George Washington Sat Here

Great Presidents are remembered for their brilliant leadership and their unconditional loyalty and service to this country. Their papers are studied and preserved for their wisdom and successes. They are copied and reproduced for libraries and textbooks. Great Presidents are also remembered for their everyday domestic objects. These objects are sometimes copied or reproduced, too.

This handsome late 18th century easy chair belonged to George Washington. We are told that Washington sat in this armchair in his bedchamber at Mount Vernon shortly before he died in 1799. Of course, he probably sat in it many times before that.

Photograph of Chair from George Washington's bedroom at Mount Vernon, 1760s-90s, courtesy of the National Museum of American History, Washington, DC


Photograph of George Washington's Camp Chest courtesy of the National Museum of American History, Washington, DC

Of course, George Washington is not the only President so honored:


Abraham Lincoln's Top Hat is one of the most treasured objects at the Smithsonian Institution. The hat includes a black silk mourning band Lincoln had added in memory of his son Willie. Lincoln was wearing this hat when he went to Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865. After his assassination, the War Department preserved his hat and other material left at Ford’s Theatre. Courtesy of the National Museum of American History, Washington, DC.