Above: Rather than welding—ruled out due to fire risk—the team opted for a bolted connection, allowing for safer, more controlled assembly on-site. (MVLA)
When the Mansion Revitalization Project set out to return Washington’s cellar to its 18th-century appearance, a critical challenge emerged: how to support the Study’s original summer beams—two massive horizontal timbers that hold up the floors above—without the cellar’s modern brick piers that had been added in the 1930s for structural support. Then, as now, Mount Vernon faced the same structural dilemma: how to discreetly reinforce the Mansion’s framework while accommodating the wear and weight of an enormous number of annual visitors.
The answer came in the form of custom-fabricated steel trusses, designed to bolster the original summer beams while remaining invisible to visitors. The trusses were carefully shaped to fit around the unique curves and twists of the 18th-century timbers—warping that occurred over time as the original beams, likely installed partially seasoned, dried unevenly.
