Gunston Hall Plantation

Gunston Hall was the home of George Mason, a contemporary of George Washington and is situated about ten miles down river of Washington's home, Mount Vernon, on the banks of the Potomac.

The approach to the house is now via an avenue of tall magnolia trees but originally the drive was planted with many cherry trees.  In its heyday the plantation covered some 5,500 acres and despite the fact that George Mason was a liberal who believed in the rights of the individual and is credited with being influential in encouraging the adoption of the US Bill of Rights, the plantation grew crops including wheat and tobacco with the assistance of an enslaved labour force of more than 90 people in addition to house servants.

These models in the museum on site showed how the estate/plantation was laid out.  The kitchen, dairy, laundry, school for the family's twelve surviving children and servants quarters were all separate to the main house.

We were given a guided tour of the house which was solid, brick-built and Georgian in style with English designed original carved wood interiors.  The house was surprisingly plain, especially in the family rooms rather than those for receiving guests.  It was also rather smaller than we expected  - some plantation houses are much bigger.  We were not allowed to take photos in the house but some of the original artefacts were on show in the museum.

Including this 'Bristol' plate..

The garden is no longer formally laid out but there is a very old gnarled box hedge running out either side of the pathfrom the back of the house..

Individual box plants looked very old indeed.

Flying low over the grounds and river were a number of very large birds of prey, 

We think that they were Bald Eagles - young ones are darker than adults and resemble Golden Eagles.