George Washington Inauguration Items on Display at Mount Vernon

The Mount Vernon Estate now has two special items related to George Washington’s inauguration on display at the Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center.

Visitors can now view a suit on display believed to be worn by George Washington during his inauguration at Federal Hall in New York. The suit is made of tightly woven brown wool broadcloth, shrunk and napped in imitation of velvet and would have been considered dressy daytime apparel, according to the Mount Vernon Estate.

The suit will be on display through April 30, 2013 – in honor of that first presidential inauguration, which occurred on the same date in 1789.

Also on display at the Estate is the draft of George Washington’s first inaugural address. His first draft of his inaugural address was more than 70 pages long, but he ultimately delivered a much shorter speech. The unused first draft, transcribed by the president, was later cut apart and dispersed to autograph seekers. The inauguration draft is on loan from the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and will be on display through March 31.

“I am so pleased that we are able to share these two historic items, especially for visitors who may be coming to Washington from far away for the inaugural weekend” Mount Vernon curator Susan P. Schoelwer said in a press release issued by the Estate.  "Standing before with George Washington’s inaugural suit – or the words he wrote as he contemplated his new responsibilities – brings each of us face to face with one of the glories of the American political system: the peaceful transfer of power every four years for more than two centuries.”