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An Old House . . . and Its Ever-Young Spirit
The Birthplace Museum Turns 50
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| Dedication of the Birthplace, October 19, 1956. |
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By Ed Levy
Patriots go to Lexington and Concord, Elvis fans to Memphis, lovers of Van Gogh to Arles, in Provence. Girl Scouts journey to Savannah, to see and touch the wellsprings of the near-century-old Movement that is changing their lives. In the historic district of that gracious city stands, as it has for nearly two centuries, the Wayne-Gordon House—a Regency townhouse originally built for a Supreme Court Justice. But it was destined to be the birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low. It was to this house, too, at the corner of Bull and Oglethorpe, that Juliette returned, after living in Europe for most of her early adult life; and where, in 1912, she made the famous phone call that began the Girl Scout Movement.
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| The front parlor, with its portrait of Nellie, Juliette's mother. |
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| Juliette's bedroom. The smaller of the two paintings over the fireplace is by her. |
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Now a National Historic Landmark, the house is celebrating its 50th year as a Girl Scout program center and museum—one of the most popular house museums in the country.
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| Juliette poses in Japanese costume. |
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| Today's girls dress in Victorian costume to pose on the elegant staircase. |
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| The back parlor, with a painting, over the fireplace, of Niagara Falls, commemorating the honeymoon of Juliette's parents. |
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| Visiting Girl Scouts learn to spin cotton in the Program Center. |
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The Gordon family occupied the house continuously for over a century. By the 1940s, however, it had been subdivided to house the families of war workers in the Savannah shipyards during World War II, and was in need of renovation. Purchased by the Girl Scouts in 1953, it was meticulously restored and furnished to look as it did in 1886. It is also a major site for the delivery of Girl Scout program.
For girls the experience of visiting the house begins long before they get to Savannah, when they start to plan an exciting project that involves goal setting, finance, coordination, organization, scheduling, and leadership. Some troops drive cross-country, and must decide where they will stay or camp each night and what they want to see en route. This year, girls in a virtual troop will plan their trip to the house online, and meet each other there for the first time next summer.
Once in the house, embraced by its history, the iconic figure girls and leaders have heard so much about takes on life. As they walk through the spacious, high-ceilinged rooms Juliette played and worked in, or look at the family photos, they see her sculptures and delicate china paintings, the work not of an amateur but of a mature and talented artist. Visiting girls dress in period costumes, sit in the informal dining room, and experience a Victorian dinner. A few of these youngsters have never before sat at a table set for a family meal.
In the program rooms across the courtyard, they try their hand at spinning cotton and wool, or embroidery; they try on hoops, fans, shawls, jewels, and gloves, play the games young Juliette would have played—charades, stagecoach, jackstraw, and dominoes, and do projects with paper and cloth. There is a computerized slide show presentation, and questions and answers. Temporarily freed from their own everyday routines, absorbing the experience of another young woman who lived so long ago, observed program manager Katherine Keena, the girls begin to think and share about their own lives in new ways.
More than an exotic outing, a visit to the house is also a great retention tool, noted its long-time director Fran Harold: "If we can do this (come to Savannah), many troops, realize, why not Our Cabaña or Our Chalet next. Suddenly, more ambitious destinations seem doable."
As the place where Juliette Gordon Low was born, and the spot where the Girl Scout Movement came into being, the house at 10 East Oglethorpe has more than earned its nickname—The Birthplace. As the Movement continually evolves, the Birthplace is home, a center around which the wheel of change is spinning—the place, to paraphrase Robert Frost, you can always go back to.
The irony is that what you find there, at the center and origin, is the story of a woman who herself believed in constant change, and never stopped growing, who knew from her own experience that life doesn't follow the script, and so you'd best be prepared. Savannah is a town famous for its ghosts, and there may even be a few lurking about in the Juliette Gordon Low House; but the strongest presence there is that of a benevolent and irrepressible spirit, whose energy and passionate engagement continue to resonate far beyond its walls.
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VOLUNTEER