tomb

Nov 9th, 2009
by erinm.
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Today I visited Walt Whitman’s Tomb and house with my dad. We went to the tomb first and I was amazed how strudy the little mausoleum was! And because of the bricks in the ground and tree limbs (not very wheelchair friendly) I couldn’t get close to the tomb to peek in, but my dad told me that the names of Walt’s family members were still visible on their tombs after all these years, so I thought that was pretty cool! Unfortunately, I didn’t get a picture of the inside of the tomb because my dad couldn’t figure out how my cell phone camera worked. Even when I set it up and said press this button, he still press the wrong one haha. But I took pictures of what I could get to myself and will post them below.   I also really liked the tree beside the tomb with all the cravings. I didn’t go with you guys on Saturday, so I missed the tour. Does anyone know if the cravings on the tree are oyher authors, or fans of Whitman or something?? I couldn’t find a plaque or anything about the tree at the site. The tree reminded me of a tree we saw when I went to Ireland with Rutgers. We visited Lady Gregory’s house, who was a patron of Irish poets and a friend of Yeats, Joyce and George Bernard Shaw (and other poets and writr/artists) and on her property she had what she called an autograph tree where all the authors who had come to visit her throughout her life craved their intials or whatever they wanted as their autograph. It was pretty cool to see, so I figured maybe the tree by Walt’s tomb was a similar thing. If anyone knows, let me know. I’m just curious. I felt very peaceful visiting Whitman’s tomb. It felt like something we should do since we have been studying him all semester. And it seemed fitting that his tomb across from a little pond that’s in the cemetary. Reminds us of Timber Creek. Also, I don’t know if some of you left them when you visited on Saturday, but there were flowers by his grave marker that seemed pretty fresh. Some were colored daisies. And I thought how nice they looked there and how Walt would have liked them. I was definitely glad that I went to see his tomb. Welearned that it cost 4,000 dollars then to build that would probably be 50k today, i don’t know. It’s just interresting to think about. I also felt a little proud to have visited Whitman’s grave. I guess it’s because we’ve been studying him, but he very easily could have returned home to New York to be buried and instead he chose Camden.

As for the house, I couldn’t get in because of their being steps and me haing my wheelchair of course (plus my chair wouldn’t have even fit through the door! it was so narrow!), so I basically just saw the outside of the house and couldn’t get a good picture of it from the car, but I did see it and get a feel for it. I kept thinking how narrow the staircase must have been inside. Enjoy the pictures and let me know if I missed anything interesting on the tour!

Okay apparently I cant post my pictures to the blog because I took them with my cell phone and emailed them to myself. But when I saved them to my desktop to upload them it says there is an error posting them. So, if you want to see my pics, I’ll have my cell with me on thursday in class. If anyone knows why I couldn’t upload them let me know.

My Visit to the Walt Whitman House and Tomb

Nov 9th, 2009
by erinm.
Comments are off for this post

Today I visited Walt Whitman’s Tomb and house with my dad. We went to the tomb first and I was amazed how strudy the little mausoleum was! And because of the bricks in the ground and tree limbs (not very wheelchair friendly) I couldn’t get close to the tomb to peek in, but my dad told me that the names of Walt’s family members were still visible on their tombs after all these years, so I thought that was pretty cool! Unfortunately, I didn’t get a picture of the inside of the tomb because my dad couldn’t figure out how my cell phone camera worked. Even when I set it up and said press this button, he still press the wrong one haha. But I took pictures of what I could get to myself and will post them below.   I also really liked the tree beside the tomb with all the cravings. I didn’t go with you guys on Saturday, so I missed the tour. Does anyone know if the cravings on the tree are oyher authors, or fans of Whitman or something?? I couldn’t find a plaque or anything about the tree at the site. The tree reminded me of a tree we saw when I went to Ireland with Rutgers. We visited Lady Gregory’s house, who was a patron of Irish poets and a friend of Yeats, Joyce and George Bernard Shaw (and other poets and writr/artists) and on her property she had what she called an autograph tree where all the authors who had come to visit her throughout her life craved their intials or whatever they wanted as their autograph. It was pretty cool to see, so I figured maybe the tree by Walt’s tomb was a similar thing. If anyone knows, let me know. I’m just curious. I felt very peaceful visiting Whitman’s tomb. It felt like something we should do since we have been studying him all semester. And it seemed fitting that his tomb across from a little pond that’s in the cemetary. Reminds us of Timber Creek. Also, I don’t know if some of you left them when you visited on Saturday, but there were flowers by his grave marker that seemed pretty fresh. Some were colored daisies. And I thought how nice they looked there and how Walt would have liked them. I was definitely glad that I went to see his tomb. Welearned that it cost 4,000 dollars then to build that would probably be 50k today, i don’t know. It’s just interresting to think about. I also felt a little proud to have visited Whitman’s grave. I guess it’s because we’ve been studying him, but he very easily could have returned home to New York to be buried and instead he chose Camden.

As for the house, I couldn’t get in because of their being steps and me haing my wheelchair of course (plus my chair wouldn’t have even fit through the door! it was so narrow!), so I basically just saw the outside of the house and couldn’t get a good picture of it from the car, but I did see it and get a feel for it. I kept thinking how narrow the staircase must have been inside. Enjoy the pictures and let me know if I missed anything interesting on the tour!

Okay apparently I cant post my pictures to the blog because I took them with my cell phone and emailed them to myself. But when I saved them to my desktop to upload them it says there is an error posting them. So, if you want to see my pics, I’ll have my cell with me on thursday in class. If anyone knows why I couldn’t upload them let me know.

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