Americans in the federal era loved playing and listening to music as much as we do today. They marched, snag, and danced with gusto, expressing their patriotism, heartfelt sentiments, and satirical humor through song. As the new capital city of Washington, DC grew in the early 19th century, so did its musical offerings. Residents took […]
Music of the Federal Period Read More
How do the museum staff in a historic house museum determine what the house looked like when its early occupants made it their home? Which room was used as the best bed chamber? How did the family arrange their furniture? What did they most likely choose to hang on the walls? Did they use carpet or floorcloths, or
From House to Home: Reinterpreting Dumbarton House Read More
2014 marked the 200th anniversary of the capture and burning of the City of Washington during the War of 1812. Dumbarton House played an important role in the events of that day. However, the War of 1812 was more than just a single event—it affected many people in ways they never thought imaginable, just like wars of
Homefront 1812: Friends, Family & Foe Read More
As the United States of America forged its own national identity, festive balls were held to express the population’s optimism and confidence. The ball, a party with music and dancing, gained in popularity as the country’s strength and assurance grew. One of the most popular was the Birth-Night Ball, an annual celebration of George Washington’s birth, held around February 22nd. Although a ball was
Preparing for the Ball: Costume of the Early Nation Read More
Did you know that 100 years ago, as the bridge was being built, Dumbarton House was forced to move nearly the length of a football field? We commemorate this incredible and unprecedented feat with photos and newspaper articles about this iconic “Buffalo” Bridge. After nearly a decade of petitioning by many prominent Georgetown women, the
Dumbarton Bridge & House Read More
Metamo’rphosis I is the first in a series of exhibitions that will demonstrate how forms and design elements found in the Dumbarton House collections are capable of inspiring the imagination. Five artists were invited to create pieces of jewelry and fine metal ware taking objects in the collections as their starting point.The artists were selected
In 2015 from April to Labor Day, Dumbarton House displayed the “Posey Quilt,” an early 19th century American pieced quilt made of silk dress fabrics from a variety of early American women and Posey family members. On public view for the first time in a dedicated exhibition, the quilt included fabric squares from the dresses of
While Dumbarton House bases much of its interpretation around its understanding of the Nourse family, there is a another entity who holds outsized influence on the house’s history. The property’s very existence owes itself to the merchant and speculator Samuel Jackson, a figure who is equally interesting and elusive. His brief residency in Georgetown, motivated
Samuel Jackson Goes to Washington Read More
Questions and Answers previously compiled by staff, volunteers, and interns. Was there a barn out back? A horse and buggy (carriage)? A stable? Although we don’t know where the outbuildings were located, Joseph Nourse’s writings do tell us the type of outbuildings he owned. Nourse moved an icehouse to his Cedar Hill property from his
Architectural Q and A Read More
Rudbeckia fulgida Rudbeckia fulgida is a perennial native to North America and is the native base for most of the hybridized Black-eyed Susans. In the 18th century Carl Linneaus, who devised our system of plant nomenclature, named the genus in honor of Swedish botanists Olof Rudbeck, Sr. and Jr. Both the father and son were Linneaus’ botany
Dumbarton House Featured Flora: Black-Eyed Susan Read More
