Throughout his long army career, Dwight Eisenhower and his wife never had a house to call their own, with the couple moving from army post to army post. In 1948, Mamie requested that they finally have a place to call their own. In 1950, they found a "run-down farm" on the outskirts of Gettysburg, and purchased the farm and its 189 acres for $40,000 (equal to $392,089 today) from Allen Redding who had owned the farm since 1921. Eisenhower stated that he could feel the "forgotten heroisms" that occurred on the grounds as the Battle of Gettysburg.
The purchase included many dilapidated buildings dating back to the 18th and 19th centuries. Renovation of the property was delayed when Eisenhower became supreme commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1951. After becoming President in 1953, Mamie had him rebuild the old house. Much of the original building had to be torn down, due to its deterioration. The total cost of renovation was $250,000 (equal to $2,203,669 today), due partly to Mamie's whims and also to his wanting to appeal to labor unions, meaning he spent $65,000 (equal to $572,954 today) for the union help that had to come from 75 miles away in Washington, D.C. on a daily basis to construct the farmhouse. In 1955, to celebrate the construction being finished (and it being the Eisenhowers' wedding anniversary), they threw a celebration party, the guests of which included the entire staff of the White House; as they didn't want the White House to go unstaffed, the staff went in two shifts, and were forever grateful to the Eisenhowers for including them in the festivities.
From its completion in 1955 to the end of Eisenhower's second term on January 20, 1961, the President spent 365 days total on the Gettysburg farm. The longest of these stays was 38 days, due to recovering from a heart attack he suffered in Colorado in 1955. Afterwards, the Eisenhowers spent most weekends and summer vacations at the Gettysburg farm, sometimes going to both the Gettysburg farm and Camp David, prompting one person to call Camp David "an annex to Gettysburg".
In his will, Eisenhower requested that the farm remain a private farm. Only guided tours are allowed on the farm, and then only to certain areas.
LARRY PERSONAL NOTE: I UNINTENTIONALLY VISITED THIS PLACE ON MY OWN ONLY TO FIND OUT I AM SUPPOSED TO ARRANGE FOR A BUS GUIDED TOUR FROM IN GETTYSBURG SO THE PARK RANGER CHASED ME OFF AS SOON AS I WAS SPOTTED TAKING PHOTOS.