A 'national disgrace' gets a rehab, but donations spark worry

When Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke toured Arlington House last March, he proclaimed the former home of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee a "national disgrace," with its broken windows, rotting wood and peeling paint. Susan Chumley, a park ranger at the estate where Lee lived with his 63 slaves, said visitors routinely note the mansion's dire conditions. "We've had — and excuse my language — one guy walk in and say, 'This place looks like shit,'" she said. "Other people are very respectful but say, 'I don't understand. Can you explain to me why it looks the way that it does?'" When Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke toured Arlington House last March, he proclaimed the former home of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee a "national disgrace," with its broken windows, rotting wood and peeling paint. Susan Chumley, a park ranger at the estate where Lee lived with his 63 slaves, said visitors routinely note the mansion's dire conditions. "We've had — and excuse my language — one guy walk in and say, 'This place looks like shit,'" she said. "Other people are very respectful but say, 'I don't understand. Can you explain to me why it looks the way that it does?'" After drawing 660,000 visitors last year, making it the most-visited historic home owned by the National Park Service, Arlington House shut down last week for an 18-month renovation that will be paid for largely with a $12 million donation. While Zinke has cited the house to press Congress for more public spending on park maintenance, its long-delayed rehab is also indicative of the park system's growing reliance on private funds to pay for repairs...MORE