Hildene Estate in Manchester Vermont
Our drive through Vermont brings us to the pretty town of Manchester, which is everything you would imagine a New England town to be: with a whitewashed church on the village green, well-kept mansions with lovingly tended front yards where gorgeous perennials and flower arrangements attract attention, and the typical nice New England decorations that embellish front doors, porches or garden gates. Here we would like to spend a whole day looking at the houses and gardens. We are, however, awaited at a mansion a little out of town: at Hildene Estate in Manchester Vermont where the descendants of the American President Abraham Lincoln once lived. Lincoln himself was never here. And whether he, who was born in a simple log cabin on a farm in Kentucky, would have understood that his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren lived in such magnificent surroundings, remains to be seen.
In any case, we are impressed by Hildene in Manchester Vermont with his mansion, which sits enthroned on a mountain ledge above the valley and offers wide views of the valley and the Green Mountains on the other side of the valley. It was the residence of Robert Todd Lincoln, the eldest son of Abraham Lincoln, who was the only one of Lincoln's children to survive into adulthood. He had come here at the age of 20 while visiting with his mother and younger brother.
Forty years later, as President of the Pullman Company, he bought the property in Manchester and built the present mansion on it in 1905. Two years later, the formal garden was created with its lush peonies, which attract numerous visitors from around the world each June when it is in bloom attract. Jesse Lincoln had this garden laid out as a birthday present for her mother. We are lucky to be here at just the right time of year to see the bloom in this garden.
Hildene in Manchester Vermont - great gardens
The home itself contains many furniture and memorabilia by Robert Todd Lincoln and his parents. The house was inhabited until 1975 by descendants of Abraham Lincoln. Mary Lincoln Beckwith was the granddaughter of Robert Todd Lincoln and inherited the house in the year 1938. She lived in it until her death. Her brother Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith, the last direct descendant of Abraham Lincoln, died 1985. This is the house until the second half of the 20. Century in the possession of the Lincoln family. Today it belongs to the association Friends of Hildene, who bought it 1978 and since then look after.
Do you like to travel by motorhome?
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- Check our packing list for campers to see whether you have packed everything for your motorhome tour.
- Practical Motorhome equipment here.
- There is a nice RV park here: 48 Camping on the Battenkill #8565, Arlington, VT 05250, United States
- Do you want to know where you can stay with a motorhome in New England and New York and are you looking for parking spaces and campsites?
What we like best is the view of the surrounding area from the park across the valley. Almost as if from an eagle's nest, we look down over the forest slopes and to the hills of the Green Mountains on the other side of the valley. I can understand what drew Robert Todd Lincoln here and what led him to build his family's ancestral home here. I think his father, President Abraham Lincoln, would have liked this too. Here you are far away from any big city and live in an area in the middle of the country. Maybe that was what impressed his son so much here? Who knows. In any case, he spent the rest of his life in Hildene.
This has to be in the suitcase for a trip to New England
- Wear comfortable walking shoes for wide feet, in which you can walk well even on impassable paths.
- A large backpack is definitely practical for everything you need on the go.
- Along the Walking there are often benches for one picnic on the roadside.
- Hiking destinations in the vicinity of the Hildene Estate in Manchester Vermont offer beautiful photo opportunities. Therefore, you should camera .
- Take something to drink with you. You will be out and about in the sun a lot on hikes in the Green Mountains. One drinking bottle * does good service here.
If you purchase via a link marked *, we receive a commission, which we use to run this blog.
1005 Hildene Rd
Manchester
Vermont 05254
Tel. 800 578-1788 802 362-1788
Travel Arrangements:
Parking at the airport
Here you can reserve your parking space at the airport.
Arrival to Hildene in Manchester Vermont
Compare and book flights here*. airports Boston (180 miles (approx. 290 km), 3,5 hours), New York (200 miles (approx. 322 km), 4 hours), Montreal (200 miles (approx. 322 km), 4 hours). You can rent a rental car or a motorhome there. From Bennington, Vermont the drive takes approximately half an hour (20 miles).
ATTENTION: Google Maps and MapQuest often send you to the Hildene Exit Road, which is not marked. The correct exit is a mile north of it and is well marked.
Car Rentals:
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Hotels in Hildene in Manchester Vermont:
Hotels and Inns * You can also book through our partner booking.com at this link.
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Source Hildene in Manchester Vermont: On-site research at the invitation of Discover New England. However, our opinions remain our own.
Text Hildene in Manchester Vermont: © Copyright Monika Fuchs and TravelWorldOnline
Photos Hildene in Manchester Vermont: © Copyright Monika Fuchs and TravelWorldOnline
Video Hildene in Manchester Vermont: © Copyright Petar Fuchs and TravelWorldOnline
