Drawing Room Mantels in the Lee Mansion, Lee Mansion National Memorial
Nelligan M. 1952. Drawing Room Mantels in the Lee Mansion, Lee Mansion National Memorial. Historic Structure Report. U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
This memo, by Public Use Section Acting Chief Murray Nelligan to the superintendent of Lee Mansion National Memorial, describes the history and significance of the two mantels in storage in the basement of the Lee Mansion. Unlike other aspects of the mansion's structural history, that of these mantels is reasonably complete and documented in the Lee Mansion National Memorial Records. The marble mantels were ordered by Colonel Robert E. Lee in 1855, when the drawing room was finished to make the house more comfortable for his family during the period that he expected to be away at military service. New mantels were made and installed in the spring of 1932 during the restoration of the mansion by the War Department, and the mantels from the drawing room were stored in the basement in spring of 1932. Despite the availability of existing evidence, these replacement mantels were designed as replicas of a style that was used in another room of the house. The author cites this as a case history in the incorrect restoration of an historic house and recommends that the Lee mantels be reset in the drawing room to maintain the historic association with Robert E. Lee.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Nelligan, Murry
- Date of Issue
- 1952-10-20
- Publisher
- U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
- Units
- ARHO , NCR
- Keywords
- case study, Fine Arts Commission, Lee Mansion National Memorial, mantel, restoration, Robert E. Lee, War Department
- Subjects
- CRIS-HS: 000059: Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial (000059)