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.
Need help with homework? Our Digital Encyclopedia has all of the answers students and teachers need.
The Washington Library is open to all researchers and scholars, by appointment only.
Although George Washington never had any biological children, he did have a rather large family, comprised of his many siblings, step-children, and step-grandchildren.
| Father Augustine Washington (1694-1743) |
Mother Mary Ball Washington (1708-1789) |
| Brothers Samuel Washington (1734-1781) John Augustine Washington (1736-1787) Charles Washington (1738-1799) |
Sisters Betty Washington Lewis (1733 - 1797) Mildred Washington (1737-1740) |
| Half-Brothers Butler Washington (1716-1716) Lawrence Washington (1718-1752) Augustine Washington Jr. (1720-1762) |
Half-Sister Jane Washington (1722-1734) |
| Wife Martha Washington (1731-1802) |
Biological Children None |
| Step-Children Daniel Custis (1751–1754) Frances Custis (1753–1757) John "Jacky" Parke Custis (1754–1781) Martha "Patsy" Parke Custis (1756–1773) |
Step-Grandchildren Elizabeth "Eliza" Parke Custis Law (1776–1831) Martha "Patty" Parke Custis Peter (1777–1854) Eleanor "Nelly" Parke Custis Lewis (1779–1852) George Washington "Washy" Parke Custis (1781–1857) |
Martha Washington was the first first lady of the United States and spent about half of the Revolutionary War at the front with General Washington. She helped manage and run her husbands' estates and raised her children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews.
John Parke Custis, known as "Jacky" when younger and "Jack" as he got older, was around four years old when his mother Martha married George Washington.
Martha "Patsy" Parke Custis was Martha Washington and Daniel Parke Custis's youngest child. She was adopted by George Washington and spent most of her childhood at Mount Vernon.
Despite her many mythologies, George Washington's mother was a strong, complex, and anxious woman. Mary Ball Washington was a fervent reader of devotional books, frugal to a fault, and on occasion, so cash poor as to be unable to feed herself and her dependents.
Lawrence Washington was the elder half-brother of George Washington. After losing his father, young George looked to Lawrence as a paternal influence, as well as a brother.
Charles Washington was George Washington’s youngest brother. The two corresponded frequently throughout their lives.
Elizabeth "Eliza" Parke Custis Law was the eldest of Martha Washington's four surviving grandchildren.
Martha "Patty" Parke Custis Peter was born on December 31, 1777, in one of the second-floor bedchambers at Mount Vernon.
Eleanor "Nelly" Parke Custis Lewis was the youngest of Martha Washington’s three granddaughters.
George Washington Parke Custis was the only grandson of Martha Washington.
Frances "Fanny" Bassett was Martha Washington's niece. She came to live at Mount Vernon after her mother, Anna Maria Dandridge, passed away in 1777 and became very much like a daughter to Martha Washington.
Bushrod Washington was George Washington’s nephew. He served in the Continental Army, then practiced law, and in 1798 he was appointed to the Supreme Court. He also inherited Mount Vernon after George and Martha Washington died.
John Augustine Washington III was the great-grand nephew of George Washington and the last private owner of Mount Vernon.
Young Nelly Custis liked to show off her artistic side by painting and drawing.
According to family tradition, Eleanor Parke Custis painted this picture in memory of her cousin, Frances Bassett Washington Lear, who died in 1796.
30 members of George Washington's family are buried at Mount Vernon. Learn about who they were and their familial relationship to the founding father.
George and Martha Washington did not have any children of their own. However, there were always children at Mount Vernon. Together they raised Mrs. Washington’s two children as well as her four grandchildren, and several nieces and nephews.
Throughout his life, Washington had the family’s heraldic crest applied to such diverse personal belongings as silverware, wax seals, horse-drawn carriages, walking sticks, and interiors of buildings including Mount Vernon, where the coat of arms was featured in the middle of the wooden fireplace mantel in the front parlor.
Dr. Cassandra Good explores what it was like for Martha Washington's children and grandchildren to grow up at Mount Vernon.
