Mount Vernon

 

On December 21 we headed up to Washington D.C. for a Christmas visit to Mount Vernon. We have been studying the Colonial times in history. We decided to visit the home of the first president, George Washington. George Washington was a great man, not only for the general and president he became, but also for the courage it took to go against the system of slavery that he had been raised to believe was just. In his will he freed his slaves upon the death of Martha. He was the only founding father to take this step.

George Washington had a great interest in exotic animals. He had a camel brought to Mount Vernon. During our trip to Mount Vernon, A camel named Aladdin paid a visit. The children were quite taken with him.

With Mount Vernon on the Potomac river, George Washington was wise to invest in a boat dock on his estate. Supplies for Mount Vernon came up the river to the docks, were unloaded by slaves and delivered to the estate. In the spring, slaves used large nets to pull fish from the river. The fish was salted and used to feed the residence and slaves who lived at Mount Vernon.

George Washington relied heavily on the black smith to make and repair tools, and shoe horses. The original shop did not survive the years, when Mount Vernon was restored, a replica was built over top of the original foundation,

This volunteer is known as a historical interpreter.  She and the blacksmith present demonstrations of how everyday business and chores were carried out. BELOW - This rather suspicious character was found lurking outside the slave quarters and green house entrance. Vicki thought he was cute, so we decided to keep him. He sure does eat a lot!

 

The Mount Vernon main house was built to over look the Potomac river. The view from the porch is fantastic. Along the porch are about fifty chairs connected together. It is a pleasant place to set and soak up the history.

Towards the end of our visit we began to understand that we had only seen a fraction of all that is presented at this beautiful estate. We also had a better understanding of the amount of labor that must have been involved in keeping everything up and running. There is a greatness about Mount Vernon. A sublime sense of order and beauty.