Travel – Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC

Posted on September 9, 2013 by barbara

Moving to the Midwest gave us the opportunity to visit so many wonderful new places … and we love to travel!! One of those places on our “must see list” was the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina. We decided to go in January 2008 with plans that grew to include 14 family members from 4 different states. Everybody was responsible for their own transportation and hotel reservations. It turned out to be a wonderful extended weekend not only visiting the Biltmore but we also got to spend some quality time with three generations of family members.

HISTORY OF THE BILTMORE ESTATE

In 1880, at a time known as the Gilded Age, George Vanderbilt and his mother made regular visits to Asheville, North Carolina. George loved the area and the climate so much that he wanted to build a summer home there, his “little mountain escape”. The idea was to create a working estate similar to the ones found in Europe. Construction of the main building began in 1889 and was finally completed in 1895. It is the largest privately owned home in the United States at 175,000 square feet with 250 rooms. Vanderbilt commissioned Richard Morris Hunt, a New York architect, to design the house in a Chateausque style. Vanderbilt also hired landscape architect Frederick Olmstead to design the gardens which are bordered by a natural forest.

Vanderbilt intended for the estate to be self-supporting and he set-up several different farms involving poultry, cattle, hogs and also a dairy to provide milk and cheese products for the Biltmore kitchens. In 1901, Vanderbilt established Biltmore Industries which made furniture inspired by those furnishings found on the estate and this provided local employment in the community.

At the time of Vanderbilt’s death in 1914, it is believed that his inheritance and personal wealth was significantly depleted due to the construction, maintenance and lavish entertaining expenses of the Biltmore Estate. Edith was forced to sell 85,000 of the original 125,000 acres to the federal government as stipulated in her husband’s will with the provision that the land remain unaltered and eventually this property became the Pisqah National Forest. Vanderbilt’s only child, Cornelia, opened the Biltmore House to the public in 1930 and family members continued to live there until 1956. In 1964, the Biltmore was designated a National Historic Landmark. Currently, the Biltmore Estate is still controlled by the Vanderbilt family and managed under the name of the Biltmore Company.

BRIEF TOUR OF THE BILTMORE ESTATE

Over one million visitors annually come to visit this major tourist attraction in Western North Carolina that includes the Biltmore House with 75 acres of formal gardens, several restaurants and gift shops, a winery and a 213 room hotel, the Inn on Biltmore Estate.

Upon entering the Biltmore House, visitors are immediately impressed by the elegant design of the Entrance Hall with the soaring limestone arches and limestone floors, the Victorian-style glass roofed Winter Garden room and the Grand Staircase. Other rooms on the first floor include: The Library which is filled with Vanderbilt’s massive book collection of more than 23,000 books; he was an avid reader and began acquiring books at the age of 11. The Banquet Hall which is the largest room in the house with a 70 foot high barrel vaulted ceiling, a massive oak dining table with 64 chairs and a unique triple fireplace. Additional rooms on this floor are the Salon with adjoining Music Room on the left and Breakfast room on the right. The Billiard Room also leads into an area known as the Bachelor’s Wing with a Smoking Room and Gun Room.

Ascending the Grand Staircase, rooms located on the second floor of the house are centered on a formal sitting area where guests would meet prior to meals or other activities hosted by the Vanderbilts at the Biltmore Estate. This is an area for guests to socialize, play games, read or write letters. Located nearby is the Vanderbilt’s private suite of rooms that included: Mr. Vanderbilt’s bedroom which is filled with carved walnut furnishings, 17th century engravings and 19th century French bronze sculptures. Mrs. Vanderbilt’s oval-shaped bedroom is a very feminine room designed with silk wall coverings, cut-velvet drapes and bedding. Additional elegantly decorated and spacious guests’ rooms are also located on the second and third floors with equally elegant names such as: the Sheraton Room, the Chippendale Room, Van Dyck Room and the Madonna Room.

The Downstairs area is mainly the work space of the house with several kitchens, pantries, laundry rooms and servants’ bedrooms. Also located on this floor are several recreational rooms for the Vanderbilts’ guests, such as the swimming pool, gymnasium, bowling and several dressing rooms. In a former storage area that became known as the Halloween Room, this room was later used by the Vanderbilt’s daughter, Cornelia and her husband, for hosting lively parties where guests were known to paint imaginative murals on the walls.

TRAVEL TIPS AND SUGGESTIONS

Arrive early to the Biltmore Estate. We stayed in Asheville, NC at the Marriott Courtyard and arrived the day before to rest and relax from the 6 hour drive from our home. The next day we were able to be there when the box office opened to start the house tour before it became too crowded.
Allow plenty of time at the Biltmore Estate. I recommended at least two days touring not only the Biltmore house and gardens, but also wine tasting at the winery and the restaurants and shops at the Biltmore Village. There are other things to do in Asheville, such as: biking, hiking, horseback riding, antique shopping, etc. We also made a quick visit to the Thomas Wolfe house and museum located in Asheville which was very interesting.
Generally a visit during Sunday to Thursday is less crowded. Also, consider getting tickets in advance and make reservations online or by phone. Guests who arrive without reservations are not guaranteed tickets during busy weekends or the holiday season.
Dress in comfortable clothes and shoes, dress in layers because the mountain weather can be very unpredictable. When we visited in late January the weather was comfortable in Asheville, but at the top of the mountain at the Biltmore Estate the wind was very cold and we were glad to have our warm jackets!
Parking is free and shuttle buses take you from the parking lot to the Biltmore House. In order to see the other areas of the Estate, such as the beautiful gardens, the Deerpark restaurant, the winery or the Biltmore Village for shopping, you will need your car to drive to those separate areas.
Even though a tour of the Biltmore House is self-guided, we highly recommend the audio tour which provides interesting historical and architectural information that enhanced our visit.
The night before our visit to the Biltmore House we a delicious buffet and attentive service at the Deerpark restaurant. “The Restaurant is housed in a historic barn original to the estate. Enjoy prepared-to-order specialties in addition to classic favorites like hand-carved prime rib. The delightful courtyard restaurant specializes in Southern family-style dishes.” We highly recommend making a reservation.

Travel – United States Mint

Posted on September 2, 2013 by barbara

Today in history the U.S. Treasury Department was established in 1789. This post will discuss the history of the Treasury Department and the functions of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing located in Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Mint which has several locations across the United States.

A Brief History of the U.S. Treasury Department

Established by an act of Congress in 1789, the Department of the Treasury is an executive department of the U.S. federal government. The first Secretary of the Treasury was Alexander Hamilton. He was appointed by President George Washington and sworn in on September 11, 1789. During his five years as the Treasury Secretary, he established the nation’s first financial system.

Currently, the U.S. Treasury Department prints all paper currency and postage stamps at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing located in Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Mints create all coins in circulation throughout the United States. The Treasury Department manages all the United States federal finances, supervises the national banks and lending institutions, advises on domestic and international financial, economic and trade policies, and enforces and collects all federal taxes while investigating and prosecuting tax evaders through the Internal Revenue Service.

The Bureau of Engraving and Printing

The Bureau of Engraving and Printing is a government agency of the U.S. Treasury Department which designs and produces a variety of secured products for the United States Government, mainly the Federal Reserve Notes (paper currency).

The Bureau began in 1861 during the Civil War and was authorized by Congress to issue paper currency instead of coins due to the lack of funds needed to support the war. The paper currency was basically a government IOU and were called Demand Notes which were payable “on demand” in coin at the Treasury facilities. At the time, a private company produced the Demand Notes in sheets of four, then clerks would sign the individual notes by hand and workers would trim and cut the sheets into individual Demand Notes.

Initially the currency processing operations of the Treasury Department were not formally organized until the formation of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing which was officially recognized by congressional legislation in 1874.

By 1918 the plate capacity used in the printing presses increased from four to eight notes per sheet to meet the production requirements needed during World War I. Then in 1929, there was the first major design change in paper currency. The bill design was standardized and the size of each bill was reduced and the Bureau converted from the eight to twelve notes per sheet. This redesign helped to reduce paper costs and counterfeit deterrents were implemented for the general public to recognize the bills features.

In 1952, there were further improvements with new faster-drying inks that enable printed back sheets to be kept damp until the front sheets were printed allowing less distortion since the sheets needed to be dampened before each printing. The size of each sheet was also increased from twelve to eighteen notes per sheet. Then in 1957, the Bureau began printing currency with the dry intaglio method which uses special paper and inks and further increased from eighteen to thirty-two notes per sheets. Since 1968, all currency has been printed using this method of the dry intaglio and the need to wet each paper prior to printing was permanently eliminated.

With the dry intaglio process, the note engravings were transferred to steel plates. With this new method the ink is applied directly to the plates and then wiped clean leaving the ink only in the engraved lines. The plate is pressed against the sheet of paper allowing the ink to be applied. Both faces are printed and overprinted with the Treasury Seals and serial numbers.

In addition to paper currency, the Bureau has designed and printed a variety of secured products for the U.S. federal government over the years. These items have included military commissions and award certificates, invitations for White House events, passports for the State Department, money orders for the Post Office Department and many different types of identification cards, forms and special security documents for all types of government agencies.

In 1894, the Bureau took over the production of postage stamps for the United States government and by the end of that first year the stamp production was more than 2.1 billion stamps. Then in 2005, the United States Postal Service switched to private postage stamp printers and thus ended 111 years of production by the Bureau.

The Bureau of Engraving and Printing has two locations. The main location in Washington, D.C. offers a free 30-minute guided tour which features information regarding the various phases of currency production. Tours are available Monday through Friday. There is an additional Bureau location in Fort Worth, Texas with visitor tours available during business hours. The Bureau locations are closed for all federal holidays and the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day.

The United States Mint

The United States Mint was created by Congress with the Coinage Act of 1792 and was originally a part of the Department of State. In 1799, the Mint was made an independent agency and later in 1873 it became part of the Department of the Treasury.

The function of the U.S. Mint is to design and produce coins, commemorative medals, and special coins, in addition to safeguarding, controlling and disbursing gold and silver bullion for authorized federal government purposes.

Currently there are four coin producing locations, the Mint’s headquarters in Philadelphia, PA. and additional facilities in Denver, San Francisco and West Point, New York and a gold bullion depository at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Several additional facilities across the United States have opened and closed since the creation of the U.S. Mint.

The Philadelphia Mint –

The Philadelphia Mint is the largest mint and the current facility opened in 1969, there have also been three previous buildings located in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia location is also the site of the master die production for the U.S. coinage and the design and engraving departments of the U.S. Mint are also located there.

The Denver Mint –

The Denver location began in 1863 as the local assay office five years after the discovery of gold in the area and by the early 1900s the office was bringing in over $5 million in annual gold and silver deposits. In 1906 the Mint officially opened the new Denver Mint and became coin production.

The San Francisco Mint –

The San Francisco location opened in 1854 during the California Gold Rush but moved to a new location in 1874. This building was one of the few that survived the 1906 earthquake and closed in 1937 when the current facility was built. Currently the facility is producing only proof coinage and not general circulation coins.

West Point, New York –

The West Point facility is the newest mint location as of 1988. Originally the West Point Bullion Depository opened in 1937 and cents (pennies) were produced there from 1973 to 1986. Currently the West Point facility is still used for storage of a portion of the United States gold bullion reserve and produces gold, silver and platinum American Eagle coins.

Fort Knox –

Fort Knox does not produce coins but is a storage facility for the majority of the United States gold and silver bullion reserves.

In general all coins produced at U.S. Mint facilities are given mintmarks.

Here is the current mintmark information for each coin:

Cent: Unlike all other coins, which had their mintmarks on the reverse until 1964, the Lincoln cent or penny has always had the mintmark on the obverse side below the date to the right of Lincoln’s bust since its 1909 introduction.
Nickel: The mintmark was located near the rim of the obverse side to the right of Thomas Jefferson’s bust from 1968 to 2005. With the 2006 redesigned of the obverse of the nickel, the mintmark is now located below the date on the lower right. Many earlier nickels from 1938 to 1964 are still in circulation, and their mintmarks can be found on the reverse side to the right of Monticello, with the exception of the 1942-1945 war nickels.
Dime: The mintmark is above the date on the obverse side to the right of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s bust.
Quarter: The mintmark is to the right of George Washington’s bust.
Half dollar: The mintmark is below the center of John F. Kennedy’s bust, above the date.
Presidential dollar: first issued in 2007: The mintmark and date are found on the rim of the coin.

Tour information regarding the Department of Treasury facilities

The Bureau of Engraving and Printing –

Free tours are offered at both facilities, Washington, D.C. and Fort Worth, TX. In general, the tours feature the various steps involved in the production of our national currency. The process starts with large blank sheets of special paper and ends with the finished bills. For more information regarding hours and dates of each facility, please see the website, www.moneyfactory.gov/tours

The U.S. Mints –

Visiting one of the United States Mints is an exciting experience for all ages. Free tours cover the history of the Mint and visitors will be able to see the process that takes from the beginning of designing the coins, creating sculptured dies to the actual making of the coins. For more information regarding hours and dates of each facility, please see the website, www.usmint.gov/mint_tours

Travel tips and suggestions

Check ahead at each facility for safety and security restrictions. Some may require for adults to provide government-issued photo identification for security purposes.
If the Department of Homeland Security level is elevated to CODE ORANGE, the United States Mint at Philadelphia will be CLOSED to the public unless otherwise noted.
The United States Mint reserves the right to deny access to anyone at any time; in addition, members of the general public touring the facility may be subject to search by the United States Mint Police.
Restrictions regarding cameras and cellphones, purses and backpacks may be prohibited.
Photography inside the Department of Treasury buildings is prohibited.
TRAVEL NOTE: Advanced planning is a good idea, especially when planning a short visit to the specific cities, and when possible it is a good idea to make reservations if available.

We have been fortunate to have visited the Bureau of Engraving and Printing when we were in Washington, D.C. in 2002. We also have visited two of the U.S. Mints on our road trips across the United States, the ones in Philadelphia, PA and the Denver, CO. Taking the tours with the family is always exciting and interesting!!

Travel – Hawaii (the 50th State)

Posted on August 21, 2013 by barbara

In celebration of this date in history when Hawaii officially became the 50th State, I would like to share the history of the islands and offer some travel suggestions for each of the main islands that have become known as the Hawaiian Islands.

Hawaii became a state on August 21, 1959 and is the 50th state of the United Sates. The state is unusual because unlike the “mainland” United States, the state of Hawaii is actually a group of six main volcanic islands that are located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The islands are Hawaii (also known as the Big Island), Maui, Oahu, Kauai, Molokai and Lanai. Several smaller islands are also included within the state of Hawaii and are not as well known as the major islands in the chain and generally are not included as tourist destinations.

Anthropologists have found archaeological evidence that dates the earliest human inhabitants on the islands of Hawaii were originally Polynesians from the Marquesas Islands and they arrived on the islands as early as 300-500 AD, there is an ongoing debate regarding a more specific date of the first arrival. The Polynesians arrived on the shores of Hawaii in double hulled canoes which travel over 3,500 miles across the Pacific Ocean from their original home. Living in this new land, they lived in harmony with nature and were able to provide seafood to eat while still being careful to conserve the fish in the reefs or streams and to never abuse the land which provided their crops. These new Hawaiians eventually learned to govern themselves under a set of rules called the Kapu system, and the first chief, Pa’ao, introduced the building of heiaus (Hawaiian temples) and the practice of human sacrifices.

In 1778, Captain James Cook, a British explorer, sailed into Waimea Bay on Kauai becoming the first European to visit the Hawaiian Islands. Cook returned to the islands again in 1779, this time sailing into Kealakekua Bay on the “Big Island” of Hawaii. After eight weeks of exploration of the islands, Cook prepared to leave but the foremast of his ship broke and he returned to Kealakekua Bay for repairs. At this point, tensions suddenly grew between the Hawaiians and Cook’s crew and eventually a group of Hawaiian took one of Cook’s smaller boats. In retaliation Cook’s crew attempted to take Kalaniopuu, the Hawaiian chief, as a hostage in hopes to reclaim their boat in exchange. To prevent their King from being abducted, the Hawaiians attacked Cook and his men as they tried to launch their boat in an attempt to flee and in the confrontation Cook was killed.

At this point in the history of Hawaii, each island still had several chiefs and there was no single ruler that controlled all the islands. Then, a young chief named Kamehameha set out to conquer the other chiefs. By 1791, he defeated the chief on the Big Island and by 1795 he had conquered and gained control of the islands of Maui, Molokai, Lanai and Oahu. In 1810 the chief that ruled Kauai finally pledged his loyalty to Kamehameha who finally came to rule as the first King of Hawaii. Kamehameha ruled Hawaii with complete control and tried to prepare and protect the Hawaiian people for the Europeans that were starting to come to the islands in increasing numbers. Unfortunately the King could not protect them from disease and the Hawaiian population decreased by 80% from influenza, typhoid fever and measles during this period.

In 1820 the first Christian missionaries arrived and changed the islands forever. With the end of the Kapu system and their conversion to Christianity, the ancient Hawaiian temples were destroyed and replace with Christian churches. The missionaries also brought reading and writing to Hawaii, which was important because prior to this time there was no written language of the Hawaiian people. In 1840 the Hawaiian Parliament and the Supreme Court were formed and a constitution was written. By 1843, land was available for purchase and for the first time foreigners could own land on Hawaiian Islands.

By this time in the history of Hawaii, there had been a succession of Kings who lived in their own houses during their reigns until finally in 1882 Iolani Palace was built on Oahu and it became the official residence of the Hawaiian monarchy. King Kalakaua was the first monarch to live in the palace. During the past decades, Hawaii had experienced a great agricultural boom which brought many immigrants from Japan, China and the Philippines to work in the sugarcane and pineapple fields which were under the control of American entrepreneurs; also the U.S. military became a presence in the region during this same period. Unfortunately, this foreign influence greatly dominated the islands and the King sadly became aware that the Hawaiian native culture was starting to be lost and he set a course to preserve the Hawaiian traditions and customs. When he died in 1891 his sister became Queen Lilliuokalani. During her brief reign she attempted to institute a new Hawaiian constitution that would strengthen the Hawaiian monarchy and reduce the oppression of native Hawaiian people, the conflict between royalty and the native Hawaiian and the American businessman only continued to grow. Finally, in order to protect their businesses, the American entrepreneurs seized control of the islands with the aid of the U.S. military. In 1893 Queen Liliuokalani was overthrown, imprisoned and forced to sign a document relinquishing her power. She underwent a public trail and was found guilty, fined and sentenced to 5 years of hard labor. This sentence was later changed to house arrest in the Iolani Palace where she was forced to live in only one of the rooms, she served an additional year under house arrest but the remaining condition was that she was forbidden from ever leaving the island of Oahu.

At this period in the history of Hawaii, the Republic of Hawaii was formed and eventually in 1898 the U.S. government claimed the Hawaiian Islands as a U.S. territory. Then sixty years later in 1958 the voters of Hawaii approved statehood and on August 21, 1959 Hawaii officially became the 50th state of the United States.

Travel recommendations for Hawaii

Hawaii’s diverse natural scenery of sandy beaches and clear ocean waters, tropical plants and beautiful flowers, active volcanoes and warm climate that is perfect for outdoor sports such as surfing and scuba diving or snorkeling, all these things make Hawaii a wonderful vacation destination. We have been fortunate to have visited Oahu and the “Big Island” of Hawaii in October 2008, my husband had visited several of the islands before but this was the first trip for both my daughter and I to Hawaii.

Listed are the different islands and suggested sites to visit – (asterisk * designates a site that we visited and personally recommend)

Hawaii (the Big Island)

This island is the largest of the six islands with a total area of 4,028 miles. That is the current estimated land mass because with three active volcanoes on the island it is continuing to grow in size. The highest point on the island is the dormant volcano Mauna Kea at 13,796 feet. The largest cities on the island are Hilo and Kona.