George Washington's Home: Mount Vernon, Virginia

George Washington lived at Mount Vernon, his plantation estate on the Potomac River in Fairfax County, Virginia (16 miles south of Washington, D.C.).

• Acquired: Inherited from half-brother Lawrence (1752); expanded from 2,000 to 8,000 acres.
• Mansion: 21-room Palladian-style house; iconic piazza overlooking the river.
• Farms: Five farms rotating wheat, corn, legumes; pioneering crop rotation, composting.
• Enslaved labor: 317 enslaved people at his death (1799); freed in his will (effective after Martha's death).
• Presidency: Commuted to NYC/Philadelphia; returned to Mount Vernon for holidays.
• Today: Owned by Mount Vernon Ladies' Association (since 1858); open daily as museum.

Mount Vernon symbolizes Washington's identity as a farmer-statesman.