page_title: Post-presidency of George Washington
section_title: Return to Mount Vernon
hierarchical_section_title: Post-presidency of George Washington / Return to Mount Vernon
caption_attribution_description: English: A view on Mount Vernon with the Washington family on the terrace watercolor, pen and ink on paper 16 3/8 x 24 inches signed b.: Benjamin Henry Latrobe nat. del. July 16, 1796
context_page_description: The post-presidency of George Washington began on March 4, 1797. The first US president under the US Constitution, Washington had served two consecutive terms in office. He returned to his beloved home, Mount Vernon, on March 15. Immediately, he began months of repair because of neglect and mismanagement. In time, he was able to restore the Mount Vernon mansion house, but the salvaging of his farms proved to be problematic. Throughout his retirement, Washington entertained local friends; former official associates; and strangers who wished to converse and see the first president, the Revolutionary War hero, and founder of the nation.
  Washington followed closely affairs of state, including the growing tension between France and the United States, which, by the spring of 1798, had developed into the Quasi-War. Attacked politically by anti-Federalists, Washington was careful to preserve his personal legacy. He was appointed by his successor as president, John Adams, on July 2, 1798 as Lieutenant General and Commander of America's newly-augmented army.
context_section_description: Washington departed Philadelphia for Mount Vernon on March 9, 1799, and he traveled with Martha, his granddaughter Nelly, and George Washington Lafayette. The party arrived at Mount Vernon "six days" later, having made a few stops along the way, as Washington was a celebrated hero. In April, he opined in a letter that he was "once more seated under my own vine and fig tree" and hoped "to spend the remainder of my days."  
  Washington was so intent on staying within 25 miles of Mount Vernon that he declined to attend the wedding of his nephew Lawrence Augustine Washington.
  Washington's sister, Betty Lewis, died, and Washington was survived only by his younger brother Charles, the last of their generation of the Washington family. The death of Betty caused Washington "inexpressible concern."
  Washington sent much of his vast collection of paper archives on the Revolutionary War and his presidency to Mount Vernon. He had a letterpress delivered to make copies of his papers. The archives originally contained "30 to 40 cases" of military expeditions, journals, and Congressional correspondence. Washington originally planned to build a library house at Mount Vernon and had ordered bookcases for his collections. However, his death prevented the building of the library. Washington's collections and the planned library would be a precursor for the modern presidential library system adopted in the 20th century by Congress.
caption: A View of Mount Vernon With Washington Family On the Terrace
  Artist: Benjamin Henry Latrobe 1796
exif: {"Image ImageDescription": "A view on Mount Vernon with the Washington family on the terrace \n*watercolor, pen and ink on paper \n*16 3/8 x 24 inches \n*signed b.: Benjamin Henry Latrobe nat. del. July 16, 1796", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "83", "Image YResolution": "83", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "GIMP 2.6.12", "Image DateTime": "2013:01:09 17:30:45", "Image Artist": "Benjamin Henry Latrobe (1764-1820)", "Image Copyright": "http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2012/americana-vo-n08950/lot.437.html", "Image ExifOffset": "486", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "622", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "6463", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2000", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1332"}