The Mount Vernon community in Fairfax County, Virginia, draws its name from George Washingtons home overlooking the Potomac River. Washington acquired the house and plantation in 1754 and lived there in peace and war until his 1799 death. Since then, however, the areas 340-year history has gained breadth and texture beyond Washingtons personal heritage. In the 1840s and 1850s, forty Quaker families moved to Mount Vernon and revitalized area agriculture and commerce. The Mount Vernon Ladies Association bought the mansion and 200 acres from Washingtons great-grandnephew in 1858 and continues to...