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Museums/Historical
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George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens: Just off Richmond Highway, visit
George Washington Parkway
George Washington’s Distillery and Gristmill: George Washington's whiskey distillery once was one of the largest operations of its kind in America and was one of the most successful economic enterprises at Mount Vernon. From April through October, costumed distillers demonstrate the 18th-century process of distilling, operating stills, mash tubs, and a boiler in the two-story building that also includes an office and living quarters.
At the adjacent gristmill, millers in period costume operate the giant machine that turns grain into flour and corn into meal. The 18th-century mill has been authentically reconstructed to allow visitors to see the water-powered mill in operation, discover how it works, and learn how this particular mill played an important role in Washington's vision for America's future.
5514 Mount Vernon Memorial Highway
Woodlawn Plantation: The mansion was designed by William Thornton, architect of the first U.S. Capitol. Woodlawn was the home of Eleanor Custis and Lawrence Lewis, Martha Washington’s granddaughter and George Washington’s nephew. Many Washington and Lewis family heirlooms and furnishings are on display.
9000 Richmond Highway Frank Lloyd Wright’s Pope-Leighy House: Designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright for an average-income family, the house was completed in 1942. In 1964, it was moved from its original site in Falls Church to its present location on the grounds of Woodlawn Estate. A compact modern house built for efficiency, it is a marked contrast to the spacious Woodlawn Estate mansion next door. The house is owned and operated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
9000 Richmond Highway
Collingwood Library and Museum on Americanism: Originally part of George Washington’s River Farm, the Collingwood Library is now a unique library on Americana. With its extensive collection of books on American heritage and a genealogy section on loan from the Mayflower Society of Washington, the library also houses a Sioux chief’s headdress, a tribute to Uncle Sam and replicas of the Constitution and the Magna Carta.
8301 East Boulevard Drive
Fort Hunt Park: Situated along the Potomac River, Fort Hunt Park was once part of George Washington's estate. The original fort was built during the Spanish-American War as a defense fortification for the nation's capital. During World War II, the park served as an interrogation camp for captured German submarine crews. Today original batteries are still accessible to visitors, though no vestiges of the POW camp remain.
George Washington Memorial Parkway
Gum Springs Museum: Former slave West Ford founded the community of Gum Springs after being freed by George Washington. Located close to the Mount Vernon Estate, the community was a haven for freedmen and runaways. Assisted by Quakers, the freed slaves worked in the trades they learned as estate slaves. Many activities, including exhibits at the Gum Springs Museum, celebrate the long continuity of this historic black community. Today, Gum Springs has more than 2,500 residents; approximately 500 are descendants of the original families.
River Farm: River Farm is a 25-acre estate once owned by George Washington and is the headquarters of the American Horticultural Society. Overlooking the Potomac River, the farm’s gardens include rose and perennial borders, idea gardens, children’s gardens and special plantings by local horticultural societies.
7931 East Boulevard |
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the new Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center and the Ford Orientation Center at the home of America’s first presidient. You will find 500 original artifacts, hands-on exhibits, original movies, and high-tech, immersion experiences that illuminate George Washington's remarkable life. The Ford Center and the Reynolds Museum and Education Center are the major components of an unprecedented $100 million capital development campaign at Mount Vernon.
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