I Climbed Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon is a remarkable place. George Washington himself called it the finest plantation in America. Granted, he could hardly be considered an impartial judge, but, considering that he never told a lie, and, having surveyed the estate myself, I cannot disagree with his assessment.
The yellow line Metro from D.C. terminates at Huntington Avenue in Alexandria, Virginia. To reach Mount Vernon you can take the No. 101 bus for a couple dollars, or, like me, miss that bus and take a $25 taxi ride to save forty minutes. That expense was worth it, however, considering what I saw, and would not have had I waited longer at Huntington Station. The historic site is managed not by the National Park Service, but since 1860 by the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, so there is a fee to enter. But, again, compared to what one may see about the place, the price is a bargain.
There is a visitor center at the entrance to the grounds, and within are a gift shop (of course), a restaurant, theaters which show educational films, and a museum with more authentic papers and artifacts than I could believe. Perhaps I had just assumed that such priceless treasures would be housed at the Smithsonian or National Archives, and, indeed, I would see Washington’s hand written inaugural address at the Library of Congress. But in the museum at Mount Vernon are many articles of clothing, swords and arms, furnishings and decorative objects that belonged to George and Martha Washington. So, too, are Washington’s horrifying dentures. Let’s just say that dental science has come a long way. During my visit there was also an exhibit of presidential china, which was lovely and fascinating.
As you leave the visitor center you follow a path that leads around some trees and soon come upon the great green lawn beyond which lies the mansion itself. The exterior walls of the house might appear from a distance to be made of stone. In fact, it is wood siding with beveled edges. The intricate plaster ceiling of the obnoxiously painted small dining room is original. The rooms inside are occupied by an astonishing amount of furniture and objects original to the house. A modest leather chair in the library was the one in which Washington sat as president of the United States.
Outside, the gardens are vast and lovely, though a bit bare in early November. Still, in the orchard was a fox jogging up and down the grounds, and there were ample sheep, as well. Beyond an astonishing cedar of Lebanon lies the tomb of the Father of Our Nation.
Mount Vernon sits high on the banks of the Potomac River. From the back porch of the mansion, looking across the wide river to the dense woods, which much look much the same as they did in the late eighteenth century, with the leaves every different color of autumn, I could easily understand why Washington loved the place so much. It is a national treasure.
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