Now to Part 2 of my encounter with Chris Matthews and his book “Jack Kennedy: Elusive Hero.”

Despite early word that the MSNBC host would not sign books, at the end of his talk, Matthews said he would stay to autograph copies for anyone who wanted them.

Baltimore definitely lived up to its former slogan “the City that Reads” as about as 500 people packed the main atrium of the Enoch Pratt Free Library Thursday to hear MSNBC’s Chris Matthews speak about his book “Jack Kennedy: Elusive Hero.” Matthews shared his insights on Kennedy’s early years, his illnesses and how they affected his life, and his drive to be a career politician, studying and mastering the craft of “retail politics.”

Who is the man immortalized in this statue on Baltimore’s Mount Vernon square? I see this statue often, so I wondered: just who is Severn Teackle Wallis?

I had never heard of Paul Jennings until we encountered him on a Nerd Trip to Montpelier, home to our fourth president James Madison. Jennings was a slave who served as Madison’s personal assistant during the White House years and afterward. Jennings is a fascinating witness to history, writing the first White House memoir, called “A Colored Man’s Reminiscence of James Madison,” published in 1865. I bought a copy at the Montpelier gift shop.

“Behold The Man,” that’s the phrase on this American folk art watercolor I discovered today at the Maryland Antiques Show. The painting shows George Washington with his arm extended in the style of the famous Gilbert Stuart painting.

The original idea of Nerd Trips started with visits to presidential homes, birthplaces, burial sites and libraries, so Presidents Day seems like something we should acknowledge!
I enjoy visiting these places because you learn about our presidents as people: their likes and dislikes, hobbies, quirks, families and even foibles. Here are a few random facts from the places we’ve visited.

As much as I enjoy visiting historic homes, I also like to know how stuff works, particularly things in everyday life that we may never think about. (For example, I think airports are fascinating, there’s so much going on). I was fascinated to learn about the “Modern Marvel” of the convenience story.