Mary Ball Washington House
VA - Fredericksburg, Virginia, USA
1200 Charles Street, Fredericksburg, VA, USA
MUSEUM
VISITOR INFORMATION
TICKET REQUIRED
Entry is $12 for adults and $6 for youth ages 6-18. The combined Heritage Pass is $30 for adults. Open Apr through Oct, Mon to Sat 10am-4pm and Sun 12-4pm. Nov through Mar, Mon and Wed through Sat 11am-4pm (closed Tuesdays) and Sun 12-4pm.
This site is one of four Washington Heritage Museums locations in Fredericksburg; a combined Heritage Pass covers all of them.
SITE FEATURES
Gardens
Surviving Structures
Peak visitation season unconfirmed. No reliable site-specific annual monthly attendance pattern was established.
April-May or October for a guided house visit paired with town walks beyond summer heat. Check tour departures and the regular Tuesday closure.
HISTORIC SITES NEARBY
Nearby Historic Sites
miles
Landmark
WHO WAS HERE
5
George Washington
Mary Ball Washington
Charles Washington
Betty Washington Lewis
Samuel Washington
About Mary Ball Washington House
In 1772, George Washington purchased a house from Michael Robinson in Fredericksburg, Virginia for his mother. Mary Ball Washington spent her last seventeen years in this comfortable home. The white frame house sits on the corner of Charles and Lewis Streets and was in walking distance to Kenmore, home of Mary's daughter Betty Washington Lewis. Tradition has it that, during the Revolution, General Lafayette came by the home seeking a visit with Mrs. Washington and found her working in her garden. The President-to-be came to this home to receive his mother's blessing before attending his inauguration in 1789.
The original eighteenth-century frame house survives as a furnished museum in Fredericksburg. Washington Heritage Museums protects its period rooms, gardens, collections, and architectural fabric, presenting the final home of Mary Ball Washington and the domestic setting occupied by her household and enslaved workers.
History happened here at Mary Ball Washington House
Later in his life, on his visits to Fredericksburg, George Washington was a frequent visitor to his mother's home, and, in April, 1789, came to this house to receive a blessing from his mother before his inauguration. A visit to Mrs. Washington in her home became a regular stop for distinguished visitors to Fredericksburg. Among those stopping by to pay their respects were John Marshall, George Mason, Thomas Jefferson, Marquis de Lafayette, and members of the Lee family. She lived in this home until her death later in 1789. The Mary Washington House is located near the college named for her, the University of Mary Washington.
PEOPLE WHO LIVED HERE
Mary Ball Washington
PEOPLE WHO DIED HERE
PEOPLE AT REST HERE
EXTERNAL LINKS
Virginia DHR, Mary Washington House: https://www.dhr.virginia.gov/historic-registers/111-0110/
Washington Heritage Museums, house tour: https://www.washingtonheritagemuseums.org/museum-details
National Park Service, register record: https://npgallery.nps.gov/AssetDetail/NRIS/75002111
Library of Congress, Historic American Buildings Survey: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/hh/item/va0933/
George Washington Mount Vernon, Fredericksburg house: https://www.mountvernon.org/plan-your-visit/washington-dc-area/things-to-do-in-virginia/george-washington-sites