This is an accepted version of this page Mount Vernon is the former residence and plantation of George Washington, a Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States, and his wife, Martha.

An American landmark, the estate lies on the banks of the Potomac River in Fairfax County, Virginia, approximately 15 miles south of Washington, D.C..

[12] Construction on the present mansion at Mount Vernon began in approximately 1734 and was built in incremental stages by an unknown architect under the supervision of Augustine Washington.

The completion of the colonnades cemented the classical Palladian arrangement of the complex and formed a distinct cour d'honneur, known at Mount Vernon as Mansion Circle, giving the house its imposing perspective.

In addition to its second story, the importance of the corps de logis is further emphasized by two large chimneys piercing the roof and by a cupola surmounting the center of the house; this octagonal focal point has a short spire topped by a gilded dove of peace.

"[23] Efforts have been made to restore the rooms and maintain the atmosphere of the 18th century; this has been achieved by using original color schemes and by displaying furniture, carpets and decorative objects which are contemporary to the house.

The newer tomb in which the bodies of George and Martha Washington have rested since 1831 is south of the fruit garden; the slave burial ground is nearby, a little farther down the hillside.

[7] In 1739, Lawrence, having reached 21 years of age, began buying up parcels of land from the adjoining Spencer tract, starting with a plot around the grist mill on Dogue Creek.

Washington had rooms added to the north and south ends, unifying the whole with the addition of the cupola and two-story piazza overlooking the Potomac River.

In a letter dated 20 September 1765, Washington writes about receiving poor returns for his tobacco production: Can it be otherwise than a little mortifying then to find, that we, who raise none but Sweetscented Tobacco, and endeavour I may venture to add, to be careful in the management of it, however we fail in the execution, and who by a close and fixed corrispondance with you, contribute so largely to the dispatch of your Ships in this Country shoud [sic] meet with such unprofitable returns?

I should be very glad to know at the sametime how rough and undressd Flax has generally, and may probably sell; for this year I have made an Essay in both, and altho I suffer pretty considerably by the attempt, owing principally to the severity of the Drougth [sic], and my inexperience in the management I am not altogether discouraged from a further prosecution of the Scheme provided I find the Sales with you are not clogd with too much difficulty and expence.The tobacco market declined, and many planters in Northern Virginia converted to mixed crops.

In 1797, farm manager James Anderson, a recent Scottish immigrant, suggested the establishment of a whisky distillery,[43] which proved to be the estate's most profitable business venture over the decade of its operation.

Children without parents, or those whose families were too poor or indifferent to see to their education, were to be bound out (or apprenticed) to masters and mistresses who would teach them reading, writing, and a useful trade, until they were ultimately freed at the age of twenty-five.

[45] When Martha Washington's first husband, Daniel Parke Custis, died without a will, she received a life interest in one-third of his estate, including the slaves.

[47] Congress passed a joint resolution to construct a marble monument in the United States Capitol for his body, an initiative supported by Martha.

[49] A joint Congressional committee in early 1832 debated the removal of Washington's body from Mount Vernon to a crypt in the Capitol, built by Charles Bulfinch in the 1820s.

The largest part of his estate, which included both his papers and Mount Vernon, passed to his nephew, Bushrod Washington, an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.

[53] Bushrod Washington did not inherit much cash and was unable to support the upkeep of the estate's mansion on the proceeds from the property and his Supreme Court salary.

[55] In 1858, Washington sold the mansion and a portion of the estate's land to the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association, which was under the leadership of Ann Pamela Cunningham.

Using that knowledge, Dodge oversaw the restoration of the site completed by Charles Wilson Killam,[57] and put in place a number of improvements that Washington had planned but had never implemented.

In 1974, a campaign he organized was successful in preserving as parkland areas in Maryland across the Potomac River from Mount Vernon, as part of an effort to retain the bucolic vista from the house.

The fully functional replica received special legislation from the Virginia General Assembly to produce up to 5,000 US gal (19,000 L) of whiskey annually, for sale only at the Mount Vernon gift shop.

[10] In addition to the mansion, visitors can see original and reconstructed outbuildings and barns (including slaves' quarters), an operational blacksmith shop, and the Pioneer Farm.

The non-profit Mount Vernon Ladies' Association has not received any funds from the federal government to support the restoration and maintenance of the mansion and the estate's 500-acre (2.0 km2) grounds or its educational programs and activities.

Following a $110 million fundraising campaign, two new buildings that GWWO, Inc./Architects had designed opened in 2006 as venues for additional background on George Washington and the American Revolution.

The Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center houses many artefacts related to Washington along with multimedia displays and further films using modern entertainment technology.

At this point Bolton, Wagner, Wall, and Moyaone resident Robert W. Straus developed a decades-long plan to protect the Mount Vernon viewshed, which came to be known as Operation Overview.

Its purpose was to "preserve lands which provide the principal overview from the Mount Vernon Estate and Fort Washington" in order to designate 133 acres (54 ha) around Mockley Point, which was to be the site of water treatment plant, as a national landmark.

[84] The Fairfax Connector Routes 101, 151 and 152 buses travel daily between the Mount Vernon estate and the Huntington station on Washington Metro's Yellow Line.

[85] The Route 11C Metrobus travels between the estate and the Braddock Road station on Metro's Blue and Yellow Lines during weekday peak hours.