A-Z Index

Explore the wide range of subjects related to George Washington’s world and the colonial and founding eras.

The Digital Encyclopedia of George Washington was generously supported by Richard and Bonnie Dial in memory of Irby and George Prendergast.

Agriculture

16-Sided Barn

16-Sided Barn

The 16-Sided barn on Washington's Dogue Run farm was one of the most innovative structures at Mount Vernon

Learn More

American Revolution

Battle of Princeton

Battle of Princeton

On January 3, 1777, Continental Army soldiers under the command of General George Washington defeated a force of British troops near Princeton, New Jersey. The action was part of a larger campaign to…

Learn More

American West

The "Indian Prophecy"

The "Indian Prophecy"

In October 1770, George Washington, his personal physician Dr. James Craik, and a group of fellow soldiers journeyed to the Ohio Country. According to Craik's recollections, an indigenous sachem (local…

Learn More

Animals

Dogs

Dogs

There were many dogs living at Mount Vernon during George Washington's lifetime. These animals were owned by George and Martha Washington, by her grandchildren, by friends, and by slaves who lived on…

Learn More

Artists

Washington Irving

Washington Irving

Washington Irving was one of the most famous American authors of the nineteenth century. While he is primarily remembered for short stories such as “Rip van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow…

Learn More

Enslaved Community and Slavery

William (Billy) Lee

William (Billy) Lee

William Lee spent two decades as George Washington's enslaved valet accompanied him nearly everywhere.

Learn More

Family

Elizabeth Parke Custis Law

Elizabeth Parke Custis Law

Elizabeth Parke Custis Law was the eldest of Martha Washington's four surviving grandchildren.

Learn More

Food and Drink

Recipe for Small Beer

Recipe for Small Beer

George Washington’s recipe for “Small Beer” appears in a 1757 notebook of his, which can be found today in its original form at the New York Public Library.

Learn More

Gardens

Upper Garden

Upper Garden

The upper garden was established in the 1760s and paralleled the lower or kitchen garden to its south. This garden was initially planted with fruit and nut trees, and was walled and rectangular in shape…

Learn More

Mansion

New Room

New Room

Washington's New Room is the largest and most ornate of the rooms found within the Mount Vernon mansion.

Learn More

Military

French and Indian War

French and Indian War

The French and Indian War (1754-1763) is the name given to the North American theatre of the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763), a global conflict involving the major powers of Europe. Though war was not formally…

Learn More

Mount Vernon

Tomb

Tomb

Learn more about the New Tomb at Mount Vernon - the Washington's final resting place.

Learn More

Objects

Bastille Key

Bastille Key

In 1790 George Washington received the key to the Bastille prison from an appreciative Marquis de Lafayette. It remains at Mount Vernon to this day.

Learn More

Personal

Alexandria Academy

Alexandria Academy

Incorporated by the Virginia Assembly in 1786, the Alexandria Academy, located in George Washington’s home community of Alexandria, Virginia, embodied his commitment to the education of all Americans,…

Learn More

Politics

Aurora General Advertiser

Aurora General Advertiser

Founded by Benjamin Franklin Bache, the Aurora General Advertiser was published in Philadelphia between 1794 and 1824. Bache, the grandson of Benjamin Franklin, established the Aurora as a Republican newspaper…

Learn More

Preservation

Mount Vernon Guidebooks: 1876-1936

Mount Vernon Guidebooks: 1876-1936

In the first sixty years of the Mount Vernon guidebooks, the Mount Vernon Ladies? Association (MVLA) advertised the plantation as an idyllic shrine to George Washington.

Learn More

Presidency

Creek Nation

Creek Nation

The Creek or Muscogee Nation (Este Mvskokvlke) is a modern, federally-recognized Native American tribe in the United States.

Learn More

Servants and Laborers

Login
Buy Tickets Activities Calendar Shop Restaurant Give Membership
Estate Hours

9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

iconDirections & Parking
buy tickets online & save