Open 365 days a year, Mount Vernon is located just 15 miles south of Washington DC.
From the mansion to lush gardens and grounds, intriguing museum galleries, immersive programs, and the distillery and gristmill. Spend the day with us!
Discover what made Washington "first in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen".
The Mount Vernon Ladies Association has been maintaining the Mount Vernon Estate since they acquired it from the Washington family in 1858.
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Do you have some ideas already?George Washington decided to plant wheat on two of his seven large crop fields. Enslaved people who lived and worked at Mount Vernon did the planting.
They used horses or oxen and a plow like this one to make the fields ready.
This is a plow like the ones used at Mount Vernon. Which part goes through the dirt? What happens to the dirt?
Watch the video to see horses plow a field like they would have in George Washington's time. The video is from Mount Vernon today.
When the plowing was finished, enslaved field workers walked down the rows of the field. They scattered wheat seeds and covered them with dirt. The wheat was planted in the fall. It was ready to harvest by the middle of the next summer.
To harvest the wheat, enslaved workers often used a tool called a sickle. One person walked down a row, bending over to cut the wheat close to the ground. Another person followed behind, picking up the cut wheat and tying it into bundles. The bundles of cut wheat, called sheaves, were stacked together.
Look at this illustration from the late 1700s. The tools are similar to the ones used in the fields at Mount Vernon. Find the sickle.
How might other people use the other tools? What other questions can you ask about the picture?
How did people plant and harvest wheat at Mount Vernon? Download worksheetThink about what you read and watched. Look back if you need to. Then write about planting or harvesting at Mount Vernon. What was the most interesting thing you learned? Write your sentences in your worksheet.
