Meet Author, Elizabeth Reese!

When the Marquis de Lafayette was invited to return to America for the first time in forty years, he intended to stay only a few months. In the end, Lafayette’s trip was extended and he spent thirteen months touring each state in the country.

I was inspired to write my book Marquis de Lafayette Returns: A Tour of America’s National Capital Region through my work as a public historian. For over a decade, I have worked as an interpreter at sites touched by Lafayette, including Hamilton Grange National Memorial in New York and the United States Capitol Visitor Center in Washington, D.C. He has always been in my area of study, though frequently just outside the periphery of my vision.

In 2022, I was taking a walk in Old Town Alexandria when I came across a weathered plaque on a house at the intersection of St. Asaph and Duke Street. The plaque read that in October, 1824, the Marquis de Lafayette was a guest of the City of Alexandria and called this residence home for a period of time. I had known about Lafayette’s connections to Alexandria dating back to 1777. I had known that he had returned to America in the early 1800s, but I didn’t know the importance his tour had on the nation as a whole.

Throughout my research, I quickly learned that Lafayette’s visit left a massive cultural and social impact on the nation. On the eve of the country’s 50th birthday, Lafayette was one of the few surviving leaders of the American Revolution. As he passed through towns, the number of people waiting to greet him frequently outnumbered the recorded population at the time. In a time when few people left their immediate area, people were traveling hundreds of miles for the chance to catch a glimpse of him.

In smaller towns, Lafayette’s visit remains one of the most important pieces of local history. My hometown of Lisbon, Maryland welcomed Lafayette in late 1824 as he passed through from Baltimore on his way to Frederick. Lisbon is a tiny town along the Historic National Road, the first federal highway that linked the Potomac and Ohio Rivers. Few people know of its existence and even fewer have visited, but on a cold December morning, Lafayette did.

During an incredibly tense election year, Lafayette brought Americans together. Men on opposing political sides found themselves peacefully sitting side-by-side at Lafayette’s table. His presence stirred such patriotic fervor, he could hardly keep up with the appearances, gifts, and honors bestowed upon him. After Lafayette arrived in New York, the New York Mirror and Ladies Literary Gazette wrote that, “Gentlemen are ready to throw by their business to shake him by the hand, and ladies forget their lovers to dream of him. If a man asks 'have you seen him?' you know who he means.”

As Americans today, there is much we can still learn from Lafayette. His passionate beliefs regarding human rights, including the abolition of slavery, stand in stark contrast to his peers. As Americans watched Lafayette sail back to France in September 1825,they knew he was among the last of the giants of the Revolution. From that moment on, the nation was to chart her own course. As we look to the bicentennial of this momentous occasion in American history, we too have an opportunity to reflect on how far we’ve come in the years since and where we are still to go.

Purchase Elizabeth's book here! https://www.arcadiapublishing.com/products/9781467155878/