I had a day to explore somewhere in Arkansas. I had a reservation at the next stop, which was a place that was officially on my “Next Time” list. I decided to spend it in Hope. Was I looking for “a slice of the good life?”
No.
I chose to visit Hope so that I could see Bill Clinton’s birthplace. After dropping my trailer at the RV park, I headed over.
I parked and went into the Visitor Center and got myself signed up for a tour. Luckily for me, one was about to start.
Bill’s first home was in the home of his grandparents, Eldridge and Edith Cassidy. He was born as William Jefferson Blythe III on August 19, 1946, three months after his father, William Jefferson Blythe Jr, died in a car crash. Virginia, his mother, had married his father on September 4, 1943. Unfortunately, Bill’s father hadn’t quite bothered to divorce wife number three, so the marriage was declared to be bigamy. I guess multiple wives might be an occupational hazard when you are a traveling salesman.
I went looking for some additional information about Bill’s grandparents and ran into this interesting Washington Post article by Gene Weingarten about Bill’s father and what he had to endure during the Great Depression. Although it didn’t have the information I was looking for, it was riveting. If you want a window into the lives of people who endured poverty and the dustbowl, you might want to set aside a few minutes to read it.
We walked over from the visitor center. The ranger unlocked the door and invited us inside.
Bill’s grandparents owned and ran a small grocery store. My Preferred Source mentions that they sold goods on credit to people of all races, an unusual thing back in those days. Apparently, treating people like human beings is a good business model, because their house looks quite comfortable, in a 1940s sort of way.
Most of the furnishings are not original to the house. In fact, I don’t think any of them are “family pieces.” But, they have added touches that help to envision what life would have been like back when Bill and his mother lived there with her parents.
When I saw this old-timey box of Crayolas, I was impressed that it had survived all those years.
I was impressed, that is, until I noticed the bar code and the CE marking on the bottom of the box. Just in case you had noticed the CE mark and wondered about it, my Preferred Source says that it is a certification mark that indicates conformity with health, safety and environmental protection standards for products sold within the European Economic Area.
Now you know. (And so do I!)
After we looked around the living room, it was on to the dining room. Baby Bill probably spent a good deal of time in a playpen like this one. Eldridge and Edith cared for Bill when his mother went to finish her nursing studies in New Orleans. I remember having one of those folding wooden playpens in our house when I was growing up.
This practical little vignette was in the corner opposite the playpen.
We didn’t have a wooden ironing board, and I don’t remember an iron like this one, but I do remember bottles with those sprinkler tops on them. After all, Bill Clinton was the first Baby Boomer President and I am a Baby Boomer.
We never had a stove like that one, but it sure looks cool!
Bill’s grandfather used to pin up cards on the curtain in the kitchen to teach Bill his numbers.
Bill would have been about four months old in January of 1947.
Bill and his mother shared this bedroom. I clearly remember my two youngest siblings using a bassinet like the white one next to Virginia’s bed. We must have come up a bit in the world by then, as this is a photo of what I slept in when I was tiny.
But, enough about me. Back to the tour.
There is a charming photo of Bill and a giant cake at what must have been his third birthday, judging by the candles.
If I remember correctly, this book is the one of the few things in the house directly related to Bill. Little Golden Books started publishing in 1942. I imagine most of the people reading this post have fond memories of Little Golden Books. I know I do.
When Bill got older and would come to stay at his grandparents’ house, he got his own little room.
When I visited Harry S Truman’s birthplace in Lamar, Missouri, I saw his outhouse and did some research to try to find out if he was the last President to not have indoor plumbing. The source that I found said Bill had an outhouse. He might have had one when living with his mother and stepfather, but not at this house!
I believe that his was his grandmother’s bedroom.
There was a letter from Bill to her in the room.
I was amazed that he had letterhead note paper as a student. I wonder if that was “a thing” back then?
I imagine that this room was set up as his grandfather’s bedroom. That afghan is a bit more “manly” than the one in his grandmother’s room.
And that was pretty much it for the tour.
I enjoy taking photos of the informational signs. I get some of my best information from them!
Fun fact: Mike Huckabee, who was governor of Arkansas from 1996 – 2007, was also born in Hope. I am sure that he wanted to be the second Baby Boomer president, but George W. Bush, who as born in 1946, actually got that honor. So, he would have been the third Baby Boomer, except that he didn’t get the nomination.
I headed back into the Visitor Center, to see what I could see.
I like how timelines lay information out so…linearly. And I do love maps! I decided to try to find the home he lived in 1950-1953 when I was done in this part of town.
Here’ a photo of Bill and his classmates at Miss Purkins’ School. Notice that Vince Foster, who lived just next door, was a classmate. Joe Purvis is also identified in the photo. I didn’t remember that name, so I went looking. It sounds like Hope produces a lot of lawyers and politicians!
Do you suppose that it’s something in the water?
This was labeled as a mother’s day photo.
A sweet photo of Bill, his brother, Roger, and his mother, Virginia. I imagine that it is from 1959 or 1960, judging by the size of Roger.
I do hope that Bill’s mother took this photo. I can’t imagine just putting a young child on a train and sending him off to visit his brother in college several states away!
According to the information in the Visitor Center, Bill went down to the courthouse and had his name changed legally from Blythe to Clinton. One of the reasons he did it was because Roger was about to start school and he didn’t want the differences in their lineage to ever be an issue for him. He thought that it would be good to have the same name as the rest of the family. He also thought that he might have wanted to do something nice for his Daddy, even though he was glad that his Mother had divorced him in 1962.
Ah! Another time line! This one shows when Bill’s stepfather entered and left his life.
This photo shows Bill being sworn in as governor of Arkansas in 1979, at age 32. He was the youngest governor in America at that time, and the second youngest governor ever in the state of Arkansas.
(If you were wondering, I did manage to track down the name of the youngest Arkansas governor. It was John Roanne, who was also age 32. He was the fourth governor, 1849-1852. If you are curious about the governors of Arkansas, the Secretary of State has a PDF you can download.)
A little more Fun with Timelines…
And then it was time to head out. I walked down the street to the train station. What a beautiful fall day it was! Look at that clear blue sky!
I was expecting that the train station had been converted to some other use, like most train stations have been. Believe it or not, this 1912 station still has passenger service! Trains run daily between Chicago, Illinois and San Antonio, Texas.
I did a little exploring around the station.
Hey! They even have a place for you to wait.
Not being visually impaired myself, I often wonder how useful signs like this are. Don’t get me wrong – I’m glad that we are working toward a world that enables all to take part. I just would like to know how a person who wasn’t sighted would know that there was a sign there to read.
If anyone knows, please fill me in.
On the sunny side of the building, there were a few plaques.
Golly! Yet another Hope native that was involved in Clinton’s presidency.
Oh! This is also a visitor center?
Ah, yes…
Of course, it is closed!
Across the street from the train station was a local watering hole. Apparently, the burgers are quite good, judging by the Yelp reviews. Then it was time to get in my car and look for the other home of Bill Clinton in Hope. I wondered if I would have trouble finding it.
No, it wasn’t hard at all!
It wasn’t as impressive as his grandparents’ house, but it looks like a nice place. Since this was obviously a neighborhood full of private homes – including this one – I didn’t want to overstay my welcome. So, I snapped a few shots and moved on.
This plaque was on a boulder in front of the house.
With my tasks in Hope complete, I headed back to the RV park, which also happened to be at the county fairground.
Good thing I didn’t bring my horse!
It was time to get packed up and ready to head to my next destination: Crater of Diamonds State Park.