The DC Traveler

Virginia produced four of the first five U.S. presidents and 8 in total; more than any other state.

For all but one, you can visit their home, estate, library or where they are laid to rest. Most places are within a couple hours of DC and make for a great short trip. Plus, during the winter, crowds are significantly smaller.

George Washington – 1st President
George Washington’s Mount Vernon
3200 Mount Vernon Memorial Hwy
Mount Vernon, VA 22121

Just 30 minutes form DC, the estate of our first president and father of the United States, George Washington, sits on the Potomac River and has wonderful views.  It now includes a new Orientation Center with a great collection of Washington memorabilia and history.

Thomas Jefferson – 3rd President
Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello
931 Thomas Jefferson Parkway
Charlottesville, VA 22902

Jefferson’s architectural masterpiece, located on a hilltop in Charlottesville, about 2½ hours from Washington, DC, reflects the intellectual who brought us the Declaration of Independence.

James Madison – 4th President
James Madison’s Montpelier
11407 Constitution Highway
Montpelier Station, VA 22957

On a 2,750-acre farm estate less than two hours from DC, it offers formal gardens and even a race course.

James Monroe – 5th President
Ash Lawn-Highland, Home of President James Monroe
1000 James Monroe Parkway
Charlottesville, VA 22902

Called the “cabin castle, it is adjacent to Jefferson’s Monticello, the 535-acre working farm estate and home features period furniture, gardens and reconstructed slave quarters.

William Henry Harrison - 9th President
Berkeley Plantation
12602 Harrison Landing Road
Charles City, VA 23030

Costumed guides will lead you through one of Virginia’s most historic plantations. It was the site of the first “official” Thanksgiving in 1619 and the birthplace of the signer of the Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Harrison and home of America’s 9th president William Henry Harrison. His grandson continued in the business of politics and became the 23rd president. The plantation is under 2 hours from DC, just outside of Richmond.

John Tyler – 10th President
Hollywood Cemetery
412 S. Cherry Street
Richmond, VA 23220

Born in Charles City County, Virginia, Tyler, is buried at Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond. President Monroe, Confederate President Jefferson Davis, Gen. J.E.B. Stuart are also buried there, along with the first casualties of the Civil War.  By the end of the war, 18,000 Confederate soldiers were laid to rest there.

Zachary Taylor – 12th President
Taylor was born in Orange County, Virginia, but moved to Kentucky shortly after his birth.

Woodrow Wilson – 28th President
Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library
18-24 North Coalter Street
Staunton, VA 24401

Located 3 hours away in historic Staunton, Virginia, the Wilson Library includes Wilson’s birthplace, gardens and library.

Images – most courtesy of the respective websites

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