Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 03/19/2003
NRHP Listing Date 08/08/2003
NRHP Reference Number 03000739
George Washington’s Gristmill, located three miles west of Mount Vernon in Fairfax County, is a large stone merchant gristmill reconstructed on the site of a mill built by our nation’s first president in 1770–1771. Based on archaeological investigations and documentary evidence, the mill was reconstructed in 1932 as the center of a small state historical park established by the Commonwealth of Virginia in celebration of the bicentennial of Washington’s birth. The mill represents Washington’s interest in decreasing Mount Vernon’s economic dependence on the cultivation of tobacco by increasing the estate’s production and processing of wheat. The construction of a large distillery in 1797 near the mill also helped make the plantation more self-sufficient. The three-story mill is constructed of Aquia Creek sandstone and contains mostly reconstructed millworks and structural members from a renovation completed by the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association in 2002. George Washington’s Gristmill property also contains a reconstructed miller’s house, headrace and tailrace, and the remains of a large distillery where archaeological investigations continue to reveal information about this important 18th-century industry; it contributes to the Woodlawn Cultural Landscape Historic District.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: June 28, 2022
