Mount Vernon is open to visitors throughout the inauguration week. We look forward to seeing you.
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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The Washington Library is open to all researchers and scholars, by appointment only.
As president, George Washington desired tablewares that would strike a stylistic balance between appearing too regal and not being sufficiently dignified enough to impress foreign dignitaries. In March 1790, he purchased a 309-piece service from the departing French minister, the Comte de Moustier. Moustier…
Queen Anne, who reigned from 1702-14, was the second daughter of James, Duke of York (later James II), and Anne Hyde. The history of this miniature begins in 1704, when Colonel Daniel Parke II, of Virginia, (who served as aide-de-camp to the Duke of Marlborough) delivered to Queen Anne the news of the…
Chinese export porcelain guglets and wash basins were ubiquitous in elite colonial residences, and George Washington's estate inventory lists them in nearly every bedchamber. The guglet, a long necked vessel for holding water, received its name from the "gug-gug-gug" sound it made when water was poured…
Chinese export porcelain guglets and wash basins were ubiquitous in elite colonial residences, and George Washington's estate inventory lists them in nearly every bedchamber. The guglet, a long necked vessel for holding water, received its name from the "gug-gug-gug" sound it made when water was poured…
Chinese hand-painted blue and white porcelain in standard patterns, such as landscape and river scenes, offered Westerners a romanticized glimpse of the exotic East and were prized for their durability and artistry. This plate is part of an extensive dinner service which once belonged to Elizabeth Willing…
Patty pans - small pans for savory pies, sweet fruit tarts, or puff pastries-came in a variety of materials, from utilitarian tin and copper to elegant Chinese porcelain. George Washington received “1 Dozn China Patty Pans” from his London agents in 1762, part of the first known set of blue-and-white…
Surviving account books, such as this original manuscript of Colonel Washington's sundry accounts 1760-1765, provide a wealth of insight into the daily operations of the Mount Vernon Estate. Colonel Washington's sundry accounts include weekly reports of work done by carpenters as well as inventories…
When looking for proper silver spoons for George Washington's camp table, it is not surprising that Colonel Clement Biddle turned to Philadelphia silversmith Richard Humphreys. Humphreys was supportive of the war cause and had fashioned a silver hot-water urn in 1774 for the members of the First Continental…
When looking for proper silver spoons for George Washington's camp table, it is not surprising that Colonel Clement Biddle turned to Philadelphia silversmith Richard Humphreys. Humphreys was supportive of the war cause and had fashioned a silver hot-water urn in 1774 for the members of the First Continental…
Martha Washington's son, John "Jacky" Parke Custis, and his new wife, Eleanor Calvert, assembled an impressive array of imported English silver soon after they married in 1774. It included twenty-four dessert spoons featuring the Custis crest. This is one of six French spoons made at a later date which…
Chinese hand-painted blue and white porcelain in standard patterns, such as landscape and river scenes, offered Westerners a romanticized glimpse of the exotic East and were prized for their durability and artistry. This plate is part of an extensive dinner service which once belonged to Elizabeth Willing…
As the Revolutionary War drew to a close, French and American officers formed the Society of the Cincinnati in the name of mutual support and friendship. The fraternity's name was inspired by the 5th-century B.C.E. Roman Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus, who left his plow to defend Rome in battle, afterwards…
Martha Washington's son, John "Jacky" Parke Custis, and his new wife, Eleanor Calvert, assembled an impressive array of imported English silver soon after they married in 1774. It included twenty-four dessert spoons featuring the Custis crest. This is one of sixteen French spoons made at a later date…
