The Eustis Estate in Milton, Massachusetts provides a tantalizing look into an Aesthetic Movement … [+]
Courtesy Historic New England
If you are like millions of Americans, you are isolated at home, making occasional, frightened forays to the food or drug store. You may be heartily sick of the sight of your own four walls, your immediate family members, even your devoted dog. You are learning the meaning of the phrase “stir crazy.” You may even be waxing nostalgic for those endless meetings in the office.
Because so many tourism sites make their properties available via virtual tours, this is a great time to see some of the places you have been meaning to visit, or would like to tour again. Here are a few.
If you haven’t been to Historic New England’s Eustis Estate in Milton, Massachusetts, or if you’ve been meaning to visit again, you can do it from your computer or mobile device. Explore the elaborate Aesthetic Movement interiors of the 1878 mansion, and tour its Blue Hills-adjacent landscape, on the Eustis Estate app.
You can visit the garden where the last scene of Little Women was filmed, see the magnificent woodwork and furnishings of the historic rooms and you can learn about the Aesthetic Movement’s emphasis on “art for art’s sake.” It is just what we all need right now: an expansive and wide-ranging outing of the mind.
If you are a fan of Modernism, an entirely different historic tour is available at Historic New England’s Gropius House web app. Launched last year in honor of the Bauhaus centennial, it is a treasure trove of photographs, videos, guestbooks, birthday cards, and more that illustrate the life of Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius and his family. The app is a tour of a house that, unlike the Eustis Estate, we can all relate to, but it also gives insight into the minimalist style that is beloved today.
Are you a Civil War buff? Then virtually travel to Chattanooga, Tennessee, where you can visit Lookout Mountain, Wauhatchie, “The Battle Above the Clouds,” Moccasin Bend, Occupied Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, Orchard Knob and The National Cemetery.
If you are a fan of the seventh president of the United States, or if you want to see the home he built for himself outside of Nashville, then you will want to know that Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage will offer virtual visits every Tuesday and Thursday on social media, using @7thpresident. Topics will include mansion tours and behind-the-glass discussions.
While in Nashville, visit the Cheekwood Estate & Botanical Gardens. The popular “Tots! program has been transformed to online activities for families to access via website. The house museum plans to share one activity a week. Here is the first.
Enjoy virtual garden tours on Instagram by following the hashtags: #cheekwoodinbloom and #ourgardensyourhome.