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When George Washington inherited Mount Vernon in 1761, it was an estate of approximately 2,000 acres. When he died in 1799, he had built the property to almost 8,000 acres comprising five working farms: Mansion House, Dogue Run, Union, River, and Muddy Hole. Today, the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association owns approximately 500 acres that were part of the original Mansion House Farm. The basic footprint of the Mansion is 93 x 32 feet. This does not include the Piazza, or front porch of the Mansion, which runs the length of the house and is 14'3" wide. It is roughly 9,000 square feet, excluding the basement, Piazza, and cupola. From the ground to the top of the Dove of Peace weathervane, the Mansion is 59 feet high. The Mount Vernon property was owned by the Washington family for seven generations - from 1674 when King Charles II granted the land to John Washington, George Washington's great-grandfather, until 1858 when John A. Washington, III, George's great-grandnephew, could no longer afford to keep Mount Vernon running. After his two terms, Washington returned to Mount Vernon for his final days. Despite his 65 years, Washington embarked on many new projects, including a successful distillery. On December 14, 1799, the young nation was cast into mourning at the dawn of a new century with the death of the illustrious George Washington. Two hundred mourners came to Mount Vernon to say good-bye to their leader. Today, Mount Vernon welcomes over one million visitors a year, 365 days of the year.
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Because the
city was built from scratch, Washington's
regular town plan is easy to grasp. Centered
on Capitol Hill and its governmental
monoliths, the District is divided into four
quadrants - northeast, northwest, southeast
and southwest. Dozens of broad avenues , all
named after states, run diagonally across a
standard grid of streets , meeting up at
monumental traffic circles like Dupont
Circle. North-south streets are numbered,
east-west ones are lettered. There's no J
Street, an intentional slight to early
Supreme Court Justice John Jay, or X, Y or Z
Street. I Street is often written Eye
Street. Be sure to note the relevant
two-letter code in any address (NW, NE, SW,
SE), which shows its quadrant; 1600
Pennsylvania Ave NW is a long way from 1600
Pennsylvania Ave SE.
Once in the
city, stop at the
DC Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center ,
Ronald Reagan Building, 1300 Pennsylvania
Ave NW (Mon-Sat 8am-6pm, Sun noon-5pm; tel
202/328-4748), which can help with maps,
tours, bookings and citywide information.
Look for visitor information desks at the
airports and Union Station.
The White House Visitor Information Center
, 1450 Pennsylvania Ave NW (daily
7.30am-4pm; tel 202/208-1631), supplies free
maps and handy guides to museums and
attractions; the most useful is the free
Washington DC Visitors Guide .
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