Mount Vernon, Washington DC

Mount Vernon is the most popular historic home in America, where you can stroll four different gardens, hike the Forest Trail, and explore the real George Washington..

Located just 16 miles south of Washington, D.C. and 8 miles south of Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, the plantation rests on the banks of the Potomac River. Visitors are invited to tour the Mansion house and more than a dozen outbuildings including the slave quarters, kitchen, stables, and greenhouse. Pioneer Farmer site, a four-acre working farm that includes a re-creation of Washington’s 16-sided treading barn. George and Martha Washington rest in peace in the tomb where wreath laying ceremonies are held daily, and the Slave Memorial and Burial Ground is nearby.

Visitors learn about Washington’s exceptional life and accomplishments through interactive displays, a major movie, short films produced by The History Channel, and high-tech immersive experiences. Three life-size models created by a team of artists and forensic and computer experts depict Washington as never before seen at three significant stages of his life - including as a land surveying teenager - which dispel the elder statesman icon and encourage people to think about Washington in a new way: an incomparable American hero who evolved from a young man of modest means into this country’s greatest president.

A rich and comprehensive collection of objects introduce Washington’s world in a new state-of-the-art museum. Visitors get an unprecedented look at furnishings, china, silver, clothing, jewelry, Revolutionary War artifacts, rare books and manuscripts, and other personal effects of the Washington family. Some of these treasures are exhibited at Mount Vernon for the first time in the newly opened Ford Orientation Center and Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center, where visitors are introduced to the real George Washington. The facilities include 25 galleries and theaters, interactive displays, and more than 700 artifacts. The most famous dentures in the world are on permanent display, along with three life-size models of Washington created from a forensic investigation.

Washington was also a successful business entrepreneur and innovative farmer. Three miles from his home visitors can tour his Distillery and Gristmill. At the Distillery, visitors will be able to see costumed distillers operating five copper stills, stirring mash tubs, and managing the boiler as they demonstrate 18th-century distilling. The two-story building also features a storage cellar with barrels, an office, and two bedrooms where the site manager and assistant would have lived. The Distillery and adjacent Gristmill are open April 1 - October 31, with costumed distillers and millers operating the fascinating water-powered machinery in both buildings.

Open the door to George Washington’s world, and share a part of Mount Vernon... past, present, and future.