Collections : [The George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon]

The George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon

The George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon
3600 Mount Vernon Memorial Highway
Mount Vernon, VA 22121
Primary Collecting Areas:
George and Martha Washington, Mount Vernon, Founding Era and Early Republic, Historic preservation, Decorative arts, Mount Vernon Ladies' Association
Description:

The Fred W. Smith National Library includes general collections, special collections and archives as a resource for scholars, students, and those interested in George Washington, colonial America and the Revolutionary and founding eras.

The library's general collections include secondary source materials on the Washington and Custis families, and the colonial and founding eras.

The Special Collections materials highlight the lives of George and Martha Washington as well as their descendants through correspondence, financial materials, and original books from George and Martha Washington's library.

The archives of the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association holds the historic institutional records of the organization dating back to its founding in 1853.

POC: Reference services
Phone: (703) 780-3600
Start Over Repository The George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon Date range 1887 Names Fisher, Robert B.

Copy photograph, Visit of Queen Kapi'olani and Princess Lili-uokalani to Mount Vernon, 1887 5 Photographic Prints Box 32

The Vice Regent for the District of Columbia, Constance Ellen Tyler, brought an old family album containing the photograph of the Queen of Hawaii and her party at Mount Vernon on May 6, 1887. Mount Vernon staff member Robert B. Fisher re-photographed the pictures on March 1, 1961 for the Mount Vernon archives.

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  2. Historical Photograph Collection, 1850/2010
  3. Box 32 - Personnel (undated) and Visitors, 1800/1919
  4. Visitors - 19th c.-1909

Historical Photograph Collection, 1850/2010 89 Linear Feet Variety of container sizes based on photograph sizes and material types. Over-sized items are housed in drawers.

Mount Vernon Ladies' Association of the Union

The Historical Photograph Collection is largely comprised of materials created by or for the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association. Some of the earliest photographs of the estate were created and sold to visitors by the Association as a means of income. Those efforts helped to establish an important collection of 19th century views. The collection spans the 1850s to 2000s and includes over 140 linear feet of analog material providing a visual history of the Mansion, outbuildings, tombs, grounds, events, visitors, collection objects, personnel, and changes throughout the estate.

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Maps of Mount Vernon and the surrounding areas, 1857/1992 5 Drawers 5 full drawers with some maps located in rolled storage (combination of drawers and bins)

Maps collected by, or created by, Mount Vernon staff and the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association. Includes maps of the estate itself, as well as the surrounding neighborhood, the viewshed, and Fairfax County. Dates range from the 1850s to 1992, with bulk dates in the 1930s-1960s.

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Measured Drawings and Blueprints of Mount Vernon, 1870/2016 26 Drawers Drawings also located in rolled storage bins

This collections contains the architectural drawings of Mount Vernon including the measured drawings of the Mansion, outbuildings, and other MVLA structures. The bulk of material dates from the 1930s (during the tenure of the Director of Research and Restoration, Morley Jeffers Williams) through the 1990s. The drawings were accumulated by, and transferred to, the library/archives over time and are now compiled into this collection based on format and purpose.

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Papers of the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association, 1858/2016 72 Linear Feet 99 containers plus 14 oversize items, approx. 72 linear feet

This collection documents the care and management of Mount Vernon through the work of the MVLA. Types of material include correspondence, reports, memos, notes, personal and biographical information, news clippings, meeting agendas, photographs, scrapbooks, and ephemera. Several highlights of the collection include the original minutes of Council meetings, scrapbooks and ledgers created by Vice Regents, and early correspondence with Regents and Vice Regents. While the library's collection "Early Records of the MVLA" documents the founding and early years of the organization, the Papers of the MVLA continues where that collection ended and preserves the ongoing story of these women and the fulfillment of their mission. Creators of the collection are largely the board members themselves, along with staff and employees who worked directly with them. Scope notes have been added before the content list of each series to better describe its specific provenance and content. The bulk of the collection dates from the 1950s to the 1990s, however there is a very wide range represented overall, 1858-2016.

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Publications and Printed Material of the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association, 1854/2016 to be updated Volumes

Educating the public on the life and legacy of George Washington, colonial life, slavery, and other relevant subjects is part of the MVLA's mission. The publication of books, brochures, and other printed material is one aspect of achieving this goal. This collection combines all printed formats published by the Mount Vernon Ladies' Associaton including books, booklets, brochures, information sheets, event announcements, bylaws, and handbooks or guidebooks. Annual Reports and the Minutes of the Council provide background and information on the yearly activities and business of the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association. The material includes a wide date range, 1854 to the present.

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Series 5. Papers of the Vice Regents, 1882/2016

This series contains records that were donated or transferred to the Library by a Vice Regent or their family members. These papers were often created by individual Vice Regents during the course of their duties as MVLA members, but were not held in files at Mount Vernon. Some folders may contain personal papers. A wide range of material is represented including correspondence, subject research files, reports, articles, printed material, memos, speeches, programs, invitations, memorabilia, and ephemera. Vice Regents often collected papers concerning specific projects or committees on which they worked.

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  2. Papers of the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association, 1858/2016

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