Washington’s mount vernon unearths wallpaper secrets, reveals hidden layers of history
A painstaking restoration project at George Washington’s Mount Vernon has yielded stunning new details about the mansion’s interior, including the discovery of long-lost wallpaper and a surprising fork hidden within the walls.
Revealing a forgotten past: years of research transform mount vernon’s interiors
Preserving Mount Vernon – a site steeped in American History – is a continuous process of discovery. Executive Director of Historic Preservation and Collections, Adam T. Erby, explains, “It’s a constant process of discovering and figuring out what every room in the mansion looked like in 1799 and restoring it to the best of our ability. New details pop up all the time.” The 1799 benchmark was chosen as the year of Washington’s passing, offering a crucial point of reference for the ongoing work.
For decades, historians hesitated to speculate on the wallpaper’s design, leaving the rooms plain white. This time, a comprehensive investigation – utilizing new curatorial practices and scientific analysis – pinpointed a period paper from Réveillon/Jacquemart et Bénard, a French manufacturer familiar to the Washingtons due to their use of their designs in the New Room on the first floor. The arabesque pattern, featuring delicate love birds and garlands of flowers, now graces Washington’s Bedchamber, a space meticulously restored using records, material research, and even paint analysis.
Inside the bedchamber: a labor of love and discovery
Washington’s Bedchamber, where he succumbed to illness in December 1799, underwent the most significant restoration. The project, spearheaded by the Historic Preservation and Collections Department, utilized Washington’s records, probate inventory descriptions, and detailed paint analysis to recreate the room’s original appearance. “We’ve always known there was wallpaper in the room, but we didn’t know exactly what pattern,” Erby states. “For decades, historians declined to make an educated presumption as to the pattern, so the space was left plain white.”
Beyond the wallpaper, a surprising find – an 18th-century fork with an ivory handle – was unearthed behind Martha Washington’s closet. The discovery highlights the meticulous conservation efforts undertaken during the overhaul, including the stabilization of the timber frame, which was felled in 1774. “There was a fork that was found in the walls, with an ivory handle that was stained green,” Erby notes, adding that the silverware was likely stored in a second-floor closet. The mystery of how the utensil ended up concealed within the walls remains unsolved.
Adding to the room’s opulence, the team utilized a 1835 painting by John Gadsby Chapman to inform the reproduction of fabrics, mirroring the Washingtons' preference for coordinating textiles. Brunschwig & Fils were commissioned to recreate the sheer, ribbed white dimity favored during the Neoclassical era – a testament to the couple’s discerning taste and significant investment in luxury. The meticulous attention to detail, from the wallpaper to the fabrics and even the silverware, paints a vivid picture of life at Mount Vernon during the late 18th century.
The $40 million restoration, slated for completion by the end of the year, has unveiled these remarkable discoveries just in time for the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Mount Vernon’s first and second-floor rooms are now open to the public, offering visitors a truly immersive experience of American History.