History Lessons

You don’t always have to learn about history from a text book. Immerse yourself into early-American history, centuries-old gardens, and historic preservation by digging deeper into what we’re learning at Dumbarton House.

  • All
  • Collections
  • History of the Home
Education

Georgetown: 1776 – 1789

After the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776, many Georgetown community members led campaigns to help with the forthcoming war. They raised money, provided arms, and recruited ...
Collections

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Needlework: Samplers and Female Education in Early America

From their beginnings as reference pieces for various stitches to Victorian masterpieces, samplers serve as valuable records in the history of women’s education. While frequently ...
Education

Georgetown: Past – 1776

Indigenous Peoples and Early Encounters –   While European accounts of life in what is now known as Georgetown begin in 1608 with John Smith’s encounter with ...
Collections

Rings, Brooches, and … Hair?

Death and Mourning in the Federal Era “Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing ...
Collections

Woman vs. Moth

Integrated Pest Management in a Historic House Museum A few weeks after starting as Archives & Collections Manager at Dumbarton House, I was cleaning the ...
Education

Ninety Years of Dumbarton House!

In 1927, the National Board of The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America (NSCDA) approved that the Society should “acquire an old, historic ...