1

George Washington: Whiskey distiller

George Washington’s retirement after his second presidency (1797) was important in itself as it set a precedent for presidents only serving two terms —although this was only a tradition and not a legal limit until the ratification of the 22nd Amendment in 1951. Despite his enormous prestige, George Washington decided to retire from public life and returned to his Mount Vernon estate , focusing on agriculture and building a whiskey distillery that would become one of the biggest in the country. He was appointed General of the Army by President Adams in 1798, but he never actively served in that position.

2

John Adams: Farmer and writer

In 1801, John Adams retired to Massachusetts, where he would spend the rest of his life managing his estate and writing his autobiography . Reconciled with his former friend and long-time rival Thomas Jefferson, they exchanged letters and writings for more than a decade. After seeing the inauguration of his son, John Quincy Adams, as the 6th American president in 1825, Adams died on July 4, 1826. Famously, his last words were "Thomas Jefferson still survives", not knowing Jefferson had passed a few hours earlier.

3

Thomas Jefferson: Founder of the University of Virginia

After leaving the White House in 1809, Thomas Jefferson went back home to Monticello, Virginia, where he devoted his time to reading, writing, and science, while corresponding with many political figures of the time. In 1815, he sold his personal book collection to Congress to help replace the books burned by the British in 1814. A firm believer in education as a pillar of society, Jefferson envisioned a university where students could pursue studies not offered in other institutions. He chose the location, campaigned for the state charter, designed the buildings and the curriculum, and served as the first rector of the University of Virginia.

4

William H. Taft: Supreme Court Justice

Upon his retirement from office in 1913, Taft considered returning to the practice of law. However, he had appointed many federal judges —a few Supreme Court Justices included— which created a conflict of interest. Instead, he decided to accept a position as a lecturer at Yale University. In 1920, after Harding was elected president, Taft was offered a position as a Supreme Court Justice, and he accepted , making him the only person to be both President and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. After his appointment, Taft focused on organizing the legal system and making it more efficient, and campaigned for the construction of the Supreme Court building.

5

Grover Cleveland: Lawyer

After losing re-election in 1889, Cleveland took a position at a law firm in New York City and mostly stayed out of politics. A year before the 1892 election, however, he wrote a public letter against President Harrison’s economic policies that quickly made him a favored candidate and won him the Democratic nomination. After winning the election and serving his second term, Cleveland went back to practicing law. He is one of only two presidents to have served two non-consecutive terms.

6

Theodore Roosevelt: Explorer

After leaving office in 1909, Roosevelt led a safari expedition in Africa, where he hunted specimens for the Smithsonian Institution. After running for president in 1912 and losing to Woodrow Wilson, Roosevelt and his son Kermit embarked on a seven-month expedition across the jungles of Brazil to explore the Amazon Rive r. During the journey, Roosevelt contracted malaria and suffered from an infected leg wound, which nearly killed him. Back in America, he devoted his time to writing about politics and science, and actively campaigned for the war effort as the U.S. joined World War I.

7

Ulysses S. Grant: Writer

A hero of the Civil War and the Reconstruction era, Grant embarked on a two-year world tour after leaving office in 1877, where he was received by leaders such as Queen Victoria, Chancellor Otto Von Bismarck, and the Japanese Emperor Meiji. Back in America, he invested all of his savings into a Wall Street firm run by his son, but lost all of his money as a consequence of a Ponzi scheme. Penniless and diagnosed with terminal cancer, Grant started writing articles for magazines in order to raise money for his family , while also penning an autobiography, which he finished on his deathbed. The book was a major success, earning his family close to $450,000 and securing their future.

8

John Quincy Adams: Congressman

After retiring from office in 1829, John Quincy Adams returned to Congress, where he had previously served as senator, but this time as a member of the House of Representatives, being the only U.S. President to do this (Andrew Jackson is the only other former president to go back to Congress, but as a senator). Across 18 years and nine terms as a congressman, he became one of the leaders of the abolitionist cause, fighting to repeal a gag rule that prevented Congress from discussing slavery, and presenting several petitions for the abolition of slavery. Working as a congressman until the end, he died in the Capitol after suffering a stroke during a passionate debate against war.

9

Dwight D. Eisenhower: Cattle rancher

As many presidents did before him, Eisenhower retired to his farm after leaving office in 1961. However, he remained involved in politics, serving as an advisor to presidents such as Kennedy, Johnson, or Nixon . Despite having resigned his military commission upon becoming president, Eisenhower had his five-star general rank reinstated by President Kennedy, being the only president —except Washington— to re-enter the armed forces after the presidency.

10

George W. Bush: Oil painter

After leaving office in 2009, George W. Bush retired to his home in Texas. There, inspired by Winston Churchill’s essay "Painting as a Pastime", he took up oil painting , focusing on portraits of close friends, pets, and world leaders he had met while in office. In 2017, he released an art book focused on portraits of U.S. veterans and their stories.

1

The Wilmer McLean paradox

Do you believe in fate? If not, maybe this story will change your mind.

When the Civil War began, Wilmer McLean was an ordinary 47-year-old man living with his family in Manassas, Virginia. But during the First Battle of Bull Run on July 21, 1861, his house was taken over and used as Confederate headquarters. Hoping to escape the war, McLean moved his family 120 miles away to the quiet village of Appomattox Court House. It seemed like the perfect decision, until history caught up with him. Four years later, the war ended exactly where McLean thought he had found peace. On April 9, 1865, General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant, just in the parlor of McLean's new home. As McLean later joked, "The war began in my front yard and ended in my front parlor."

2

Lincoln's Confederate bill

On April 14, 1865, just five days after Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant, President Abraham Lincoln was shot by actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth during a performance of Our American Cousin at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C.

When authorities searched Lincoln's pockets that night, they found the everyday items you'd expect: spectacles, a pocketknife, a handkerchief embroidered with his initials, a watch fob, a sleeve button, and a leather wallet. But one discovery stunned them. Inside the wallet was a Confederate five-dollar bill, the only currency Lincoln was carrying. Historians believe he picked it up as a souvenir during his recent visit to Richmond, the former Confederate capital.

3

Women disguised themselves to fight

It's well known that women played a vital role in the US Civil War, serving as nurses, spies, and organizers. Clara Barton, a famous example, brought supplies to wounded soldiers on the battlefield and later founded the American Red Cross. But there's another interesting female role that many people have never heard of.

We’re talking about the thousands of women who disguised themselves as men so they could fight. One of the best-documented was Sarah Emma Edmonds, who enlisted in the Union Army under the name Franklin Thompson. Serving as a soldier, nurse, and spy, she fought in major campaigns, including the First Battle of Bull Run and the Peninsular Campaign. After contracting malaria in 1863, she left her unit rather than risk being exposed in a military hospital and was charged with desertion. Years later, her fellow soldiers testified on her behalf, and in 1884, Congress granted her an honorable discharge and a military pension.

4

Brothers on opposite sides

The Civil War didn't just divide the nation; it tore families apart. Few stories capture that tragedy better than this one.

The sons of prominent Kentucky Senator and passionate Unionist John J. Crittenden, brothers Thomas Leonidas Crittenden and George Bibb Crittenden, both became generals… but fought on opposite sides of the war. George served as a Confederate major general, commanding troops at the Battle of Mill Springs, while Thomas became a Union major general, fighting in major campaigns including Shiloh, Stones River, and Chickamauga. While they never directly faced each other on the battlefield, their choices caused immense emotional and social fractures within their family. Both survived the war, and today, they are buried in the same Frankfort State Cemetery, finally reunited in the soil of their home state.

5

Standardized clothing sizes

When was the last time you had a suit or dress made just for you? Today, we simply walk into a store and buy the size that fits, but before the Civil War, that wasn't how Americans bought clothes.

Before the 1860s, most clothing was custom-made by tailors or sewn at home. But that became a major problem when the war began, and the Union suddenly had to outfit more than a million soldiers. Measuring and tailoring every uniform by hand was impossible. Instead, military officials collected thousands of body measurements, identified common size patterns, and created one of the first standardized sizing systems: Small, Medium, and Large. After the war, clothing manufacturers adopted the same templates for civilian garments, helping give birth to America's modern ready-to-wear clothing industry.

6

Postal home delivery system

Today, having letters and packages delivered right to your front door is so routine that we rarely stop to think about it. But for many years of American history, that convenience didn't exist.

Before the Civil War, Americans had to pick up their mail at the local post office. When the war began, families desperate for news of sons, husbands, and fathers crowded into post offices, often waiting for hours. Seeing the heartbreaking scenes, Cleveland postal clerk Joseph Briggs began delivering letters directly to people's homes, sparing families long waits and needless anguish. His neighborhood deliveries were such a success that they inspired Postmaster General Montgomery Blair and Congress to create the nationwide Free City Delivery Service on July 1, 1863.

7

The US first official paper money

Today, most of our money exists in a digital form. However, when we picture money, we still think of dollar bills and coins. They've been part of our lives for so long that it's hard to imagine a time when the US government didn't print paper money at all. But that time did exist.

Before the Civil War , the federal government issued no standardized national paper currency. It minted gold, silver, and copper coins, while Americans relied on thousands of different banknotes printed by private, state-chartered banks, many of them unreliable and prone to failure. Everything changed in 1861 , when the Union needed money to finance the war. Congress authorized the first federal paper currency, known as Demand Notes, followed by Legal Tender Notes in 1862. Americans soon nicknamed them "greenbacks" because of their green ink, a name that has survived ever since.

8

A town changing hands 10 times

Today, US Route 50 follows much of the old Northwestern Turnpike, a historic road linking Winchester, Virginia, with Parkersburg on the Ohio River. But during the Civil War, living along that route was anything but convenient.

Because the turnpike provided access to the Shenandoah Valley, the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, and key mountain passes, the town of Romney (now in West Virginia) became a strategic prize for both the Union and the Confederacy. As armies pushed forward and fell back, each side repeatedly captured and abandoned the town. While most cities and regions remained firmly on the same side for the entire war, historians generally agree that Romney changed hands at least 10 times, making it one of the most frequently occupied towns of the Civil War.

9

The war with the most Medals of Honor

The Medal of Honor is the nation's highest military award for valor. During the Civil War, about 1,525 service members received it. That may not sound extraordinary… until you compare it with every major American war that followed.

The numbers are striking: 126 Medals of Honor were awarded in World War I, 464 in World War II, and 266 during the Vietnam War. A total of 856 combined, far fewer than in the Civil War alone. But there’s a reason for that. The Medal of Honor was created during the Civil War; at the time, it was the only US military decoration for valor. With no other awards recognizing battlefield heroism, it was presented under standards that were far broader than those adopted in later wars.

10

Can openers

It's hard to imagine a kitchen without a can opener. But surprisingly, canned food existed for decades before anyone invented it.

Although canned food had been around since the early 1800s, people often had to open cans with a hammer and chisel. That finally changed when American inventor Ezra J. Warner patented the first practical can opener in 1858. Even then, it remained a curiosity until the Civil War, when the huge demand for canned rations, including Gail Borden's condensed milk for Union troops, made it indispensable. The war turned the can opener from a strange invention into an everyday tool, paving the way for the handheld versions we still use today.

1

The White House

Though America’s most famous house, located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, is not technically on the National Mall, it has been historically considered part of it due to its proximity and importance. It is separated from the National Mall by the Ellipse public park, and has a direct view of one of the most important Mall landmarks, the Washington Monument.

2

How America’s front yard came to be

When Pierre Charles L'Enfant designed Washington, D.C., in 1791, he envisioned a majestic avenue going from the Capitol to an equestrian statue of George Washington (now the site of the Washington Monument). The chosen name referenced the Mall in London, a fashionable avenue near Buckingham Palace. During the following century, L’Enfants’ plans for the Mall were ignored, and the space was used for canals, railways, and gardens. In 1901, the U.S. Senate decided to expand the number of monuments in Washington, D.C., which led to the renewal of the National Mall and to the addition of most of its iconic landmarks.

3

American history in action

As a space open to all Americans and one that is close to the Capitol and the White House, the National Mall has been the scene of many historical moments, from presidential inaugurations to festivals and protests. Among the most important events to take place in the National Mall, we can remember the 1963 March on Washington, the late 1960s Vietnam War protests, the 1987 AIDS Memorial Quilt, and the 1939 Marian Anderson concert.

4

Washington Monument

Located where L’Enfant initially envisioned an equestrian statue of George Washington, this 555-foot marble and granite obelisk was designed in the 1830s , but was not completed until 1884 due to fund shortages and political disputes. In 2011, damages caused by a 5.8 magnitude earthquake forced the closing of the monument, which reopened in 2014.

5

Lincoln Memorial

Conceived shortly after Lincoln’s assassination in 1865, construction began only in 1914, and the memorial was dedicated in 1922. The Neoclassic structure is surrounded by 36 columns, representing the 36 states that formed the Union at the time of Lincoln’s death . The famous statue of Lincoln in the interior is 19 feet tall, and both the Gettysburg Address and Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address are inscribed on the north and south interior walls.

6

Jefferson Memorial

Authorized by Congress in 1934 and dedicated on April 13, 1943, the construction of this monument sparked outrage, as i t required clearing parts of the Tidal Basin and cutting down some of its cherry trees to make space for the memorial. In what is known as the 1938 Cherry Tree Rebellion, protestors chained themselves to the trees. In the end, a compromise was reached, and most of the trees were transplanted. The monument, an homage to Jefferson’s estate of Monticello and the rotunda of the University of Virginia, features excerpts of his most notable writings.

7

The Capitol

The first building to be constructed in the National Mall, the House of Congress is located in what was then known as Jenkins' Hill (now Capitol Hill) . George Washington laid the foundational stone in 1793, and the initial building was completed in 1800, but it was set on fire by the British during the War of 1812. It was reconstructed in 1826 and expanded during the 19th and 20th centuries.

8

War memorials

Several memorials across the National Mall honor the thousands of Americans who gave their lives while serving the country . The first war memorial was the District of Columbia War Memorial of 1931, dedicated to honor residents of Washington, D.C. killed in WWI. Among the most significant memorials, we can find the National World War II Memorial of 2004, the Korean War Veterans Memorial of 1995, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial of 1982, and the National World War I Memorial of 2014.

9

FDR Memorial

Despite President Roosevelt’s wish for an understated memorial near the National Archives, the project approved by Congress after his passing was much grander. Instead of a monolithic monument, the FDR Memorial consists of a park-like landscape , with areas representing the four terms he served and the conflicts he led the nation through. It is also the only presidential memorial to include a tribute to a First Lady, in the form of a bronze statue of Eleanor Roosevelt.

10

Museums

The National Mall is one of the places with the highest concentration of museums in the world , most of them managed by the Smithsonian Institution. Among its most famous museums are the National Museum of American History, the National Museum of Natural History, the National Gallery of Art, the National Air and Space Museum, and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.

11

MLK Memorial

In 1963, the National Mall was the stage for Martin Luther King Jr.’s most famous speech, "I have a dream" , during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. After his 1968 assassination, members of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity —to which King belonged— petitioned to build a memorial in his honor on the National Mall, and were allowed by President Clinton in 1996. The memorial features a split rock —inspired by the iconic line "Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope."— and a central figure depicting MLK Jr.

12

Parks and Tidal Basin

The National Mall's original plan included several landscaped areas, but they were not designed as part of it until 1901, when the area was cleaned to include open lawns and rows of trees lining the different sections . In 1882, part of the Potomac River was dredged to reclaim 628 acres of land, creating the Tidal Basin and adding space for many of the current monuments. In 1912, the city of Tokyo gifted Washington, D.C., more than 3,000 cherry trees as a sign of friendship, now an iconic part of the Tidal Basin landscape. In 1965, the parks in the National Mall were consolidated as a unit as the National Mall and Memorial Parks.