On August 3, 1871, U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant purchased a cottage in the Elberon section of Long Branch, where he spent his summers during his presidency and beyond.
In 1867, General Ulysses S. Grant had visited Long Branch for the first time and would later be quoted as saying, “In all of my travels I have never seen a better place for a summer residence than Long Branch.” He returned to Long Branch in the ensuing summers, starting in 1869 as president of the United States. He and his family, which included his wife, Julia; sons Frederick, Jesse, Ulysses S. Grant, Jr and daughter Nellie, stayed at the newly build Stetson Hotel. Local prosperous citizens would pool their resources to buy a cottage for the President at 991 Ocean Avenue in the Elberon section of Long Branch, standing stately on a bluff overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Grant’s visits to the town made Long Branch a destination of national interest, and other presidents would visit there in the years to come, including James A. Garfield, William McKinley and Woodrow Wilson.
Sources:
The Wanderings of Ulysses. (1871). The Valley Spirit, Wednesday, November 22, 1871, Vol. 25, No. 21. Available: https://www.newspapers.com/image/346658866/?
terms=Ulysses%2BGrant%2Bvisits%2BLong%2Bbranch
Featured image: Ulysses Grant and Family at Long Branch, N.J. by Pach Brothers, N.Y., 1870. The Imperial Cabinet Card pictures Grant and wife, Julia Dent, and their four children: Jesse, Ulysses Jr., Nellie, and Frederick in front of their cottage. Also present are two Black men, whose identities are unknown. Created January 1, 1870. Library of Congress, Public Domain.
Ulysses S. Grant Cottage, 995 Ocean Avenue, Long Branch. Historic American Buildings Survey, Library of Congress, public domain.
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