In 1950, an ex-US president bought 189-acre farm in Pennsylvania. 17 years later, he donated his only farm and home to American govt for public

For a man who had spent much of his life moving from one place to another, Dwight D. Eisenhower had a fairly simple idea of what he wanted after his public life was over: a quiet place in the countryside. That search eventually took the former general and his wife, Mamie Eisenhower, to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where they found a 189-acre farm that would become much more than a retirement home.

The Eisenhowers bought the property in 1950, although the final papers transferring ownership of the Allen Redding Farm were signed on January 15, 1951. The purchase included the farmhouse, barn, other buildings, farm equipment and livestock. According to the National Park Service, the couple paid about $40,000 for the property and animals.

Seventeen years later, the same farm was no longer simply the Eisenhowers' private home. They handed it over to the United States government so it could be preserved for the public.

The farm was meant to be their quiet retirement home

The Gettysburg property appealed to Eisenhower partly because of its rural setting and his earlier connection with the area. After decades of military service and numerous moves, he wanted somewhere away from the cities.

In a 1943 letter to Mamie, Eisenhower wrote that he "always picture[d] a little place far away from cities." The National Park Service also records another description from Eisenhower, who said, “I wanted an escape from concrete into the countryside.”

But retirement did not come immediately. Soon after buying the farm, Eisenhower went back to Europe to become the first Supreme Commander of NATO. He then returned to the United States and entered the 1952 presidential race.

During his presidency, the Gettysburg property became a place where Eisenhower could get away from Washington. The house was renovated during the 1950s and was completed in 1955. He and Mamie began using it regularly on weekends and holidays, while the farm itself became an important part of Eisenhower's interest in agriculture and cattle.

Eisenhower treated farming as more than just a hobby

Eisenhower was what the National Park Service describes as a “gentleman farmer.” He was not depending on the farm for his living, but he took a real interest in how it was managed.

The operation eventually moved away from dairy and poultry and toward Aberdeen Angus cattle. Eisenhower also cared about the condition of the soil, which had suffered from years of intensive farming. He used crop rotation, contour farming and soil amendments in an effort to improve the land and reduce erosion. His aim was to “leave the place better than [he] found it.”

The farm also became a setting for presidential life. Eisenhower hosted family, friends and foreign leaders there, giving the property a role that was quite different from an ordinary weekend farm.

In 1967, the Eisenhowers gave the farm to the government

After Eisenhower left the White House in 1961, he and Mamie finally settled at Gettysburg. It was the only home they ever owned together.

That made their decision in 1967 especially significant. Dwight and Mamie Eisenhower transferred their home and farm to the National Park Service on November 27 that year. The exact reasons were never formally recorded, but the National Park Service says Eisenhower's declining health and concerns about whether his descendants could maintain the property appear to have played a major role.

When asked which place connected to his life should be recognised as a National Historic Landmark, Eisenhower chose the Gettysburg farm and explained: “After some consideration I have come to the conclusion that our farmstead at Gettysburg would be the most suitable spot because it is the only home, truly ours, that has been acquired by us during almost half a century of public service that has led us to many corners of the world.”

The transfer was deliberately simple. Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall came to the farm, took possession of the deed and completed the transfer. Eisenhower died in 1969, but Mamie continued living at the property until her death in 1979.

The National Park Service finally opened Eisenhower National Historic Site to the public in June 1980. Today, the original 189-acre President's Farm remains part of the larger historic site, which covers 690 acres and preserves the home, farm landscape and much of the setting from the Eisenhower years.