Washington DC is a spectacular place to celebrate July 4th! The National Mall, with Washington DC’s monuments and the U. S. Capitol in the background, forms a beautiful and patriotic backdrop to America’s Independence Day celebrations.
This is an all-day event begins with a parade along Constitution Avenue and ends with an incredible display of fireworks over the Washington Monument. Almost every year Dave and I enjoy the fireworks in DC. This year, we decided to spend the 4th of July at George Washington’s Mt. Vernon estate.
Mount Vernon Estate, the historic home of George Washington and his family, is situated along the shores of the Potomac River and is one of the most scenic attractions in the Washington, DC area. Mount Vernon was named after a British Admiral, Edward Vernon, under whom Lawrence Washington served in 1740 in the Cartagena Expedition.
We already had the admission tickets and were very lucky to find a spot to park our car – somebody had just pulled out, so we went straight to the George Washington estate. It was very crowded there, but celebration was in the air: music, decorations, and day long events dedicated to Independence Day.
We walked through the Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center towards George Washington estate, where the fireworks were supposed to start around 1 p.m. We noticed the beautiful stained glass murals of The Moments of Truth on one of the walls.
According to our admission tickets, for the first time ever, visitors will be treated to daytime smoke fireworks in patriotic colors fired during the finale of the National Concert Band of America’s performance at Mount Vernon.
We moved through the crowded gardens to the back of the house, where we spotted the “soldiers” dressed in period uniforms. We got really close to the place where the fireworks will be fired. There was a crowd near the Western part of the building ready to watch fireworks as well. Some other events were going on there: free birthday cake was offered to everyone while supplies lasted and “General and Mrs. Washington” visited the area.
The “soldiers” marched to the hill next to the river and started preparing a cannon for firing. I still don’t know what the deal was, but we waited about 30 minutes, standing in the heat, before the cannon was finally ready.
The Fireworks had begun. It was different. 🙂 It was not even a tiny resemblance of the real fireworks at the National Mall. The fireworks there are incredible! The best part is that you can just sit on the grass and watch the fireworks right above your head, as opposed from the beach or the river bank. It makes you feel like you are a part of the show. The worst part is that it is always very crowded in DC at that time. You have to deal with lines even to get inside the metro station, therefore it takes a long time to get home. Here is a 3 minute video of the daytime fireworks.
Right after the fireworks we had scheduled the Potomac River narrated sightseeing cruise, which let us see George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate from a different perspective. It was great to feel the cool breeze during this 45-minute cruise.
Mount Vernon estate view from the Potomac River.
A historical fortress on the Potomac River.
As soon as we came back from the sightseeing cruise, we rushed to the estate where we had a George Washington mansion tour scheduled. Mount Vernon Estate includes a 14-room mansion that is beautifully restored and furnished with original objects dating back to the 1740’s. Photography inside the mansion is prohibited.
West side view of the Mount Vernon estate.
The view of the Potomac River is absolutely beautiful and relaxing from the West side of the estate.
The mansion tour also includes the outbuildings, including the kitchen, slave quarters, smokehouse, coach house and stables.
George Washington owned a riding chair as a young man—quite possibly his first vehicle. Mount Vernon’s riding chair did not belong to Washington but rather to his neighbor Thomas, the sixth Lord Fairfax. It was a higher-end model dating to the last quarter of the 18th century.
Popular in America and England, riding chairs could travel country lanes and back roads more easily than heavier four-wheeled chariots and coaches. The fact that vehicles were taxed based on the number of wheels they had, helped to make the two-wheeled riding chair popular (from mountvernon.org).
Here is a small horse-drawn coach, one of the George Washington’s 18th century vehicles.
Guests can encounter many of the same breeds of livestock raised at Mount Vernon two centuries ago. Hog Island sheep breed is one of them. These sheep are mostly white and have white with black speckles faces. Here is a picture of a cute black faced sheep – Hog Island sheep.
We had a nice walk through the beautiful gardens surrounding the mansion.
We payed our respects at George Washington’s tomb.
Greenhouse at Mount Vernon filled with a variety of plants and is beautifully decorated.
The Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center was made possible by a $24 million donation by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation. The new Center features 25 state-of-the-art galleries and theaters that reveal the fascinating story of George Washington’s life. The museum features six permanent galleries and a changing exhibit including some objects shown at Mount Vernon for the first time.
The building also serves as Washington’s presidential library with classroom space and computers that will provide access to more than 20,000 letters written by Washington during his lifetime (from mountvernon.org).
This gallery showcases the first life-size model of George Washington and depicts him as a 19-year-old surveyor among three dimensional trees. Forest sounds and moving animals set the stage for 18th-century western Virginia, where visitors see Washington’s original surveying tools and learn how to conduct a survey themselves.
The Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center include images of the three life sized figures of Washington as a young Virginia surveyor, commander in chief at Valley Forge and as President.
The second life-size figure of Washington depicts him as the commander in chief.
The third life-size figure of George Washington depicts him taking the oath of office on a replica of the Federal Hall balcony in 1789. Visitors have a chance to “step into Washington’s shoes” by placing their hand on a reproduction of the Bible upon which Washington took the oath of office. Following prompts, they recite the presidential oath, “I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”
The showcase below depicts resentment against Great Britain for the taxation on goods like sugar, textiles, and tea. The colonists had no representation in Parliament – “Taxation without representation”.
The Whiskey Rebellion was a tax protest in the United States beginning in 1791, during the presidency of George Washington.
3D Sculpture of George Washington fascinates the visitors by its optical illusion. The statue is carved and lit inverted so when you walk across the front of the face it looks like it is following you. Washington’s face that just seems to look at you wherever you go.
I am not a huge fan of museums, but this museum is truly impressive: enormous, very modern and full of amazing artifacts! We should visit it again and spend more time there.
