“December 11th, 1963 – On this date in history, the Andrew Johnson National Monument was re-designated as the Andrew Johnson National Historic Site. It was then that the Early Home, the first home Andrew and Eliza Johnson owned in Greeneville, Tennessee was added to the park’s resources. As one of several historic structures within the park, the Early Home is preserved, protected, and maintained by the National Park Service.
During park operating hours, visitors can walk through the first level of the Early Home on their own. Inside the home, interpretive and educational exhibits explore Johnson’s early life, including his apprenticeship as a tailor, his arrival in Greeneville, his family tree, and the timeline of his political career. Outside, visitors can view the details of the early 19th century architecture of this home built in the early 1800s.
Andrew and Eliza Johnson raised their first four children in this home. They lived there from the 1830s through 1851, when they moved into a much larger home on Main Street, the Andrew Johnson Homestead, just a few blocks away. To obtain the larger Homestead, Johnson traded his Early Home and paid an additional $950.00 in 1851.
Today, park staff give guided tours of the fully furnished and well-preserved Andrew Johnson Homestead, while the Early Home houses museum exhibits on Johnson’s early life.
