Dr Lydia Brandt is Assistant Professor of Art History at the University of South Carolina where she teaches the history of American art and architecture as well as methods of historic preservation She was a member of the inaugural class of fellows at the Washington Library the work she did during that time led to the publication of her first book First in the Homes of His Countrymen George Washingtons Mount Vernon in the American Imagination in 2016 She discusses how replicas and imitations of Washingtons estate have risen in popularity throughout history and how the home became and American Icon Dr Brandt spoke at a Ford Evening Book Talk on December 7 2016