I’m assuming that everyone who lives in Mount Vernon realizes that we are not the only Mount Vernon in the United States. Our original town name of “Pinhook” was decided against when Mount Vernon was incorporated as a town in 1847. Using the name of George and Martha Washington’s home in Virginia for a refined name for a town was very popular in the 1800s.
Did you know that there are 33 towns in America that are named Mount Vernon? Every state that borders Iowa, except for Minnesota, has a city named Mount Vernon. Alaska and Hawaii have opted not to have a Mount Vernon in their states, so you can only find towns named Mount Vernon in the contiguous United States.
Several states have more than one Mount Vernon. At one point Iowa had four towns named Mount Vernon. They were all in different counties, so perhaps that helped with any confusion there might have been at the time as people tried to distinguish among them. Mount Vernon in Linn County is the only remaining one. The other ones were a hamlet in Mills County and two townships in Black Hawk and Cerro Gordo Counties.
A few weeks ago my husband and I traveled to Fort Belvoir, Va., to see his brother be promoted from major to lieutenant colonel in the Army. Once we arrived, I was studying the map to get a better feel for where we were and discovered that we were only three miles from Mount Vernon, Va. I couldn’t believe it! I’ve always heard people describe how far away it is from everything and yet here we were, practically within walking distance of it.
After we concluded all of our time with my husband’s family and the festivities for the weekend, we started our journey home. There wasn’t a lot of time, but we drove to Mount Vernon to do a quick look around before driving back to Iowa. It was a gorgeous drive along the Potomac River and such a thrill to pull into the area and see the large sign proclaiming that we had arrived at Mount Vernon.
We took pictures there and then went into the building with the gift shop. In the hallway leading us there, we saw pictures of royalty from many different countries visiting Mount Vernon over the years. As we were admiring the pictures, a woman walked up and asked us where in Iowa we were from. I happened to wear a University of Iowa shirt that day, so that gave us away.
With lots of exuberance and pride, I proclaimed to her, “We’re from MOUNT VERNON, IOWA!!” She got a huge smile on her face and told us that she worked there and that she was from Davenport. We just basked in some Iowa love together as we stood there and visited for a minute. As she left us to get back to work, she took another look at my shirt and called out, “Go Hawks!”
We regretted that we didn’t have the time to tour the home or walk the grounds, but spending that brief time in Mount Vernon, Va., just increased my love for my home town and for the father of our nation. I think George Washington would love Mount Vernon, Iowa. In both places there are rolling hills and thick woodlands and of course good people.
The home of Mount Vernon gave George and Martha Washington a respite from political and military life. He was able to focus on what this country needed in its infancy. In a 1788 letter to James Madison he said, “Liberty, when it begins to take root, is a plant of rapid growth.” Being there among his roots helped him to envision what this country could be. I don’t know about the other 32 towns named Mount Vernon in our country, but I know that in our Mount Vernon, we are fostering a place of kindness and community.
Returning to Iowa and the home and life we have built here in our Mount Vernon, I reflected on another quote from Washington in 1784,”I will not give up the hope of seeing you at Mount Vernon, before I quit the stage of human action—the idea would be too painful.” Let us make Mount Vernon, Iowa a haven of peace and a place to welcome all who come here.