“ I am pleased at the cause which has deprived us of your aid in the Attack of Christmas Pyes. We had one yesterday on which all the company (and pretty numerous it was) were hardly able to make an impression.” — George Washington, 1786
Activities
Black-Eyed Peas and Great Cake
9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. & 1 p.m. - 3 p.m.
South Lane, Outside the Kitchen
Explore the holiday food traditions brought to Mount Vernon by enslaved Africans, as well as those of the Washington family, at the Youth Programs Discovery Cart.
Stirring Up the Season
10 a.m.- 3 p.m. (Samples available 1 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. while supplies last)
Ford Orientation Center
Watch as the Historic Trades team takes seeds from a small tropical evergreen tree and turns them into the chocolate familiar to 18th-century Americans.
Dining with the Washingtons
1 p.m. (Ticket Required)
Explore how the people who lived at Mount Vernon in the 18th century dined on a tour that takes you to the gardens, salt house, smokehouse, slave quarters, greenhouse, and the Mansion’s kitchen.
Discover how food was grown, preserved, prepared, and served at Mount Vernon. You'll leave this specialty tour knowing the Washingtons’ favorite recipes, what hired and enslaved servants at Mount Vernon ate, and why Martha Washington wasn’t a fan of Vulcan, Washington’s French hound.
A Special Christmas Guest
9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
12-Acre Field
In 1787, George Washington paid 18 shillings to bring a camel to Mount Vernon. Stop by the 12-acre field to visit Aladdin, Mount Vernon's Christmas camel.
