One hundred years ago this year, a group of far-sighted women led the efforts to save Historic Kenmore, the family home of Betty Washington Lewis, President George Washington’s, and her husband, Fielding, from commercial development.
To commemorate the event, The George Washington Foundation invites visitors to celebrate the Foundation’s Centennial Anniversary with the Schoonmaker Concert at George Washington’s Ferry Farm. The show will feature a variety of swing, jazz, and patriotic music by the Lester Lanin Orchestra.
Appropriate for all ages, the gates will open for the concert at 6:30 p.m. Vendors, including Backporch Vineyard and Adventure Brewing, as well as food trucks such as Martina’s Cantina, will sell food and drink. Please–no pets except approved service dogs.
Visitors may bring coolers and lawn chairs, but alcohol is prohibited. Tickets are $10 and are available at: kenmore.org/events
Free parking for the concert will be available on site with the purchase of a ticket. Ferry Farm is located at 268 King’s Highway, Stafford County, Virginia.
Following its successful campaign to save Kenmore from development, the Kenmore Association would continue to promote Historic Kenmore and raise funds for its ongoing preservation, collections acquisition, and related educational programming.
In 1996, the Kenmore Association and the community helped save another Washington family landmark, Ferry Farm, where young George grew to adulthood along the Rappahannock River. This acquisition sparked the adoption of a new name, The George Washington Foundation, to better reflect the expanded scope of the organization’s mission and museum properties.
In 2001, an extensive, decade-long restoration of Kenmore began, restoring the mansion to its historically accurate appearance circa 1775. At Ferry Farm, a full-scale archaeological excavation began in 2003, and five years later, archaeologists announced the discovery of the remains of the Washington House at Ferry Farm.
Construction of the Washington House replica over its archaeological footprint was completed in early 2018, and the home opened to the public in May of that year. The Washington house will soon be accompanied by reconstructed outbuildings – further transforming George Washington’s Ferry Farm into an outdoor living history museum highlighting the broader scope of Washington’s youth.
Over the past 100 years, Kenmore and Ferry Farm have benefited from archaeological research and preservation projects, enabling the Foundation to present both sites as living history museums.
Kenmore is located at 1201 Washington Avenue, Fredericksburg.
