In the early years of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, when the Ladies were at Mount Vernon they would sleep in the Mansion.
THE FOLLOWING ACCOUNT WAS REPORTED IN THE NEW YORK WORLD NEWSPAPER CA. 1890.
"Of course, the most interesting of all the bedrooms is the one belonging to the immortal George and in which he died. In it is the original four-poster bed whereon Washington passed his last moments."
This ancient space has whispered rumors of hauntings for years to come, with tales claiming George Washington himself looms over the chamber in their darkest hours. Unsettled sleepers persistently sense a hovering presence that refuses to succumb entirely to imagination- but rather is experienced as an ominous reality. Ranging from visual sightings or spiritual senses alone, visitors and passersby all attest there's something sublimely supernatural at work here within this historic room clung by American history itself...
In the dead of night, two bold visitors developed an unusual plan - to sleep in George Washington's bedroom! A daring escapade into Mount Vernon was made and after settling down for a peaceful slumber, their candle mysteriously began flickering. To quench its flame, they took matters into their own hands with a clever solution: submerging it within water-filled basin!
After perceiving a mysterious presence, Mrs. Beale and her friend were struck with fear - each believing the former president George Washington had met his death on their respective sides of the bed! Unable to settle this debate in peace, they frantically got dressed in terror then remained huddled together until morning's light illuminated that there was no supernatural force present after all...except for one clanking noise that sounded suspiciously like it could have been from Washington's sword.
A Woman on the Stairs
Working as an interpreter in the Central Passage of a building circa 1980s, one woman had her attention captured by a mysterious occurrence. Descending down the stairs was what appeared to be an 18th-century lady cradling something extraordinary—a large punch bowl full of fragrant blooms! Before she could even register what had happened, the vision vanished into thin air right before her eyes.
An Angry Gentleman
AN INTERPRETER WAS IN THE CENTRAL PASSAGE, ON A PARTICULARLY CROWDED DAY IN THE SPRING OR SUMMER, CA. 1980S
She was taken aback when she entered the Little Parlor, expecting to find an intruder who had snuck past security. Instead, there stood a distinguished gentleman from another era - with bushy mustache and period attire fastened by garters around his rolled up sleeves. Had time traveled right into her museum.
Colonel Harrison Howell Dodge had been the director of Mount Vernon for 50 years and was no stranger to commands. Spotting a disturbance, he barked out an authoritative query that demanded attention - "What in blazes is going on here?" His questioning tone quickly brought about silence among the jumble, yet his ghostly figure disappeared as soon as it appeared. Ironically enough though, despite only coming into view briefly at this momentous occasion she witnessed firsthand, her interpretation remains faithfully preserved through time within Dodges' mug shot portrait adorning its walls ever since.
Putting Away His Horse
A HEAD GUARD SAID THAT THESE EVENTS WERE NOT A ONE-TIME INCIDENT BUT HAPPENED WITH GREAT REGULARITY, CA. 1980S-1990S.
Quite frequently, an alarm would go off in the stable. Then, in about the time it would take to unsaddle and put up a horse and walk from the stable to the Mansion, an alarm would go off in the Washington Bedchamber. Guards dispatched to check out the situation invariably found nothing out of the ordinary.
This man's explanation was that the General was coming home, made his horse comfortable, and then went up to his room.
Clanging Keys
A member of Mount Vernon’s Security Department recalls unexplainable activities in 2012.
On the anniversary of General Washington's death, I had a strange experience that still defies explanation today. It all happened in an old Mansion during Candlelight Tours; after everybody else left for the night, I locked up and made sure to check on all our security systems as usual - but this time was anything but ordinary. As soon as my feet hit the first step leading up from his study into where he slept upstairs, something truly inexplicable occurred: it sounded like someone wearing heavy keys decided to take a stroll around above me...but then suddenly stopped without warning.
It was well known that General Washington carried a heavy set of keys and that they could be heard as he walked through the house. Tobias Lear, the General’s secretary, is known to have taken the keys from the General’s pocket upon his death in order to hand them over to his enslaved manservant Christopher Sheels.
A Ghost at the Tomb
An interpreter from 2006 explains what happened to her at George Washington's Tomb.
The first time I experienced this “ghost” was Easter morning in 2006 when I was scheduled to open Washington’s Tomb. It was early and very quiet and there was no one around—the guests had not made their way from the Mansion. I stood in front of the open door, and I saw an ectoplasm in the far right corner of the Tomb. When I moved, the ectoplasm moved. I watched as it became a blur in my vision, and it continued to move around. I took a photo that showed a streak of light through the blur. The second photo showed the blur. As soon as voices of the guests coming down the hill could be heard, the ectoplasm disappeared. This happened on three different occasions.
