Another Trip to Mount Vernon

When we visited Mount Vernon on Labor Day Weekend we had wanted to go on the National Treasure Tour but it was sold out for the day. This tour takes you behind the scenes to areas that were used in the film National Treasure: Book of Secrets and tells how these locations were used during George Washington's time. The tours were only being offered through the end of October. A couple of weeks ago when I went to the Springfield quilt guild meeting a lady told me that driving down to Mount Vernon along the George Washington Parkway was a beautiful drive to make to see the fall foliage. So, I decided to kill two birds with one stone and take a drive down there.

The tour was a lot of fun. We got to go down into the basement, not normally open to the public, and see the vaults that George Washington added. It seems that whenever he added onto the house, he also added to the basement. No photography was allowed in the basement. We also walked along the waterfront past the area that visitors are normally allowed. That's a picture of Mount Vernon from the waterfront. Another interesting thing: this old fire engine housed in a "garage" built into the hillside. We learned that when Henry Ford visited the estate he was concerned that there wasn't much in the way of fire safety in place at that time. Being that most of the buildings are wood frame, a fire could be disastrous. He personally donated this 1934 Ford fire engine to the Mount Vernon Ladies Association. It has never been used. And, since it's not an original part of the estate, its restoration is not a priority.

Because of the popularity of the tour, they have extended it through the end of November. So, if you'd like to go you have one more month.