Dr. Mudd House Museum

[wpbinzel]

And, Bob, I take great pleasure in leading tours through the historic house at least once a month. I try to point out that most museums are built to house historic items, and while many of the items in the Mudd House are historic (especially the couch), the most historic item is the house itself. Bob Bowser does not get enough credit for keeping enough docents lined up to keep the museum operational.

(07-07-2024 02:47 PM)bob_summers Wrote:  

(07-01-2024 02:30 PM)Dennis Urban Wrote:  

(06-23-2024 01:58 PM)RJNorton Wrote:  

(06-22-2024 05:19 PM)Dennis Urban Wrote:  I also met Mrs. Arehart in the late 1980s or early 1990s but knew enough not to express my opinion when on the farm. Another relative, Cecelia Dyer Mudd, born 1914, became a Carmelite nun with the name of Sister Mary Samuela. She was in a convent in Washington, DC. I don't know if she ever got away to visit the farm but she and Louise signed my copy of The Life of Dr. Samuel A. Mudd 1906, edited by Nettie Mudd. My reprint is from 1975.

Dennis, I also own a copy signed by the grandchildren:

OK, you win 12-2. I hope when you were kicked off the Mudd property you exited in the same direct as did Booth and Herold. Poetic justice.

As some of you may know, my Aunt Louise and Sister Samuela were my mother's (Carmelite Mudd Summers) two younger sisters. Aunt Louise passed away in 2002, and Sister Samuela in 2003. I knew them both well.

Yes, Aunt Louise could be a bit intense in her support for Dr.Mudd, but we all owe her a debt of gratitude. Were it not for that intensity and prolonged hard work, the historic Mudd farm we can all visit today would not have been preserved and protected from developers.

She had a full life apart from her interest in Dr. Mudd. During World War II, Aunt Louise worked as a civilian in the Pentagon. After the war, she ran a tourist home in Waldorf, served as a judge in the Charles County Orphan’s Court, and worked in real estate. She also had an extensive collection of antique furniture.

Sister Samuela was a Catholic nun her whole adult life. She had a BA in math and taught math in schools in Texas, Pennsylvania, New York, Washington, D.C., and Maryland. She passed away in retirement at St. Mary's Convent, Notre Dame, Indiana.

Both were remarkable ladies.