McNamara: If someone were to go to Mount Vernon today, much of what you talk about in the book would not be obvious, and would not be visible. But what would they see that would relate to the African-American story of Mount Vernon?
Casper: They would see things about the African-American story in several places today. Most prominently would be the slave memorial, which is right near Washington’s tomb. It’s near the grounds where African Americans were buried, during George Washington’s lifetime and even probably up until about 1860. That slave memorial is an incredibly moving part of Mount Vernon’s landscape.
Inside the historic landscape of the mansion and the outbuildings, African Americans are mentioned in several places. For instance, on several placards near the outbuildings, whether it’s the wash house or other buildings, describe slave laborers who did that work. And within the mansion, the tour includes references to African Americans who welcomed visitors into the main hallway and so on. So the African-American presence is much more part of the tour than it would have been even 15 years ago.
There’s also a display related to African Americans at Mount Vernon in the new education center. So in many ways African Americans are much more present at Mount Vernon now than they were a while ago. Of course, those are the African Americans who were enslaved there during George and Martha Washington’s lifetime, not the people who were there after subsequent Washingtons inherited the place.
Historian Scott E. Casper is professor of history at the University of Nevada, Reno.
Sarah Johnson's Mount Vernon: The Forgotten History of an American Shrine is published by Hill & Wang.
