The rediscovery of a ledger kept by the Fairfax family of Belvoir plantation provided documentary evidence of the original furniture in the room, furniture that was purchased in London and given by George William Fairfax to his close friend George Washington. While none of the original pieces survives, the curatorial team worked to replicate the Fairfax-Washington furniture based on comparable period examples. The original upholstery fabric—a highlight of the room—is documented as being a silk and worsted wool damask dyed “Saxon blue,” a bright and vibrant color that curators worked to replicate.
Fairfax Family Ledger
This ledger contains the financial records of William and George William Fairfax. Including the furniture acquisitions that George Washington eventually purchased from the 1774 Fairfax sale at Belvoir.
Learn moreA New Look
The last comprehensive conservation of the room’s paneling occurred more than half a century ago, and the current work addressed problems identified in recent years. Earlier restoration efforts used techniques that prevent the paneling system from expanding and contracting in response to natural seasonal changes in humidity. They also obscured small details of moldings that made the room a showpiece.
During the course of the work, the architecture team removed several panels for conservation, thereby providing access to the earlier architectural features predating the current paneling (installed between 1757 and the early 1760s). In addition, the architecture team reanalyzed the previous generation of paint analysis and determined that the room was painted a cream color during George Washington’s life rather than the current blue. At the conclusion of this project, the room was repainted cream using hand-ground pigments replicating the original. The architecture team also addressed needed repairs to the ceiling and windows, as well as conserve the mantel, overmantel, hearth, and floors.
1937 image of the chimneypiece in the Front Parlor. MVLA.
Paint removal from one of the east wall panels.
Reinstalling panels on the east wall.
Temporarily removing the chair rail.
A glimpse behind the east wall paneling.
In-situ, early generation molded plaster paneling behind the wood paneling.
Profile of the early molded plaster paneling.
Profile of the early molded plaster paneling.
Cataloging the molded plaster paneling.
The greenhouse built for wood paneling rehumidification.
Wood paneling rehumidification underway.
In-situ conservation efforts to treat the south wall paneling.
Prepping the chair rail for paining.
East wall and chimneypiece after treatment and repainting.
Restoration Work
The restoration of the room required extensive research, physical investigation, and conservation and restoration work.
Color Change
One of the most exciting and intensively-studied discoveries during the front parlor restoration project was that the color on the room’s woodwork was conclusively not blue during the Washingtons’ lifetimes, but a stone or cream color.
Frequently Asked Questions
Since the start of the front parlor restoration project, visitors have asked a variety of questions about the project and the history of the room.
Changes through Time
Since the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association purchased Mount Vernon, the organization has worked to restore each room to how it was during Washington's life. Over the years, a number of changes have occurred in the front parlor.
The restoration of the Front Parlor was made possible through the generous support of The Founders, Washington Committee for Historic Mount Vernon; the Dr. Scholl Foundation; Dr. and Mrs. James S. Reibel; the Nancy Peery Marriott Foundation; The Brown Foundation, Inc.; Richard and Susan Ammerman; Mr. Paul Neely; Mr. Harold B. Smith; and hundreds of donors from across the country.
Front Parlor
The front parlor and its furnishings and architecture are a complex compilation of objects that evolved over more than forty years of the Washingtons’ marriage.
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