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Washington Library

The Digital Encyclopedia of George Washington

Explore the wide range of subjects related to George Washington’s world and the colonial and founding eras.

The Digital Encyclopedia of George Washington was generously supported by Richard and Bonnie Dial in memory of Irby and George Prendergast.

Agriculture (14)
American Revolution (133)
American West (18)
Animals (12)
Artists (15)
Enslaved Community and Slavery (52)
Family (28)
Food and Drink (14)
Gardens (5)
Mansion (15)
Military (31)
Mount Vernon (22)
Objects (13)
Personal (71)
Politics (28)
Preservation (20)
Presidency (37)
Servants and Laborers (58)

Agriculture

Muddy Hole Farm

Muddy Hole Farm was one of the five farms that made up the Mount Vernon estate. Located in the northeast corner of the plantation, running alongside Little Hunting Creek, Muddy Hole is said to have lived…

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American Revolution

Battle of Stony Point

In early 1779, Parliament sent a directive to General Sir Henry Clinton, commander of British forces in America, to bring George Washington into a general action at the start of the campaign.

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American West

Northwest Ordinance

After gaining independence from Great Britain, one of the many contentious issues facing the United States were competing claims to western lands. These lands were generally referred to as the Northwest…

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Animals

Dogs

There were many dogs living at Mount Vernon during George Washington's lifetime. These animals were owned?

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Artists

Washington Irving

Washington Irving was one of the most famous American authors of the nineteenth century. While he is primarily remembered for short stories such as “Rip van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow…

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Enslaved Community and Slavery

Hercules

Hercules, a member of the Mount Vernon enslaved community, became widely admired for his culinary skills.

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Family

Martha Parke Custis Peter

Martha "Patty" Parke Custis was born on December 31, 1777, in one of the second-floor bedchambers at Mount Vernon.

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Food and Drink

Recipe for Small Beer

George Washington’s recipe for “Small Beer” appears in a 1757 notebook of his, which can be found today in its original form at the New York Public Library.

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Gardens

Upper Garden

The upper garden was established in the 1760s and paralleled the lower or kitchen garden to its south?

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Mansion

Palladian Window

The Palladian (also called Venetian) window on the north elevation of Mount Vernon is one of the house's most distinctive features. The window illuminates the large dining room (known as the new room)…

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Military

Pontiac's Rebellion

Pontiac’s Rebellion (1763-1765) was an armed conflict between the British Empire and Algonquian, Iroquoian, Muskogean, and Siouan-speaking Native Americans following the Seven Years’ War. Also known as…

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Mount Vernon

Tomb

Learn more about the New Tomb at Mount Vernon - the Washington's final resting place.

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Objects

Bastille Key

In 1790 George Washington received the key to the Bastille prison from an appreciative Marquis de Lafayette. It remains at Mount Vernon to this day.

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Personal

Fisher Ames (1758 - 1808) New

A politician and skilled orator, Fisher Ames served in the first four federal Congresses and was a leader of the New England Federalists. His political views were defined by distrust of popular politics…

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Politics

Aurora General Advertiser

Founded by Benjamin Franklin Bache, the Aurora General Advertiser was published in Philadelphia between 1794 and 1824. Bache, the grandson of Benjamin Franklin, established the Aurora as a Republican newspaper…

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Preservation

Early Refurnishing Efforts: Lafayette Room

Since the Mount Vernon Ladies? Association began its preservation of Mount Vernon, one bedchamber has always been interpreted as the Lafayette Room.

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Presidency

George Washington's Farewell Address

In 1796, as his second term in office drew to a close, President George Washington chose not to seek re-election. Mindful of the precedent his conduct set for future presidents, Washington feared that…

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