From Gleason’s Pictorial, 1853. —The tomb of Washington is in the foreground. The caption reads “Mount Vernon, the Birthplace and Residence of George Washington”; but in fact Washington had the good sense to be born at the George Washington Birthplace National Monument. When this engraving was made, Mount Vernon was for sale, and was in serious danger of being turned into a commercial resort. Five years later it was rescued by the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, who still own it today.