Mount Vernon will continue to serve as the recognized premier global resource for information on George Washington.
We will further our efforts to assume the role as The Center for the Study of George Washington by augmenting our sponsorship of original scholarly research, exchange and publishing.
This initiative will include presenting exceptional scholars and speakers to select audiences, as well as developing closer partnerships with institutions and individuals who possess significant objects related to George Washington or offer esteemed programs about our First President.
Mount Vernon also plans to continue acquiring an array of original George Washington artifacts through auction against competitive bidders or through private sales—part of our ongoing but costly effort to bring these items from the marketplace to the home where they belong.
This initiative will help us mark the 150th anniversary in 2010 of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association’s taking possession of the estate in 1860; the campaign will serve as a platform to reassert Mount Vernon’s preeminence in U.S. historic preservation.
Meanwhile, we will focus on bringing our historic Mount Vernon collection into the 21st century with the cataloging and photography of our holdings, ensuring their conservation and allowing us to present an enormous variety of images online.
We will firmly establish our website as the worldwide premier source of information and opinion about George Washington by virtue of electronic access to his papers and our collection. Enhancements to our online educational opportunities for teachers and students are slated too.
Our plans call for digitally mapping many of the estate’s historic landscapes, structures and archaeological sites and providing Internet access to them. A heavy emphasis will be placed on interactive games and puzzles to engage younger Americans; features like lectures-on-demand, blogs and online contests will appear.
