54 Mount Vernon Facts: Details About George Washington's Home

Mount Vernon is located in Virginia in Fairfax County along the banks of the Potomac River towards the south of Washington, D.C.

Mount Vernon is a pretty famous American landmark as it is the home of the first President of the United States of America, George Washington.

It is also one of the most popular tourist destinations in America, with millions of people from all across the globe visiting the estate each year to see where George Washington and his wife, Martha Washington, lived.

Interestingly, Mount Vernon is the name of both George Washington's home and the estate on which it sits. The Washington family began expanding the Mount Vernon estate from 1734 after it was earlier granted to John Washington, the great grandfather of George Washington and John's friend Nicholas Spencer back in 1674 by Lord Thomas Culpeper.

The mansion was built in 1758 by Washington's elder half-brother Lawrence, and George Washington himself renovated the property over the years. When Lawrence Washington inherited the Mount Vernon estate from his father, Augustine Washington, it was known as 'Little Hunting Creek Plantation,' owing its name to the Little Hunting Creek located nearby.

The main house at Mount Vernon is a two-story and a half brick structure with seven bedrooms, seven to six bathrooms, and numerous other rooms, including one nicknamed the 'New Room.'

There are many exciting things to learn regarding Mount Vernon, and we have gathered some of the most amazing facts for you here!

Location Of Mount Vernon

Famously known as George Washington's estate, Mount Vernon was the family home of the Washington family for around 184 years, after which Mount Vernon Ladies Association acquired it in 1858. The estate has been their responsibility ever since.

We all know that the Mount Vernon estate is located in Virginia but let us take a closer look at the location of the Mount Vernon estate.

Mount Vernon, the ancestral home of George Washington, is located 15 mi (24.1 km) towards the south of Washington, D.C.

Located in Fairfax County, Mount Vernon is potentially one of the county's most prominent attractions overlooking the Potomac River.

The estate is located merely 8 mi (12.9 km) towards the south of the Old Town Alexandria, which serves as a base for people looking to visit this integral part of American history.

Mount Vernon is also not very far away from Washington, D.C. People who visit the estate can avail bus services of Fairfax Connector, which runs buses of routes 101, 151, and 152 traveling daily from the Huntington Station to Mount Vernon.

You can also use the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) to reach Mount Vernon from Braddock Road Station via route 11C.

Who lived at Mount Vernon?

For more than 150 years now, the Mount Vernon estate has been owned by Mount Vernon Ladies' Association, but before this, Mount Vernon was the private residence of the Washington family for years. For more than a couple of centuries, it was referred to as the home of the Washington family.

Let's look at all the people who lived at Mount Vernon through the years.

John Washington was the first one of the family to live at Mount Vernon after shifting to Virginia from London in the wake of the English Civil War.

John Washington settled at Westmoreland County along with his wife Anna Pope in 1658 as a tobacco planter.

In 1674, John Washington was granted the 5,000 acres (2023.4 ha) land on the banks of the Potomac River, which was then called the Little Hunting Creek plantation. The land was divided between Nicholas Spencer and John Washington but later was entirely inherited by John's family later.

Following the death of John Washington, the property was inherited by Lawrence Washington in 1677. Lawrence Washington had claimed the eastern part of the land, shared between Spencers and Washingtons.

After the death of Lawrence Washington in 1698, the current day Mount Vernon was inherited by Lawrence's infant daughter, Mildred Washington. She owned the estate from 1698-1726 when she decided to sell it to George Washington's father, Augustine Washington.

Augustine had purchased the Little Hunting Creek plantation from Mildred in 1726 itself but lived at Pope's Creek plantation till 1734, which is also the birthplace of George Washington, the first president of the United States.

Later the same year, Augustine shifted to Little Hunting Creek plantation and his wife and George Washington.

Interestingly, the current day mansion, open for visitors, was initially built by Augustine Washington itself, the father of George Washington.

When Augustine died in 1743, the estate was bequeathed to Augustine's eldest son, Lawrence Washington, the elder half-brother of George Washington.

Did you know Lawrence Washington renamed the Little Hunting Creek plantation to Mount Vernon as we know it today?

Upsettingly, Lawrence Washington suffered from tuberculosis and passed away in 1752, leaving Mount Vernon to his only child, Sarah Washington. He mentioned in his will that if Sarah passed away without any heir, the estate is to be passed on to Lawrence's widow Anne Fairfax.

Sadly, Sarah Washington was the owner of Mount Vernon for only two years, from 1752-1754, as she passed away and left Mount Vernon to Anne Fairfax.

But by the time Sarah passed away, Anne had remarried and was not a resident at Mount Vernon, and she thus started to lease the property to George Washington. Eventually, when Anne died in 1761, George Washington became the sole owner of Mount Vernon and began living there with Martha Washington.

George Washington owned Mount Vernon for a total of 38 years, from 1761 till his death on December 14, 1799.

Although once George Washington was formally acknowledged as the owner of Mount Vernon, there were long periods when he did not stay in Virginia due to his work commitments.

Initially, when he was a part of the American Revolution, he did not stay at Mount Vernon, Virginia, for long. Eventually, George Washington went on to become the first U.S. president in 1789 and remained so for two terms, a total of eight years away from Mount Vernon, Virginia.

Once George Washington stepped down from the presidency, he went back to spend the remaining days of his life at Mount Vernon, but this leisure only lasted a couple of years.

Following the death of George Washington, Mount Vernon was passed on to Martha Washington, who kept it running till 1802. As the couple had no child, she transferred Mount Vernon to Bushrod Washington, nephew of George Washington.

Bushrod Washington owned Mount Vernon from 1802 to 1829. He was a reputed judge of the U.S. Supreme Court by profession and thus spent most of his time away from Mount Vernon.

Interestingly, Bushrod had introduced some new construction styles and patterns to the estate, but the condition of the mansion began to deteriorate during the time Bushrod was in charge.

Coincidentally, it was during his ownership period that Virginia's agricultural state declined, and some sightseers played a crucial role in the deterioration of the estate's condition.

Bushrod passed away in 1829 without any children of his own and transferred the ownership of Mount Vernon to his nephew, John Augustine II.

John Augustine II built a new family vault while looking after the estate till his death in 1832.

Following her husband's demise in 1832, Jane Charlotte Blackburn Washington maintained Mount Vernon to the best of her abilities till 1850.

During her ownership in 1835, a fire broke out in the mansion, which led to the destruction of a part of the quarters designated for the enslaved people and the greenhouse of George Washington.

From 1841, she had begun to lease the property to her son, John Augustine III, for a sum of money until he officially inherited the property in 1850 following the demise of his mother.

John Augustine III was the last of the Washington family to formally own the estate. He practiced agriculture on the lands of the estate using scientific methods utilized fishery and lumber for some funds, but it was all in vain.

The estate was opened for visitors, which, although it did bring in some money, depreciated the condition of the estate.

Eventually, he decided to sell the estate and made several attempts to sell it to the government, but he was unsuccessful.

In the end, it was the Mount Vernon Ladies Association under the leadership of Louisa Cunningham who stepped in to buy Mount Vernon.

It took some time for the Mount Vernon Ladies Association to accumulate all the funds, but they paid the purchase amount in 1860 and opened Mount Vernon for the public from the same year.

Mount Vernon's Architecture

Currently, Mount Vernon is spread over an area of 500 acres (202.3 ha) which has significantly reduced from the time George Washington lived here. During the period of George Washington, Mount Vernon was spread across an area of around 8,000 acres (3,237.5 ha).

The main house building is generally based on Palladian architectural style, but let us take a closer look at it.

Did you know the main block of the house, which was constructed in 1734, was merely one and a half storied and had a garret too?

Later, there was an expansion that saw the house's roof being raised to the second story along with a third-floor garret.

Another expansion took place in 1774 when the southern part of the building got a two-storied wing.

In 1775, there was further extension which saw a couple of single-story secondary wings being added to the principal building.

Interestingly, these secondary wings were made available for the servants and the kitchen. The servant's hall was housed on the northern side of the house, whereas the kitchen was housed on the southern side of the house.

In 1776, the northern part of the house received an extension with a two-story room being added.

Although there is no concrete evidence about who designed Mount Vernon, many believe it was John Ariss' design, a leading Virginia architect of that time.

The interiors of Mount Vernon have been repurposed to match the time when George Washington lived. Currently, there are a number of rooms such as the study of Washington, a couple of dining rooms with the larger one being denoted as the 'New Room.'

Some other rooms include the parlor in the front, kitchen, the parlor in the west, and additional bedrooms.

Interior, in general, is believed to be of Palladian architectural style and later neoclassical style, which is linked with Robert Adam.

The principal rooms and doorcases of the building exhibit varying styles of architecture. The ceilings particularly display a Neoclassical style of architecture.

The building is primarily made of wood, but the cellar walls and the small staircase to the west are made up of Aquia stone.

Did you know there are a total of 21 rooms within the estate?

Interestingly, there was also a greenhouse at Mount Vernon where George Washington grew orange trees, sago palms, and lemon. It was a treat for the guests.

Facts About Mount Vernon

Mount Vernon is one of the most popular tourist spots in Virginia, and it is visited by a large number of people as a historical, emotional place being the house of George Washington.

Ever since the Mount Vernon Ladies Association took over as the owners of the estate, the public has had complete access to it, but still, there are some facts people might not be aware of.

Unlike most great houses in particular and buildings in general, Mount Vernon is not symmetrical.

Interestingly, the evidence says that George Washington wanted the estate to be symmetrical, but as it currently stands, the windows are asymmetrical, and the cupola doors do not align.

On top of the cupola of Mount Vernon, there is a weathervane in the shape of a dove. Unfortunately, the dove had to be replaced with its replica back in 1993 due to deterioration in air quality from rising air pollution.

Did you know there is a basement under Mount Vernon? However, there are no secret passages that emerge from it.

In 1798, Washington had hosted an event at Mount Vernon, which had around 677 guests speaking leaps and bounds about the size of the mansion.