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 primary and secondary sources, videos, or interactives? Explore our Education Pages!
The Washington Library is open to all researchers and scholars, by appointment only.
Since the 1950s, the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association and many public and private partners have worked tirelessly to protect the vista that George Washington treasured.
Dominion Energy plans to build a natural gas compressor station on land directly across the Potomac River from Mount Vernon. The emissions stacks for this station threaten the iconic and historic viewshed. This view would not be possible without countless individuals and organization joining together.
By the 1950s a small community of landowners in the woods of Piscataway formed the Moyaone Association, a non-profit corporation, to develop services, such as schools and fire and police protection. The Moyaone Association and the Alice Ferguson Foundation, which worked to educate youth in the area, led the charge in fending off development. The Mount Vernon Ladies' Association (MVLA) began working with these organizations in the mid-1950s when an oil refining company considered building an oil tank farm directly across the river from Mount Vernon.
In 1955, Vice Regent of the MVLA and Congresswoman France Payne Bolton bought about 485 acres of land the oil refining company was considering. Two years later, Mrs. Bolton donated the land to the Accokeek Foundation. This Foundation was formed to organize efforts working to preserve the Maryland shoreline and began rapidly acquiring hundreds of acres of lands.
A new threat surfaced in 1960 when the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC) announced plans to build a 3-story sewage treatment plant across from Mount Vernon. Quick action was needed and alternate sites were proposed, yet WSSC was insistent on its initial location. Citizens and concerned groups rallied and under Mrs. Bolton’s leadership appealed to Congress. In 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed legislation leading to the creation of Piscataway Park, which was to be administered by the National Park Service.
The National Park Service and landowners act together to protect the river view from Mount Vernon and the beauty of the Maryland shoreline which so many call home. In addition to the land, the federal government bought scenic easements on private property make up much of Piscataway Park. Less than half of the land in Piscataway Park is owned outright by the federal government, instead, it is owned by private landholders. These easements "run with the land", meaning that once the easement is recorded, it is binding on every subsequent owner of the property in perpetuity. It is every owners’ responsibility to follow the easement recorded for their particular property and contact the National Park Service before taking any actions which might impact it.
The Trust for Public Land has also helped protect hundreds of acres of the Maryland shore. As recent as 2008, they added another 232 acres of land to those under protection in Piscataway Park.
Through federal government land purchases and the establishment of more easements along the riverbank, Piscataway Park now encompasses approximately 5,000 acres, embracing six miles of Maryland shoreline, and 415 properties opposite Washington’s home.
Do you support George Washington's beloved viewshed? Do you want to ensure its protection for future generations? If so sign Mount Vernon's petition to save our view.
We are fighting to protect Washington's view from development and need your help. Mount Vernon has never accepted government funding. We rely on people like you to preserve George Washington’s home and legacy.
George Washington loved his view across the Potomac River and for more than 60 years the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association has worked to preserve it.
