George Washington Wired

For the past ten years, the Bill of Rights Institute has partnered with the Mount Vernon Education Dept. on a range of wonderful programs from Teachers’ Institutes to Teaching American History grants. Recently, the Bill of Rights Institute awarded their George Washington Prize for Teaching America’s Founding and a $2,500 cash award to Christopher Belch of Canton High School in Canton, Michigan. All participants of the Bill of Rights Teachers’ Institute “Shaping the Constitution: A View from Mount Vernon” are eligible to participate in the essay contest. Of his experience, Christopher said, “The privilege of being selected to attend the Bill of Rights workshop has been a dream come true! Upon first arriving at Mount Vernon, I was yet again awe struck and it is hard to find the words to describe the opportunity to get an intensive and personalized tour of the estates and the life of Washington.” Congratulations Christopher!

Across the country, leaves are turning the brightest reds and yellows, pumpkins and mums are decorating front porches, and grocery stores are finally selling those acorn squash that sat untouched all summer. Mount Vernon is preparing for autumn as well- the summer slipcovers have been replaced by heavy damask, the summer vegetables have come off the dining room table to make room for pumpkin and cabbage, and there will be no more ice cream (a Washington favorite!) until warmer weather returns. Other changes in the Washington household this autumn include:

• Martha Washington’s famous boiled ham remains on the table, which was always a favorite with the Washingtons’ many guests. Game hens are also on the table this season. Martha Washington owned Hannah Glasse’sThe Art of Cookery, which includes a recipe for dressing fowl with peas. Glasse notes that for the fall months “all sorts of fowl, both wild and tame, are in season.”
• Crabapples are in the kitchen being prepared for cider. On April 1, 1799, Washington received a letter from Nicholas Fitzhugh who wrote “I send you by the Bearer some Seed of the Hugh’s Crab apple which I have lately received…” “Hewe’s crabapple” was perhaps the most famous apple in the South for making cider. Washington cultivated crabapples at Mount Vernon and also drank crabapple cider. Crabapples are tough and not easily eaten, but Washington grew other varieties of more edible apples at Mount Vernon which were also harvested in the fall. Continue reading Autumn Settles on Mount Vernon »

Mount Vernon is proud to welcome Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts to participate in the 18th annual Scouting Days at Mount Vernon program, which will be held November 1, 2008 through Presidents’ Day. During that time, scouts in uniform or with official identification will receive free admission to Mount Vernon.

Mount Vernon will kick off the program on Saturday, November 1, 2008 with a special Scouting Day at Mount Vernon. Activities are planned around the estate to help scouts earn merit badges.

Surveying: Scouts are invited to join professional surveyors and civil engineers from around the D.C. area who will demonstrate and teach basic skills in the science of land surveying, compass surveying, distance measurement with a chain, distance measurement with steel tape and plumb bob, electronic measurements, topographic surveying, GPS and robotic instrument demonstrations, and a discussion on the role of a modern land surveyor.

Archaeology: Visit our Archaeology and Restoration Museum to participate in hands-on activities exploring the role of archaeology at Mount Vernon. Search the estate using the 1787 Vaughan Plan to determine which structures are original and what areas might contain archaeological remains. Continue reading Scouting Days are Coming! »

On October 14, 2008, the Mount Vernon Education Department and the Fairfax Network will tape a distance learning broadcast called Shaping the Presidency, which will look back at the profound impact George Washington had on defining the office of the president. The panelists will also discuss how campaigning, the election process and the role of the media affected early presidential candidacies, and how those influences have evolved.

The panelists will include Joseph J. Ellis, the Ford Foundation Professor of History at Mount Holyoke College and award-winning author of the Pulitzer Prize winning Founding Brothers and the National Book Award winner for American Sphinx. He is joined by Cokie Roberts, author of the best-selling book Founding Mothers: The Women Who Raised Our Nation and Ladies of Liberty: The Women Who Shaped Our Nation, and John P. Riley, former historian at George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estates and Gardens and present director of education and scholarship programs at the White House Historical Association.

In addition to the distance learning broadcast, the Mount Vernon Education Department has compiled a Shaping the Presidency Teaching Unit, which focuses on Washington’s remarkable accomplishments as first president. Through a compilation of lesson plans based on primary documents and the distance learning broadcast, Shaping the Presidency is designed to enrich your students’ understanding of Washington’s impact on the founding of our nation and his insight into world affairs.

You can register for the broadcast, which will air on October 23rd, or request a complimentary DVD, by contacting the Fairfax Network. If your students would like to have a question asked on air, leave a comment below with their question, student name, teacher name, grade, state and school name.