Two staff members who work at George Washington’s Ferry Farm and Historic Kenmore recently traveled to Point Pleasant, West Virginia and Gallipolis, Ohio, two small cities situated across from each other on the Ohio River. Little George went along and visited a few places related in some fashion to George Washington and his era. Here … Continue reading Little George Visits Point Pleasant [Photos]
6th Annual “A Wee Christmas at Kenmore” [Photos]
Visit Kenmore this holiday season for an exhibit of highly detailed, replica dollhouses – including the mansion – and miniatures in the Crowninshield Museum Building. Share memories of your dollhouse with your family as you explore life in miniature! Put your mind and eye to the test with our “I Spy Miniatures” challenge – fun … Continue reading 6th Annual “A Wee Christmas at Kenmore” [Photos]
Mickey Owen Was Found in the Plaster!: A Look at Some Curious Inclusions Found in Plaster from Historic Kenmore
Historic Kenmore is known for the unique decorative plasterwork seen on many of its ceilings. However, some of its most unusual pieces of plaster were discovered during repair work being done in 1989. These were pieces of plaster that contained large clumps of animal hair and newspaper. An inspection of this plaster, considering an architectural … Continue reading Mickey Owen Was Found in the Plaster!: A Look at Some Curious Inclusions Found in Plaster from Historic Kenmore
The Wild Game on the Washingtons’ Table
The holiday season is beginning! No matter how you celebrate the next several weeks, you’re likely spending extra time thinking about food. We archaeologists are no different, only we also want to know what the Washingtons and their enslaved laborers ate, whether at the harvest, the holiday season, or simply a regular meal. Historians know … Continue reading The Wild Game on the Washingtons’ Table
Gingerbread House Construction Workshop & A Wee Christmas Workshop [Photos]
On Saturday, November 19, George Washington's Ferry Farm and Historic Kenmore both presented their annual holiday workshops devoted to teaching attendees either how to build a gingerbread house or to create a holiday themed "room box." Here are some photos from both workshops... These two workshops are presented in preparation for Ferry Farm's annual Gingerbread … Continue reading Gingerbread House Construction Workshop & A Wee Christmas Workshop [Photos]
Washington House Blues
The summer of 2019 was an especially hot one here in Virginia, but we managed to add some cool crispness to the Washington house interior. It came in the form of some new textiles for the “best bed” in the Hall Back Room, in a refreshing blue and white color scheme. As we’ve previously discussed … Continue reading Washington House Blues
The Seven Easy Pieces of Furniture – Episode 2: Blanket Chest [Video]
In this video, Fredericksburg, Virginia-based furniture maker Steve Dietrich discusses two of the techniques he used to create a blanket chest for the reconstructed Washington house at Ferry Farm. Watch other videos and read more about rebuilding the Washington house here.
The Mystery of the Mane Comb… SOLVED!
A little more than a year ago we published a blog post highlighting a horse’s mane comb excavated years ago at George Washington’s Boyhood Home at Ferry Farm. Though the rusty iron mane comb was incomplete, a lone, decorative “G” located along the top of the comb hinted at a longer name we hoped might … Continue reading The Mystery of the Mane Comb… SOLVED!
Abraham and The Ropewalkers: Finding Large Stories in Small Details
The staff of Historic Kenmore & George Washington’s Ferry Farm regularly conducts research into the enslaved communities that existed at both Kenmore and Ferry Farm during the Lewis and Washington family occupations. Most of the surviving information about the enslaved is of a statistical nature – numbers, ages, locations, and luckily, names. In comparison to … Continue reading Abraham and The Ropewalkers: Finding Large Stories in Small Details
Where Are the Human Remains?: The Washington Family
Ferry Farm’s tens of thousands of years of human habitation has provided archaeologists with nearly 800,000 artifacts to date, consisting of discarded items left by the people who lived on, worked, or visited this land. A question we often receive from visitors is where are graves of the PEOPLE who left behind these discarded items? … Continue reading Where Are the Human Remains?: The Washington Family
Lives & Legacies 