Mount Vernon on the World Stage

Lacking a strong central government after the Revolutionary War, the states quarreled among themselves and some even established proprietary regulations, tariffs, and currency. To ensure mutually profitable commerce on the shared waterways of the Potomac River, the legislators of Virginia and Maryland recognized the need for an agreement between the two states. Washington invited commissioners from Virginia and Maryland to Mount Vernon in 1875 to discuss navigational rights in the states' common waterways. The Mount Vernon Conference successfully initiated the concept of regular meetings between states to discuss areas of mutual concern.

Washington was not the only one who saw the value in diplomatic meetings at Mount Vernon. Since his death, many US officials have hosted foreign leaders on the estate. A few key visits include President James Buchanan accompanied British Prince Albert (future King Edward VII). In April 1917, a group including members of the British and French War Commissions, US Cabinet, the British and French Ambassadors, among many others toured the estate. First Lady Lou Hoover accompanied the Queen of Siam.

In July of 1943, Lieutenant-General Lesly McNair escorted General Henri Giraud and French officers. President Gerald Ford and French President Valery Giscard d’Estaing celebrated the bicentennial of the United States at Mount Vernon. President George H. W. Bush and the Crown Prince of Jordan, H. R. H. Prince Muhammed bin Talal visited. President Ronald and Nancy Reagan celebrated Washington’s 250th birthday on the estate. President Nicolas Sarkozy of France and President George W. Bush held a closed-session meeting with advisors in the New Room of the Mansion.

In the early 1950s, the view from Mount Vernon became threatened by a plan to build an oil tank farm directly across the Potomac River. Vice Regent and Congresswoman Frances Payne Bolton ensured this did not happen. She purchased 485 acres of land and established the Accokeek Foundation which works to preserve the Maryland shoreline. Another threat surfaced less than a decade later. This time the National Park System established Piscataway Park to protect additional land. Since the 1960s, there have been many more battles, most recently in 2018, to ensure Washington’s beloved view remains largely unchanged.