George Mason Memorial DC

George Mason Memorial DC

Honestly, when we arrived at this memorial, I really didn’t remember who George Mason was.  Of course, now I understand why.  I didn’t realize there was a “forgotten founder” that was left out of history books.

This was one of my favorite memorials.  I really like the statue on a bench memorial that you see in random places all over our country.  This wasn’t the first one I’d seen, but probably the coolest.

It was a beautiful memorial which portrays George Mason sitting on a bench with his hat beside him as he peers out into the gardens.  It was another peaceful, serene setting where you could imagine a romantic picnic with your loved one.  Very nice memorial here dedicated to George Mason.

I’m not sure my son found it as cool as I did but he at least humored me!  He did seem to be having a good time.

Sidenote:  This site is reader-supported.  When you purchase anything through links on this website, we may earn a small commission with no cost to you at all.  For more information, please read our full disclosure.

About George Mason Memorial DC

Known as the “Forgotten Founder”, George Mason is an instrumental part of our nation’s history for a couple of reasons.  First, he authored the Virginia Declaration of Rights which inspired Thomas Jefferson as he was drafting the Declaration of Independence.

George Mason went on to serve as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787.  Perhaps more importantly, George Mason withheld his signature from the Declaration of Independence as he felt that it lacked the necessary protections from the Federal Government for each Individual and it failed to abolish the slave trade.

The Board of Regents at Gunston Hall, George Mason’s home, funded the construction of his memorial.  The memorial features a 72-foot-long trellis with a bronze statue of George Mason seated in the center below it.  The trellis and statue are surrounded by gardens which were planted in the 19th century and include a fountain.

Located near the National Mall at 900 Ohio Drive SW, the memorial is free to visit 24/7/365.

Summary

Once again, I am so glad we strayed from our Roadtrippers itinerary and decided to just go out sightseeing.  We wandered all over the DC area during that week and we got to see so much of it as a result.

Now that I know how to use the software correctly, I haven’t planned such a boring trip again so we haven’t strayed too far from our cool itineraries since.  But I never regret when we do.  If you’re in the DC area, make sure you wander over to the Tidal Basin and visit the memorials there.  I definitely recommend the George Mason memorial for your family.

Have you been there?  I’d love to hear what you thought of it.  Were you familiar with George Mason’s contributions to our nation’s history?

Please drop a few lines in the comments box below and let me know how your visit went.

In the meantime, safe travels!

~Kris M.

P.S.  If you happen to use travel journals, be sure to check out the travel journal I created for my future Washington DC Road Trips.

Written by Kris M.