Benjamin Henry Latrobe, The Washington family on the terrace at Mount Vernon

family life

Soon after his arrival in America in 1796, Benjamin Henry Latrobe became friends with Bushrod Washington, nephew of George Washington. At Bushrod’s invitation, Latrobe visited Mount Vernon during his time in Virginia. This watercolor depicts a scene from that visit, with the Washington family sitting at their ease on the east-facing Terrace at Mount Vernon (Courtesy of Louise and Brad Mentzer. Image courtesy of Mount Vernon' Ladies Association).

Benjamin Latrobe

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Washington Family Life

This collection of popular songs was well-known both in England and in colonial America. In 1758, Martha Custis ordered the work from Robert Cary, one of her London agents. The collection would have been used for communal singing as part of social or family gatherings at Mount Vernon.  It is inscribed with Martha’s name in the hand of George Washington.

R. Baldwin

1775

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ML 137-W

Bathing Gown

Washington Family Life

This bathing gown is a rare example of the survival of a complete garment worn by Martha Washington. The gown, made of blue and white linen with lead weights sown into the hem for modesty, was probably worn by Martha on a 1769 trip to the mineral waters in Berkeley Springs, Virginia. The trip was primarily for the benefit of Martha’s daughter Patsy; it was hoped the waters would help cure her epilepsy (image courtesy of Mount Vernon Ladies' Association).

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Samuel Vaughan, Plan of Mount Vernon

Maps

Samuel Vaughan, an Englishman who immigrated to America, visited Mount Vernon in August 1787. In his journal, he described Mount Vernon and made the earliest-known sketch of the grounds. He later mailed George Washington a more detailed and finished plan of the estate (pictured here) based on his earlier sketch. The drawing is an invaluable resource for reconstructing what Mount Vernon looked like in George and Martha Washington’s time (image courtesy of Mount Vernon Ladies' Association).

Samuel Vaughan

1787

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Letter, Martha Washington to Elizabeth Dandridge Henley, August 20, 1797

Martha Washington as Mistress of the Household

Elizabeth Henley was Martha Washington’s youngest sister. Her daughter Frances “Fanny” Henley (not to be confused with Martha’s other niece Frances “Fanny” Bassett Washington Lear, who had died a year earlier) came to Mount Vernon for a visit in the summer of 1797. This letter informs Henley that Fanny had arrived safely. Martha also laments that she has had to take up housekeeping chores that would normally have been left to slaves. Earlier in the year, just before the Washingtons left Philadelphia at the end of George’s second Presidential term, two slaves, Ona Judge, Martha’s bodyservant, and Hercules, the cook, had both run away from the household (image courtesy of Mount Vernon Ladies' Association).

Martha Washington

1797-08-20

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Letter, Martha Washington to Fanny Bassett Washington, November 30, 1794

MW writes Fanny about the unexpected expenditure of wine on visitors while MW and GW are away in Washington.

Martha Washington

1794-11-30

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Letter, Martha Washington to Anna Maria Dandridge Bassett, August 28, 1762

Children of Martha Washington

In this letter, Martha Washington writes to her sister Anna Maria Dandridge Bassett about a variety of household news. The letter displays a characteristic social graciousness in interacting with friends and family. The grammar and spelling are erratic to modern eyes, as was characteristic of both Martha’s letters and those of the period more generally. Finally, the letter exhibits a typical preoccupation with illness and health in general, and reveals Martha’s inclination to cling to her children out of fear for their health (image courtesy of The Massachusetts Historical Society).

Martha Washington

1762-08-28

Massachusetts Historical Society

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Martha Washington's recipe for curing illness, n.d.

illness and mortality

A recipe for a medicine to cure illness.

Martha Washington

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