Thomas Woodrow Wilson was born in Staunton's Presbyterian manse on December 28, 1856 "at 12 3/4 o'clock at night," as his proud father recorded in the family Bible.  The Bible is on display at his birthplace. When the Reverend Joseph Wilson accepted a call to be minister of the Staunton Presbyterian Church, he and his wife, Jessie Woodrow, and their daughters, Marion and Annie, moved into the manse.

The 12-room Greek Revival style brick house was less than ten years old when the Wilsons arrived in March 1855.  The house was built for Mr. Wilson's predecessor, the Reverend Benjamin Mosby Smith.  "The congregation has contracted to have a house built for Mr. Smith, " it was recorded, "which it is said will be the best house in Staunton when it is finished.  The lot on which it is to be built is one of the most beautiful situations in Staunton..."  The total cost of construction was about $4,000.  Indicating how little some things have changed over the years, there is a notation in Mr. Smith's diary about his dissatisfaction with the poor work being done by the paperhanger.  The Reverend dismissed him and, with his wife's help, finished wallpapering the parlor and dining room himself.

Tommy Wilson, as the future president was called until his law school days, spent no more than a year in Staunton.  His father's success led to a call from an even larger, more prosperous church in Augusta, Georgia.  The Wilsons left Staunton in late 1857.  Even though he spent only a year in Virginia as a child, Woodrow Wilson always considered himself a Virginian and returned to Staunton in 1912 to celebrate his birthday as president-elect.

The Woodrow Wilson Birthplace and Museum has been extensively restored, giving an accurate look at  life in a middle-class minister's home in antebellum Virginia.  Many of the furnishings belonged to the Wilsons; others are period pieces.

The manse tour includes three floors.  The kitchen, workroom, servant's bedroom and family dining room are on the ground floor.  On the main floor there is the master bedroom where Thomas Woodrow Wilson was born.  His mother was attended by a physician, an unusual practice for this time and place.  This was a measure of the social standing of the minister.   The birthroom was identified from a letter that Jesse wrote to her father, in which she tells him that both she and the baby are doing fine. In the front parlor the Wilson family Bible rests on the table.  A silver service given to Mr. Wilson by his Augusta congregation and English flatware belonging to Jessie Woodrow's family are displayed in the dining room.  You’ll also see the pastor’s study.  The oldest piece in the house is the hall clock, crafted in Staunton in the 1790s.  Upstairs there are bedrooms for the children and for guests.

Augmenting the guided tour of the manse is a museum with seven exhibit galleries.  They give an  in-depth look at the accomplishments of Woodrow Wilson as an author, scholar, university president, governor and statesman.  Rare artifacts, photographs, family and personal possessions help to narrate the fascinating history of Wilson the man and Wilson the leader in some of the most critical times of our nation and the world.  A star attraction is President Wilson's 1919 Pierce-Arrow, used by him during his term and, which he purchased for his retirement.  The museum has children’s craft activities; call ahead for details and schedule, (540) 885-0897.

The manse gardens, one of the earliest projects of the Garden Club of Virginia, make a delightful add-on to the house tour. They were laid out in 1934 with crescent and bowknot beds and a variety of ornamental trees on the terraced grounds.

The Woodrow Wilson Birthplace and Museum is open daily from 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.  Winter hours are 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. It is closed on Sundays during January and February and on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.  Admission is charged.  A gift shop adjoins the garden.