Views from the Top

When a person tries to picture Mount Vernon the first vision that comes to mind is the famous cupola.  It has presided over the Estate and Gardens, watching the comings and goings of the young and old, powerful and meek, and famous and common for over 220 years.  It is an American icon.  Why did George Washington construct it?  Was it mere decoration?  Perhaps, but the General hardly ever did anything without some reason.  The cupola was part of a building project begun in 1776 but not completed until after the Revolution.  The General may have added it for purely aesthetic reasons—with the two added extensions to the north and south his home would look too elongated.  The cupola would provide a strong vertical to the horizontal vision.  Maybe he wanted to draw attention away for the asymmetry of the west front.  This asymmetry is due to the stairway in the main hall which made windows and doors a little awry in a non-Neoclassical way.  Another answer could be for comfort.  During the heat of the humid Virginia summers (and before air-conditioning) the cupola ventilated the upper story by drawing out the hot air as it rose through the mansion—pulling in cooler air from the windows below.  My favorite explanation comes from the book George Washington’s Mount Vernon by Robert F. Dalzell, Jr. & Lee Baldwin Dalzell, “The cupola . . . was unfashionable but also intriguingly evocative; for all the houses with cupolas that Washington knew, the most familiar one, unquestionably, was the Governor’s Palace . . .  and finding himself in conflict with the authority that structure represented, what could have been more logical than to appropriate its details for his own use?  A single imperial source of power was unacceptable in America; a cupola was simply a bit of decoration anyone could have if they wanted one.  To be sure, none of this may have been on Washington’s mind, but he was a person who hardly ever acted without reflection.  He also had a superb feel for gesture (pg. 99).”  Whatever the reason for the cupola it has always been eye-catching.  In a letter dated March 2, 1778 Washington’s friend, Bryan Fairfax wrote, “I like the House because it is uncommon.” 
Teachers who attend the George Washington Summer Institutes are privileged to climb the ladder into the cupola.  The ladder resembles a permanent, solidly built, attic ladder.  Since the advent of air-conditioning, the windows are no longer open and it is HOT up top!  A person in the cupola must perch themselves on a two-foot ledge that encircles the outer walls (I am approximating the depth of the ledge—it might be wider but it seems to be only about one foot when you are up there!).  Although one might be experiencing a little vertigo, it is worth it!  The view is spectacular.  Included in this article are several pictures from the cupola—and trying to take a photo of myself in the sweltering, confined area does not make for the best picture—but one can certainly get a sense of what it is like from the top!

NOTE:  Although I have written in the Blog previously about my favorite weather vane that crowns the cupola, for those of you who are new to this Blog, here is the story.  In July of 1787 Washington ordered a “weather vane for the cupola, giving its maker, Joseph Rakestraw, detailed instruction: ‘On top of an iron spire was to be a bird—its wings spread, and in its mouth an olive branch.’   Rakestraw interpreted this to be ‘The dove of peace’.  Returning home from the Constitutional Convention in September 1787, Washington peered from the west gate to see if Rakestraw had correctly read his meaning . . . And there was the proof, flying above the cupola—that bold assertion of Washington’s personal freedom.  Peace and independence: that was the message with which Mount Vernon, at last, was to be crowned (Dalzell, p. 123).”

This entry was posted on Sunday, August 30th, 2009 at 5:35 pm and is filed under George Washington. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.