Archives of the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association
Guest Books and Visitor Registers
A.GB
/repositories/2/resources/25
33 Volumes
1850-present
English
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Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research during scheduled appointments. Researchers must complete the Washington Library's Special Collections and Archives Registration Form before access is provided. The library reserves the right to restrict access to certain items for preservation purposes.
Arrangement
The collection is listed here in chronological order.
Biographical / Historical
The Mount Vernon Ladies' Association has kept a record of visitors since at least 1869. One visitor register, dated 1850-1852 and kept by John Augustine Washington III, was signed by visitors who arrived to Mount Vernon by steamboat. In the earliest days of MVLA ownership, all visitors to Mount Vernon could sign the large ledgers left in the mansion or elsewhere on the property. When the amount of visitors grew too numerous to record them all, the practice changed and only VIP or special guests signed the registers. This policy continues to the present day. The guest books chronicle an interesting history of visitors to Mount Vernon, from the everyday visitor to celebrities and even royalty. The current guest book continues to be signed when special guests visit the estate.
Preferred Citation
[Name and date of item], Guest Books and Visitor Registers, Archives of the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association, Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington [hereafter Washington Library], Mount Vernon, Virginia
See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.
Scope and Contents
This is a collection of large ledgers or books with the signatures and autographs of Mount Vernon visitors and special guests. The books date from 1850 to the present day and some registers overlap in date.
Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/28711850-1852GeneralRecord of visitors arriving by steamboat. John A. Washington is written in ink on one side of the outside cover.
Visitor Register, Subscription Book/repositories/2/archival_objects/27460May 1860 - June 1865Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2872July 7, 1869 to April 20, 1871Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2873April 23, 1871 to September 3, 1874Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2874September 3, 1874 to July 10, 1876Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2875July 1876 to June 5, 1878Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2876June 5, 1878 to December 5, 1879Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2877December 8, 1879 to June 2, 1881Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2878June 3, 1881 to March 7, 1883Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2879November 2, 1882 to November 24, 1884Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2880November 24, 1884 to August 29, 1885Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2881August 31, 1885 to November 30, 1886Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2882December 1, 1886 to October 14, 1887Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2883October 24, 1887 to June 5, 1888Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2884June 5, 1888 to February 12, 1889Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2885February 12, 1889 to August 20, 1889Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2886August 20, 1889 to April 9, 1890Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2887April 9, 1890 to September 19, 1890Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2888September 20, 1890 to April 22, 1891Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2889 April 21, 1891 to September 22, 1891Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2890September 22, 1891 to April 18, 1892Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2891April 19, 1892 to August 27, 1892Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2892August 28, 1892 to October 13, 1892Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2893October 13, 1892 to March 22, 1893Mount Vernon Visitors guest book 1/repositories/2/archival_objects/2894November 15, 1893 to June 22, 1919Mount Vernon Visitors guest book 2/repositories/2/archival_objects/28951919-1953Visitor Register for Ye Little Hatchet Tavern at Mount Vernon/repositories/2/archival_objects/28961933-1934
Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2897September 10, 1936 to May 4, 1937Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2898May 5, 1937 to October 3, 1937Visitor Register/repositories/2/archival_objects/2899October 4, 1937 to June 8, 1938Mount Vernon Visitors guest book 3/repositories/2/archival_objects/29001953-19631969Mount Vernon Visitors guest book 4/repositories/2/archival_objects/29011963-1973Mount Vernon Visitors guest book 5/repositories/2/archival_objects/29021973-1988Mount Vernon Visitors guest book 6/repositories/2/archival_objects/29031988-2012