In January of 1781, British armed forces entered Virginia in strength and ravaged much of the countryside. In April, as part of this invasion, His Majesty’s sloop of war, the Savage, sailed up the Potomac burning and pillaging rebel American properties along its shores and laid at anchor April 12, 13 & 14th, just one mile upriver from General George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate. The British commander of the ship, Capt. Tomas Graves, sent a message to Lund Washington, the General’s cousin and Manager of the Estate, demanding provisions- and threatening to burn Mount Vernon if refused.
On April 25-26th, soldiers will once again come ashore, and our first person interpreters will re-enact this shocking moment in Mount Vernon’s history. More information about these exciting performances is available on our website.
It’s that time again… Colonial Days at Mount Vernon! Starting next Wed, February 17th through March 13th, our colonial crafters take up residence on the Pioneer Farm, and students have the chance to observe crafts such as paper making, candle making, woodworking, spinning and even hoe-cake cooking over an open fire. In addition, our animals are brought out to play, including our horses and baby oxen, and our costumed interpreters will be storytelling and playing colonial games. In honor of Black History Month, students will be able to visit the slave cabin and meet firsthand several of the slaves that lived and worked at Mount Vernon, including Billy Lee. Billy Lee was Washington’s enslaved man-servant for over thirty years and even rode alongside the General through the Revolutionary War.
Colonials Days is a free school program but online reservations must be made.
In a recent study of 5000 outdoor history museum visitors, 82% said that they visited these sites to “hear stories of everyday people.” The second and third runner-ups were, “because they were places for children to learn history” (79%) and, “to immerse themselves in the past” (62%).* At Mount Vernon, one of the most popular activities for visitors of all ages is the chance to meet our first person interpreters. Our first person interpreters have to strike the perfect balance between history professor and Hollywood actor, all while riding a horse, making hoe-cakes over an open fire, performing 18th century dances, or embroidering pillows. On top of that, you throw in heavy costumes, weather extremes, and fifty 8th graders trying to stump you. The South Park episode at the “1864 Pioneer Park,” always comes to mind as you watch children looking excitedly for the digital watch or the lone black hair under the white wig!
If you would like to “hear stories of everyday people” that lived in Washington’s World, Mount Vernon’s first person interpreters, such as Dr. Craik, Billy Lee, and Charlotte, can be seen on the estate everyday, rain or shine, and perform in the Greenhouse every afternoon. Visitors can also enjoy an audience with Martha Washington five days a week in the Little Theater.
More information about Washington’s World can be found on our website.
Would your students like to sing a slave song with Caroline, Martha Washington’s maidservant, or hear Billy Lee’s stories of riding alongside George Washington in the Revolutionary War? This is a privilege usually reserved for students who visit Mount Vernon on a field trip, but we are now bringing our popular Washington’s World first person interpreter program to your classroom! Washington’s World: Slave Life is the first in a series of programs where students can meet the people that lived with George Washington. If your classroom is video-conference enabled, please visit us on the CILC website to request a program. This program will be free to the first school to request it, but then resumes the regular price of $125 for a 45 minute program.
This past weekend, as part of the Now Debate This program, high school students visited Mount Vernon to learn about George Washington and paid a special visit to George Washington’s Gristmill and Distillery.The Day 2 video on their website includes Mount Vernon’s Director of Preservation, Dennis Pogue, and the Manager of the Pioneer Farm, Gristmill, and Distillery, Steve Bashore, sharing information about George Washington’s successes as a distiller, as well as the mechanics of Washington’s gristmill.
On August 9-10th, from 9:00 am-5:00 pm, the Whiskey Rebellion is coming to Mount Vernon! The Whiskey Rebellion controversy comes to Historic Mount Vernon for the first time with dramatic performances, a military encampment, militia drilling, music, open-hearth cooking, and costumed demonstrations at George Washington’s Distillery & Gristmill.
And as if this weren’t enough excitement already, starting August 4th, the event that our Gristmill and Distillery visitors have long been waiting for will finally happen!The Mount Vernon Gift Shop and Gristmill Shop will finally start selling the whiskey that has been produced at the Distillery over the past couple years.
Mount Vernon recently invited K-12 schools nationwide to request framed portraits of George Washington to display in a respectful, prominent place.
The response was overwhelming: thousands of schools submitted letters! Along with the portrait, schools received curriculum materials to help explore our first president’s contributions.
