Presidential Chair

The swivel-seated desk chair was made by Thomas Burling in New York City in 1790. George Washington used this chair throughout his presidency, first in New York and later in Philadelphia. When he returned to Mount Vernon in 1797, he brought the chair and used it in his study. It is interesting to think of Washington seated in this chair making decisions that affected the running of the new nation. Washington left his presidential chair to Dr. James Craik, who had been his physician and friend for 40 years. Later a Craik heir presented it to Andrew Jackson, and it was placed in Jackson's home, the Hermitage. The Jackson heirs sold the chair to the Mount Vernon in 1905.