Now Available on all platforms! In this new podcast from the George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon, we'll explore George Washington as both President and precedent. From the very origins of the US presidency…
The State of the Union address may be an annual tradition now, but when Washington prepared to give his address in 1790, the expectations weighed heavily upon him. To prepare for this momentous occasion, Washington turned, p…
Washington bought a copy of Don Quixote on the last day of the Constitutional Convention. But what is so significant about this Spanish story? And what did Benjamin Franklin and the Spanish ambassador have to do with it? In …
George Washington’s commitment to professionalism went hand-in-hand with his leadership as both a general and a president. He believed strongly in creating an American army that adhered to new models of professional military…
Farming was Washington’s greatest passion, and he devoted himself to the study of new and emerging agricultural practices. Associate Curator Jessie Macleod discusses how enslaved men and women at Mount Vernon put some of the…
A message scrawled in the leaves of an antique book may seem like a trope for a gothic novel, but it is also a hidden clue into the life of Martha Washington. Like George, Martha Washington enjoyed reading and collecting boo…
Come take a journey through Revolutionary America through the eyes of a French aristocrat and natural historian. While many remember George Washington’s famous friendship with the Marquis de Lafayette, fewer are aware of his…
In the early American Republic, nationhood represented more than just an ideal. It also required a novel approach to visualizing the space and geography of the new country. Washington wanted to literally put the United State…
In the aftermath of independence, the American branch of the Church of England faced an identity crisis. The head of the Anglican Church, after all, was the King of England. So what were the faithful Anglicans to do? Make th…
When this magazine disappeared from George Washington's library, it wouldn't reappear until a hundred years later--and in the unlikeliest of places. In this episode of Secrets of Washington's Archives, research librarian Sam…
Published in 1679, The Compleat Surveyor was a textbook for those training in the field of surveying, including a young George Washington. But don’t be fooled by its simple description: its early influence on Washington woul…
What did George Washington write in his personal copy of the Constitution? Who left behind messages inside some of Washington’s books? How did Washington learn to become a professional soldier? Mount Vernon introduces its la…
