Woodrow Wilson House

Woodrow Wilson House Historic site & museum. Book your visit to the post-presidential home of Woodrow Wilson, 1856-1924. OFFICE HOURS 9-5. TOUR HOURS: All house tours are guided.

The President Woodrow Wilson House is a historic site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. It is a museum and event space located in the heart of Kalorama in Washington, DC. Book your group, private or specialty tour on our website. Edith and Woodrow Wilson moved into this house when they left the White House in 1921. It has been preserved for 100 years. Very little has changed, except

the conversation. Our tours, programs and events give a special glimpse into the private life of Woodrow Wilson while addressing his complex and consequential legacy. An honest appraisal of history helps us understand ourselves as a nation and as a people.

Today, we remember the passing of Thomas Woodrow Wilson at 11:15 AM on February 3rd, 1924. In life, he served both as pr...
02/03/2025

Today, we remember the passing of Thomas Woodrow Wilson at 11:15 AM on February 3rd, 1924. In life, he served both as president of Princeton University and as the president of the United States. As a leader, he was remembered for his commitment to diplomacy. He pursued a path of order that at times allowed him to stand as a pillar of peace and at others, made him reluctant to speak up in the face of injustice at pivotal moments of social change. Through World War I, the reshaping of Europe and the Middle East, changing socio-political dynamics at home, and his own serious health concerns, Wilson served his country. To some, his policies on peace abroad and domestic labor rights made him a hero, while to others, his failures on racial diversity and colonial ventures made him a villain. He has undeniably left an enormous legacy on American life and politics that survives him to this day.

The Woodrow Wilson House Team was pleased to attend the DC Preservation League Awards for Excellence in Historic Preserv...
01/31/2025

The Woodrow Wilson House Team was pleased to attend the DC Preservation League Awards for Excellence in Historic Preservation ceremony at the DAR Constitution Hall on Tuesday. The museum extends its congratulations to the award recipients and we applaud their dedication to preservation and stewardship in Washington, D.C.

We also want to acknowledge the work of Woodrow Wilson House Advisory Council Chair, Zachary Burt, who is the Community Outreach and Grants Manager for the DC Preservation League. Zachary's commitment to preservation at the Wilson House and in the Washington, D.C. area is commendable and we are proud that he is on the Wilson House team.

To learn more about DC Preservation League, please visit their website: https://dcpreservation.org/

🫵👍⛈️👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨❓Virtual Speaker Series: Wednesday, January 29th at 6pm EST on Zoom Register using the link in our bio.     ...
01/24/2025

🫵👍⛈️👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨❓

Virtual Speaker Series: Wednesday, January 29th at 6pm EST on Zoom

Register using the link in our bio.

On this 60th Inauguration Day, we reflect on Woodrow Wilson’s first presidential inauguration on March 4, 1913. It wasn’...
01/20/2025

On this 60th Inauguration Day, we reflect on Woodrow Wilson’s first presidential inauguration on March 4, 1913. It wasn’t until 1933 that Congress ratified the 20th Amendment, changing Inauguration Day from March 4 to January 20.

In his first inaugural address, Wilson envisioned the American people as a moral force, stating:

“Nowhere else in the world have noble men and women exhibited in more striking forms the beauty and the energy of sympathy and helpfulness and counsel in their efforts to rectify wrong, alleviate suffering, and set the weak in the way of strength and hope.”

Top photo: Chief Justice Edward D. White, administering the oath, Thomas R. Marshall as vice president and Woodrow Wilson as 28th president.

In 1921, President Wilson demonstrated a peaceful transition of power by riding with President-elect Warren G. Harding from the White House to the Capitol for his inauguration, March 4, 1921. This marked the first time a president arrived at an inauguration in a motor vehicle. Wilson decided that his poor mobility prevented from attending the ceremony itself.

01/17/2025

Dear Friends,

2024 marked an incredible year for the President Woodrow Wilson House. It was filled with achievements and milestones, anniversaries and inaugural events, and hours of inspiring work from staff, volunteers, and donors. I invite you to celebrate this banner year by watching our highlight video below or by clicking on the image above.

We could not have done all of this without you. Thank you from the whole team at the museum.

Best regards,

Elizabeth Karcher
Executive Director

Step inside the Woodrow Wilson House’s 1920s prohibition wine cellar. The 18th Amendment, which established the prohibit...
01/16/2025

Step inside the Woodrow Wilson House’s 1920s prohibition wine cellar. The 18th Amendment, which established the prohibition of alcohol in the United States, was ratified on January 16, 1919. In October 1919, Congress passed the Volstead Act, the popular name for the National Prohibition Act, despite President Wilson’s veto.

Would you like to visit the Wilson House prohibition wine cellar in person? Visit our website to book your Prohibition Tour.

Happy New Year from the team at the President Woodrow Wilson House, our Advisory Council, and the National Trust for His...
01/01/2025

Happy New Year from the team at the President Woodrow Wilson House, our Advisory Council, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation! We are very grateful for all of your support in 2024 and we look forward to an even brighter year in 2025.

The Woodrow Wilson House honors the life and legacy of the 39th president, Jimmy Carter. Woodrow Wilson and Jimmy Carter...
12/30/2024

The Woodrow Wilson House honors the life and legacy of the 39th president, Jimmy Carter. Woodrow Wilson and Jimmy Carter are two of the four United States presidents who have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. President Carter’s 100 years of dedication and service to the American people and global humanitarian rights will be cherished for generations to come.

President Thomas Woodrow Wilson was born 168 years ago today on December 28th, 1856. First president of Princeton Univer...
12/28/2024

President Thomas Woodrow Wilson was born 168 years ago today on December 28th, 1856. First president of Princeton University, Wilson went on to become one of America's most well-known presidents. During his tenure, Wilson sought to protect peace, liberty, and democracy at home and abroad, pursuing international peacekeeping with enough vigor to earn him a Nobel Peace Prize with his vision of a League of Nations. The overseer of famous domestic policies like the passing of the 19th Amendment that allowed women the right to vote, Wilson cemented his legacy. Wilson held the nation together during a strenuous war and sought to create a self-determined global society in its aftermath.

On December 28th, 1961, Wilson's second wife, First Lady Edith Wilson, passed away 37 years after Woodrow. Perhaps a final testament to their love, Edith died on Woodrow's birthday. This December 28th, we remember not only Woodrow Wilson, but his wife, Edith Bolling Galt Wilson. Together, their shared legacies helped shape a nation.

12/25/2024

Happy Holidays! Thank you to all of our donors, Advisory Council members, staff, guides, volunteers, and visitors for all of your generous support of the President Woodrow Wilson House this year. We are excited to welcome you back to the museum in the spring of 2025.

Every year, a U.S. servicemember lays a wreath at the gravesite of each deceased former U.S. president on his birthday. ...
12/23/2024

Every year, a U.S. servicemember lays a wreath at the gravesite of each deceased former U.S. president on his birthday. We invite you to join us at the tomb of President Woodrow Wilson at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, December 28th for his commemorative wreath-laying. Please arrive by 9:30am to allow time to park and find the entrance as the ceremony will begin promptly at 10:00am. Prayers will be said for the President, as well as First Lady Edith Bolling Galt Wilson who died on the President's birthday in 1961. She is also buried at the Cathedral near Wilson's tomb.

Did you know that Woodrow Wilson was the second of four US Presidents to win the Nobel Peace Prize? Wilson was awarded h...
12/10/2024

Did you know that Woodrow Wilson was the second of four US Presidents to win the Nobel Peace Prize? Wilson was awarded his Nobel Peace Prize in 1919 because of his efforts to pioneer a League of Nations and to preserve global peace in the aftermath of the devastating World War I. Through his vision for the League of Nations (which was realized in the the creation of the United Nations), Wilson trailblazed a path of peace and diplomacy in a world laden with confusion and aggression.

This Thanksgiving, the Woodrow Wilson House is incredibly thankful for all of our donors, Advisory Council members, staf...
11/28/2024

This Thanksgiving, the Woodrow Wilson House is incredibly thankful for all of our donors, Advisory Council members, staff, guides, volunteers, and visitors.

We wish you all a safe, healthy, and happy holiday! The Wilson House Team

This week, the President Woodrow Wilson House celebrates the one year anniversary of our American native plant garden. A...
11/21/2024

This week, the President Woodrow Wilson House celebrates the one year anniversary of our American native plant garden. After a consultation with Perfect Earth Project, the Woodrow Wilson House replanted the garden with plants native to the Mid-Atlantic area using environmentally friendly methods, all while maintaining its original formal design.

This unique approach to a garden’s redesign places the Woodrow Wilson House in an excellent position to address one of the 21st century’s most pressing challenges: climate change. “I feel very strongly that it's our civic responsibility to take care of our planet,” said Executive Director, Elizabeth Karcher. “Having a native plant garden at the Wilson House is part of our civic responsibility.”

After considering environmental factors, cost, and the look and feel of the house’s interior, the Wilson House and Perfect Earth Project settled on a palette of white flowering plants native to the region. These include hydrangeas, indigo, aster, wild ginger, and American beauty berry. Most of the plants were sourced from Colesville Nursery, which specializes in native plants.

Over the course of two bright fall days in November 2023, 25 volunteers came together to bring the design to life. This hardworking group, which included Master Gardeners, as well as neighbors and Wilson House supporters, spent all day planting over 200 native perennials, shrubs, and trees.

We look forward to reopening our Native Plant Garden Self-Guided Tours in April 2025.

Join the President Woodrow Wilson House for its final Speaker Series program of the season. We will welcome the National...
11/14/2024

Join the President Woodrow Wilson House for its final Speaker Series program of the season. We will welcome the National Park Service Supervisory Historian and Deputy Federal Preservation Officer, Dr. Turkiya Lowe. Her presentation will discuss how the National Park Service preserves, interprets, and educates the public about U.S. women’s history during the Wilsonian Era through national parks, preservation programs, and collaborative partnerships.

Doors open at 6:00pm
Tickets can be purchased using the link in our bio.

Tuesday, November 19th is also the final day to view our exhibition, "Moving Toward Transparency: Woodrow Wilson's Legacy at 100."

Dear Friends, We wanted to share some important news about the Woodrow Wilson House and the need to close it temporarily...
11/13/2024

Dear Friends,

We wanted to share some important news about the Woodrow Wilson House and the need to close it temporarily while we conduct essential maintenance and preservation work - all of which will lead to an improved visitor experience when it is completed.

So, starting December 1, 2024, through April 1, 2025, the Woodrow Wilson House will be closed to the public, and all events and tours suspended. The good news is that while our doors may be temporarily closed, our dedicated full-time staff will remain fully engaged and available by phone and email. They will be actively “bringing the museum to the people” through visits to schools, libraries, public events, book talks, and workshops, all while attending to critical maintenance, conducting a thorough deep cleaning, and restoring several of our cherished artifacts.

Looking ahead, we are actively booking events and programs for April and May 2025, including our signature fundraiser, Fashioning Peace, Fashioning Power, scheduled for Monday, May 5, 2025. Please mark your calendars!

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to each of you for your commitment and enthusiasm in 2024. Thanks to your support, the Wilson House has thrived. We look forward to another year of growth and impact with you by our side.

Looking forward to an even brighter 2025,

The Wilson House Team

Armistice Day was a day of remembrance, gratitude, and reflection on the sacrifices of military veterans. It highlighted...
11/11/2024

Armistice Day was a day of remembrance, gratitude, and reflection on the sacrifices of military veterans. It highlighted the importance of peace and the need to support and honor those who had served in the armed forces. On Armistice Day 1922, Woodrow Wilson stepped out on the front stoop to meet an assembled crowd.

In 1954, President Eisenhower signed legislation that changed the name of Armistice Day to Veterans Day. This change was made to honor and include all U.S. military veterans, recognizing their contributions to the nation’s security in all wars and conflicts.

The museum staff salutes and thanks all of our brace service members this Veterans Day.

The Woodrow Wilson House will offer free tours today at 11:00am, 12:00pm, and 1:00pm. Booking link is in our bio (subject to availability).

On Veterans Day we are offering free tours at 11am, 12pm, and 1pm today! Please check our website for availability befor...
11/10/2024

On Veterans Day we are offering free tours at 11am, 12pm, and 1pm today! Please check our website for availability before visiting as there might be only a few slots left. Booking link is in our bio (subject to availability).

The museum staff salutes and thanks all of our brave service members this Veterans Day.

Address

2340 S Street, NW
Washington D.C., DC
20008

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
Saturday 12pm - 3pm

Telephone

+12023874062

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