Thoughts on Our First Ladies

We take another break from travel stories to recognize Women’s History Month.

Long-time followers of this space will recall that my first photo pursuit was the Dead Presidents Quest. Like the vice presidents who are largely ignored during their service and in history, the wives of our presidents have often received little appreciation when many of them deserved accolades.

   

National Museum of American History (29 March 2023)

Among the museum gems just down the road in D.C. is the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. One of the most popular exhibits there is about the wives of the American presidents. By far, the main attraction of the exhibit is the collection of dresses the women wore at their husbands’ inaugural balls. On the wall opposite the gowns are place settings of the china patterns used while each family occupied the White House.

    

First Ladies’ Inauguration Gowns

National Museum of American History (29 March 2023)

First Ladies were not unimportant. I believe they were much more than escorts, hostesses and mothers to the children. Many were women of substance who did far more than they were given credit for. We tend to forget that the First Ladies were the first people the presidents spoke to in the morning and the last they were with at night. Especially after his life was popularized by the David McCullough book and TV miniseries, we knew that Abigail Adams was a critical influence and moderating presence on her husband John’s prickly nature.

Many presidential graves give equal space to their wives. The Adams’s, Grant and Hoover plots are prime examples. However, there are a few that give what I consider short shrift to their spouses. There are grave sites that seem to say, “Oh by the way, in addition to the Great Man, those other, smaller markers are for the little woman.”

To be fair, maybe it’s a second wife issue. Lifelong partners are one thing, but when the president is widowed and remarries after he has served, I should cut them some slack. Take Number 23, Benjamin Harrison. His poor wife, Caroline, died two weeks before the re-election that her husband lost. A well-educated woman, the artist and music teacher preferred to work with charities rather than serve as the White House hostess. She has a small headstone to one side of her husband while Wife # 2 has an equal-sized marker on the other side of him. At least the larger monument devotes equal space for their names, calling Caroline ‘beloved’ and Mary ‘devoted.’
   

Graves of Benjamin, Caroline and Mary Harrison,

Crown Hill Cemetery, Indianapolis, Indiana (21 October 2006)

It’s not just about equal billing in the internment space. I believe more should be told about some of the women who contributed materially to the success of their mates. So, I intend to use the considerable world-wide exposure of the Images and More platform to do just that.
   

Grave of Abigail Powers Fillmore,

Forest Lawn Cemetery, Buffalo, New York (21 May 2008)

The modest stone marker of the First Lady occupies a corner

within the fenced space that features a tall obelisk above the

grave of the thirteenth president and his second wife.

As a teenager, Millard Fillmore was a dirt-poor indentured apprentice with hardly any education. Abigail Powers, two years older, was his first teacher. She may have been the first presidential wife with a paying job, and she established the first White House library. Sadly, she caught pneumonia after attending the inauguration of Fillmore’s successor and died before returning to Buffalo.

Next Women’s History Month, I will share more stories about our presidents’ wives.
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PS -
This platform was established with my Dead Presidents Quest. Many of the stories of our Chief Executives were enlivened by the critical contributions of the First Ladies. A terrific source of information was the White House web site, where each First Lady had a page. I say ‘had’ because, in its infinite wisdom, Dear Leader’s team of MAGA sycophants has decided to eliminate all references to prior First Ladies. All you get is Melania. Type into the search bar “Historic First Ladies” or “First Ladies before Melania” and all you get is Melania.

Effing Despicable.

I understand that next month is Math Awareness Month…don’t expect any related post from me.

Adriatic Cruise Chronicles – Zagreb, Croatia

Back to the Cruise Chronicles. No sign of a boat yet. We took the train from Ljubljana and two hours later, we’re in another country to link up with the OAT (Overseas Adventure Travel) tour group. Our walkabouts in the central city revealed much of the country’s difficult recent history.

The region expects earthquakes every 120 years or so. There was a serious one in 1880. Then there were the two world wars and the civil war in the 1990’s. The next trembler happened just as Covid hit in 2020. On top of that, when Croatia joined the European Union in 2013, many talented locals moved to countries with better wages, etc. This explains why so many buildings have been under scaffolding for years.

Zagreb Cathedral (27 October 2025)

Zagreb Cathedral. Its soaring towers under scaffolding, the cathedral has been under repair since 2020 and is not yet open to the public. This current, neo-Gothic structure largely replaced the former, centuries-old cathedral that was severely damaged by the 1880 quake.

Open Air Market, Zagreb, Croatia (28 October 2025)

In big cities and small towns, much of the marketing is done in plazas where vendors sell everything from flowers to produce to baby clothes and toilet brushes.

Bust of Giulio Clovio,

Zrinjevac Park, Zagreb, Croatia (27 October 2025)

A few blocks from our hotel we discovered the charming Zrinjevac Park, a long narrow row of city blocks with big trees, fountains and busts of eminent Croatians. I like the way this shot came out so I had to learn who this guy was. Giulio Clovic was born in Croatia but trained and thrived in Italy as an illuminator, a designer and one who illustrates manuscripts…thus illuminating the writing. Always good to learn something new.

Ban and His Budgie

Zagreb, Croatia (28 October 2025)

“Now, Budgie, please fly home. I have a battle to fight

here and I can’t if you’re perched on my saber hand.”

Ban Jelacic Square is the heart of central Zagreb. There you will find a statue of the 19th-century leader. ‘Ban’ is the title of local rulers, and he is remembered for his military victories during the revolutions in 1848 and for eliminating serfdom in the country. Pigeons do have a way of sometimes making heroic statues look silly.

On this afternoon, OAT offered a little side trip that appealed to this grave hunter. Mirogoj Cemetery is the largest, most important burial ground in Zagreb.

Mirogoj Cemetery, Zagreb, Croatia (28 October 2025)

The cemetery was founded in the 1870’s. Due to funding shortfalls, the walls and copulas were constructed in fits and starts into the 1920’s. Damage from the 2020 earthquake is still evident.

Mirogoj Cemetery, Zagreb, Croatia (28 October 2025)

Many notable Croats are buried in the arcades of Mirogoj. The cemetery is city-owned and significant in that it inters people of all faiths.

Mirogoj Cemetery, Zagreb, Croatia (28 October 2025)

With All Saints Day around the corner, there was much activity sprucing up the graves with fresh flowers and candles.

Our full day in Zagreb ended with a group dinner at a local restaurant. We were served traditional dishes of pork, potatoes and cabbage-wrapped ground meat. Our tour group traveled by one of the many trams that traverse the city. I don’t know if Croatian youth are naturally more polite or if I just look old and needy but I was offered a seat twice.

Next stop – not on the boat yet.

For Black History Month – Southern Civil Rights Sites – Part 3

We take a break from travel stories because it’s Black History Month and because our racist president just couldn’t help himself when he decided to post yet another disgusting video that depicts the Obama’s as apes…par for the course for this White supremacist whose rise in national politics was fueled by birther lies he directed at candidate Obama…that were sustained far too long by our ignorant, bigoted fellow Americans.

I am obliged, in a time when White supremacists are either erasing or rewriting history, to remind MAGA that the real, actual, verifiable history MUST be known by everyone. Don’t fall for “They’re trying to cancel Our Heritage” nonsense. Trump’s dictum even has the word ‘TRUTH’ in its title. This WAS your heritage. You can repudiate it, like the country did when we outlawed doing things you thought were right. Or you can own it.
  

The Legacy Museum

Montogomery, Alabama (25 May 2024)

Last year, our Black History Month reports from the Great Sweaty Drive-away of 2024 included posts from Selma and Tuskegee, Alabama. These preserved sites are stark reminders of what citizens endured to have the right to vote or go to school or eat at a restaurant…during my lifetime. This is not ancient history. We watched it happen on television. As the tacky TV commercials say, “But wait, there’s more.”

Brian Stevenson is an amazing crusader for justice. His non-profit, the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), is headquartered in Montgomery. The capital of Alabama was one of the major slavery centers in the South…before it became one of the focal points of the Civil Rights movement.

As a public interest lawyer, Stevenson has argued cases before the Supreme Court. His tireless efforts overturned wrongful convictions and reduced the harsh sentencing that was a trademark of the post-Civil War South when the accused was guilty of nothing other than being Black. It often takes years but EJI has worked to release hundreds of innocent victims of that system…the one that the ‘Don’t Erase Our History” crowd would rather you not learn in school.
  

The Legacy Museum

Montogomery, Alabama (25 May 2024)

The Equal Justice Initiative has also developed three outstanding facilities that support the organization’s mission. The Legacy Museum displays the history of slavery and racism in America. Photography was not permitted in the Museum, but I can attest to the powerful message in the displays that include vocal recordings from cells very much like the actual slave markets that once existed in the streets of this neighborhood.
   

National Memorial for Peace and Justice,

Montgomery, Alabama (26 May 2024)

Opened the same day in 2018 as the Legacy Museum, the National Memorial for Peace and Justice is a short distance away. One must be prepared for an ugly truth as the site conveys its message in many ways. The format of the Memorial is based on the extensive research the EJI conducted to document the 4400 racial terror lynchings that occurred from after Reconstruction to well into the twentieth century (1877-1950). There is a suspended brown steel rectangle for each of the 805 U.S. counties where a lynching has been documented. Engraved on one side are the names of the victims and the dates of the murders.
   

Nkyinkyim [2018] by Kwame Akoto-Bamfo,

National Memorial for Peace and Justice,

Montgomery, Alabama (26 May 2024)

Before you get to the pavilion with the suspended ‘boxes’ (reminders of coffins), you confront a sculpture of six people. Three men and three women. One carrying an infant. They are all shackled and chained to each other. They all express the horror and fear that comes when a force you can’t control puts you in chains and ships you to the other side of the world. This one figure stands taller than the other five and, instead of anguish, appears more willful and defiant…a future runaway or revolutionary perhaps.

The layout is extensive…805 counties after all. In walking around all four sides of the installation, the rectangles go from the floor to well over everyone’s head. One is reminded that being ‘strung up’ was part of these events.
   

National Memorial for Peace and Justice,

Montgomery, Alabama (26 May 2024)

To one side of the Memorial, the same coffin-like rectangles are laid out for closer inspection. While some of the counties had but one victim, there were others (here in the foreground) where the practice was far too common.
   

Raise Up [2018] by Hank Willis Thomas,

National Memorial for Peace and Justice,

Montgomery, Alabama (26 May 2024)

The sculpture depicts the reality of Black men in the face of law enforcement. Beyond it is an array of placards with more detailed descriptions of specific murders. It becomes almost numbing after a while. But that’s our history, Mr. President.

Then there is the ‘snowflake’ excuse…we don’t want to upset our delicate sensibilities by dwelling on the ugly parts and shaming our poor fragile citizens. It’s not about shaming anyone. The lesson should be that we recognized (eventually) the atrocities we committed were wrong…and tried to make it right. THAT is what made America great.

The final EJI property is a sculpture park that we visited before its official opening. That meant that photography was also prohibited. I did sneak a few shots but need to wait for the statute of limitations to clear me. I’ll post them next Black History Month.

Adriatic Cruise Chronicles – Lake Bled, Slovenia

The one day we ventured outside Ljubljana was to visit one of the most picturesque spots in the country. Our hotel was a short walk to the main train/bus station. We got a bus ticket to Lake Bled and after the 1.5 hr. ride (including a few stops), began a leisurely walk around the 6 km (3.7 mi) perimeter.

Lake Bled, Slovenia (25 October 2025)

Lake Bled may be Slovenia’s most popular attraction and this perfect autumn Saturday brought out many people. The national rowing organization is headquartered here and multiple world championship events have been staged on this course. You can see one of the rowing lanes on the mirror-smooth lake here. Slovenia has placed several Olympic medalists in the sport.

St. Martin’s Church, Bled, Slovenia (25 October 2025)

St. Martin’s Church is in the town of Bled and was completed in 1905. To the left of the altar is a fresco of the Last Supper.

The Last Supper by Slavko Pengov [1930]

St. Martins Church, Bled, Slovenia (25 October 2025)

The painting was done in 1930. A sign of the times will note

that the artist chose to portray Judas as Vladimir Lenin.

Blejski Grad (Bled Castle), Lake Bled, Slovenia (25 October 2025)

Bled Castle is another popular attraction. On this high promontory since the 11th century, it housed royalty and bishops for eight centuries. Imagine the effort it must have taken to move all the building materials to this location.

Pletna Ferry, Lake Bled, Slovenia (25 October 2025)

We saw no motorized craft on the lake. The traditional boat is a wooden ‘pletna,’ German for ‘flat-bottomed boat.’ They are used primarily to ferry people to Bled Island and the church there…20 Euros round trip.

Bled Island (25 October 2025)

Bled Island features a Gothic pilgrimage church dedicated to the Assumption of Mary. Originally, the site was occupied by an eighth-century Slavic pagan temple.

Bled Island (25 October 2025)

Today, it is a popular wedding venue and tourist destination. At the center of this shot is a 99-step stairway from the water’s edge to the church. Tradition has it that the groom must carry the bride up all the steps if they want to marry in the church.

The perfect day ended in a classic ‘record scratch’ moment. We were half a kilometer from completing the walk around the lake when we came to a major road work area that eliminated all walking in that direction. We were foot-sore and tired and lacked the energy to go back around. Fortunately, after failing to find taxi service, a kind hotel concierge told us that buses came this way AND the one that stopped for us returned our sad bodies all the way back to Ljubljana. Nice save.

On to Zagreb, Croatia next.

Adriatic Cruise Chronicle – Ljubljana, Slovenia

Having taken a memorable vacation with Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT) in 2024, we booked another small boat tour in late 2025. The sailing part would be on the Adriatic Sea, the body of water that separates the Italian peninsula from the Balkan peninsula. Before sailing the Dalmatian coast from Croatia to Greece, we booked an earlier flight to spend a few extra days in Slovenia.

With the exception of a day trip to Lake Bled, featured in the next post, we stayed and noodled around the charming, walkable capital city of Ljubljana.

Ljubljana, Slovenia, View from Castle Hill (24 October 2025)

Slovenia is a small central European nation. New Jersey is bigger. It was part of many empires and then Tito’s Yugoslavia before declaring its independence in 1991. Ljubljana (“Loo-blee-ana”) is a delightful city within sight of the Julian Alps.

Ljubljanica River (26 October 2025)

Our hotel was a few blocks from the Ljubljanica River which is the hub for shopping, eating and people watching. Restaurants line both sides of the river.

Castle Hill, Ljubljana, Slovenia (26 October 2025)

This was a typical first day in Europe, meaning the day before was busy getting ready for an overnight flight that involved NO sleep, a second flight from Amsterdam after a four-hour layover and immediately hitting the streets after checking into our hotel. One needs to stay awake and active to quickly adjust to the new time zone.

Later in the day, we decided to walk up ‘Castle Hill’ to see the medieval fortress and view the city from above. This stunt certainly ensured that we would have no trouble getting to sleep that night. Only after we were most of the way up did we see a funicular that effortlessly glided folks to the top. We rode down, giving our legs a much-needed reprieve.

Castle Hill Funicular, Ljubljana, Slovenia (24 October 2025)

 

On the Dragon Bridge, Ljubljana, Slovenia (26 October 2025)

Dragons are everywhere in this enchanting city. The Greek hero Jason is said to have killed a dragon when he passed through this area after stealing the golden fleece. The beast has since become the symbol of the city.

One of the river bridges is called the ‘Dragon Bridge’ because there are four of these big boys on each corner. Smaller versions decorate the streetlamps.

Dragon Magnets, Ljubljana, Slovenia (26 October 2026)

The morning after the Lake Bled excursion was a Sunday and we wandered the less busy city streets.

Sunday Entertainments, Ljubljana, Slovenia (26 October 2025)

It wasn’t long before people filled the popular places. On one of the bridges, we paused to enjoy a lively band that played everything with a rocking beat.

Ljubljana is a charming, easy city. While I appreciate that I’ve seen the major historic European capitals like Rome, London and Paris, they are now too crowded with visitors. Getting almost anywhere is a hassle. The Slovenian capital was the perfect way to begin our Eastern Europe adventure.

Passed Vice Presidents - # 33 – Henry Wallace

  

Grave of Henry Wallace (21 July 2025)

Served under Franklin D. Roosevelt

20 January 1941 – 20 January 1945

Preceded by # 32 – John Nance Garner

Succeeded by # 34 – Harry S. Truman

Born – 7 October 1888

Died – 18 November 1965 (age 77)

Buried – Glendale Cemetery, Des Moines, Iowa

Date Visited – 21 July 2025

This past summer, we drove to Wisconsin for another Ripley family wingding. When it was time to return, Beck reminded me that the ‘Field of Dreams’ movie site in Iowa has long been a bucket list item for her. What the heck. It’s just four or five hours further from home. Once there, I decided we’re too close not to go a few more hours further west to pay my respects to one of our vice presidents.

Central Iowa – 2025 (20 July 2025)

Tall corn and wind turbines as far as the eye can see.

Late afternoon western light makes everything stand out.

Henry Wallace was quintessential Iowa. He entered this world in 1888 in the rural town of Orient (1880 population - 31). He graduated from an ‘Ag’ college and wrote his family’s farm journal. He founded a successful hybrid corn company and like his father before him, served as the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. That post was during FDR’s first two terms (1933-40). Wallace was a Republican for decades up to that time, but he became such a strong New Deal proponent and loyal FDR guy that the president insisted he be his running mate for that unprecedented third term. The decision not to continue with the incumbent VP, John Nance Garner, was made easier given ‘Cactus Jack’ had opposed a number of Roosevelt’s positions and challenged him for the presidential nomination. Although they did not carry Iowa, the ticket defeated Wendell Wilkie in a landslide.

Vice President Henry Wallace

Official Portrait – 1940

(from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_A._Wallace

Come the 1944 election, conservative Democrats (you don’t hear those two words together anymore) wanted a change and replaced Wallace with Harry Truman. We must remember that the old South was represented by segregationist Democrats and they were not happy with Wallace’s liberal views on race relations. Appreciating Wallace’s loyalty, FDR offered him any cabinet position he wanted except Secretary of State. He chose Commerce, figuring it would play a significant role in post-war activity. It took only a year until he gave a speech that ticked off all sides on the issue of dealing with Soviet Russia. President Truman asked for and received Wallace’s resignation in 1946.

Footstone of Henry Wallace Grave,

Glendale Cemetery, Des Moines, IA (21 July 2025)

We had to clear the turf around this marker.

‘Perpetual care’ can do only so much.

The next presidential election was the famous one where Republican Thomas Dewey was widely expected to defeat Truman but didn’t. Complicating the 1948 choices were other parties on the ballot. The racist Dixiecrats bolted to protest Truman’s racial accommodations. Strom Thurmond carried four states that still believed White supremacy was the most important governing principle. Taking votes from the other end was Henry Wallace heading the Progressive Party that opposed the administration’s Cold War policies.

By 1950, he left the Progressive Party and eventually returned to the Democrat fold but no longer served in governmental positions. He died of ALS in 1965 and is buried in Glendale Cemetery in Des Moines.

Wildflower Scattering Garden

Glendale Cemetery, Des Moines, IA (21 July 2025)

Glendale Cemetery is as diverse a burial ground as one can find. It has Catholic, Masonic, Jewish, and Islam sections as well as areas for Tai Dam (Vietnamese) and infants. The section pictured above is a wildflower garden where ashes can be scattered. The people who have done this are recorded on these abstract obelisks.

River Cruise Diary – Lyon, France – Day 2

Cathedral of St. John,

Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

Our second day in Lyon was one with no organized plan. We were on our own to wander and explore whatever appealed to us. Of course, for me, that meant getting inside the city’s grand Gothic cathedral. The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, completed in 1480, was begun three hundred years earlier.

Cathedral of St. John,

Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

Cathedral of St. John,

Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

Although it has some Romanesque features, the church has retained a consistent Gothic appearance despite the three-century construction period.

Place des Terreaux, Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

The Place des Terreaux has existed since the 13th century. It fronts the Lyon City Hall and was the site of beheadings during the French Revolution. A notable feature of the square is the Bartholdi Fountain.

 

Bartholdi Fountain [1892],

Place des Terreaux, Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

Frederic Auguste Bartholdi is the French sculptor who created our Statue of Liberty. His Lyon fountain depicts a feminine ‘France’ riding a chariot of natural elements and controlling the four great rivers of the country with reins made of water weeds.

 

Beaux Arts Museum, Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

Also facing the Place des Terreaux is the Fine Arts Museum. Formerly a Benedictine convent, the museum building dates to the 17th century.

Beaux Arts Museum, Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

A ten-year restoration of the museum ended in 1998. It showcases collections from antiquity to modern times, making it one of the most important museums in Europe.

Fontaine des Jacobins, Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

We wandered into another square, the Place des Jacobins, a French name for followers of St. Dominic. Dominicans occupied buildings on one side of the square since 1296. The Jacobins fountain grew in fits and starts from 1856 to 1885. It is dedicated to ‘Art’ and features a French sculptor, engraver, architect and painter from different periods.

Siren [1884] by Eungene Delaplanche,

Fontaine des Jacobins, Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

Personally, I prefer the wet nymphs that surround the lower pool.

Cathedral of St. John,

Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

From Lyon, we left the Rhone to move up its tributary, the Saône River. We were all up on the top deck to enjoy the illuminated buildings as we sailed away from the city into the night.

Low Bridge, Lyon, France (26 April 2006)

As you can see, the sun deck awnings were taken down because some of the bridges left little room to spare. The larger river boats are unable to navigate this channel, so tours no longer continue up the Saône. I’m glad we took this trip when we did.

The final cruise stop will be in the town of Chalon sur Saône.