Presidential Grave Hunter: One Kid's Quest to Visit the Tombs of Every President and Vice President

by Kurt Deion

Overview

In 2003, nine-year-old presidential enthusiast Kurt Deion presented his father with an audacious request: would he help him follow in the footsteps of historian Richard Norton Smith and C-SPAN founder Brian Lamb by taking him to visit the final resting place of each dead U.S. president? He got all he asked for, and more.

Deion's journey to these tombs, and from elementary school neophyte to college history major, was unorthodox. With his zany, boundary-pushing father at the wheel, the straight-laced youngster found himself sneaking a camera past Secret Service agents, purposely locked in a cemetery enclosed with barbed wire, and handcuffed to the former Dallas homicide detective who was tethered to alleged JFK assassin Lee Harvey Oswald when he was shot by Jack Ruby. Most daringly, he (reluctantly) gained entry to a vice president's private family burial ground in order to possibly become the lone person to have visited each presidential and vice presidential grave, collectively.

In this history-driven memoir, Deion reconstructs his decade-long, cross-country quest and analyzes the evolution of his perspective on the commanders-in-chief and what it means to visit a cemetery.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798218141738
Publisher:	Presidential Grave Hunter
Publication date:	05/09/2023
Pages:	250
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.53(d)

About the Author

KURT DEION holds an M.A. in history, specializing in public history. At age 14 he launched kurtshistoricsites.com as a means to both document his travels and to encourage others to visit gravesites and engage in hands-on history. His website and his cemetery pilgrimages were the subject of a 2015 interview on the C-SPAN show "Q&A."

Editorial Reviews

These days, it's Kurt's scholarship, accessible prose, and deep knowledge of the topic of the American presidency that make his book a must-read for a wide audience. Buy one for yourself, buy one for those looking to give purpose to their travel, and buy one for a young person who needs a bit of inspiration.

AntiqueWeek - Barbara Miller Beem

In Presidential Grave Hunter, Kurt Deion combines his wide-eyed boyhood obsession to visit every American president and vice-president's grave with an accomplished scholarship of the public historian he became. Parts memoir, history, and madcap adventure, Presidential Grave Hunter offers a unique, informative, and entertaining lens into presidential history. From the solitude of Martin Van Buren's Kinderhook tombstone to the national spotlight on C-SPAN, I enjoyed every page and every grave. As part of my own research, I've been to each president's final resting place, but after reading Presidential Grave Hunter, I'm compelled to visit them all over again!
—Louis L. Picone, author of Grant's Tomb and The President Is Dead!, for Goodreads

Presidential Grave Hunter provides an extraordinary look at American History that is at once highly unique and thoroughly captivating. It's a must read for every student of our nation's narrative and everyone who loves exceptional, unusual adventures. Kudos to Kurt on a great accomplishment!
—Donald M. Stinson, author of Downstairs at the White House, for Goodreads

From the Publisher