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George Washington’s journey from an ambitious Virginia teenager to a revolutionary leader and the nation’s first president takes center stage in Mount Vernon’s newly redesigned Education Center.

The 21,000-square-foot museum opened June 11 with nine galleries and six immersive media spaces. Its main exhibition, “George Washington: A Revolutionary Life,” was unveiled ahead of the nation’s 250th anniversary on July 4.

“George Washington was not born as a man with a powdered wig,” Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association Regent Anne Petri said during the opening.

Carly Fiorina, honorary chair of the Virginia American Revolution 250 Commission, told the audience that there would be no America without Washington, adding that “America was made in Virginia.”

Mount Vernon President Doug Bradburn said the revamped center presents a fuller and more inclusive account than its predecessor, which opened in 2006—one year before the first iPhone debuted.

Through projected imagery, interactive simulations, portraits, documents and historic artifacts, the museum places visitors inside Washington’s 18th-century world. Never-before-displayed objects include the swivel chair he used as president and his wartime camp bed.

The experiences that shaped Washington

The galleries explore not only Washington’s achievements, but also the hardships, influences and contradictions that shaped his life.

Washington lost his father at 11 and lacked many of the educational opportunities commonly available to Virginia’s landed elite. At 15, he copied the “Rules of Civility,” and by 17 he was using tools such as a compass and tripod to work as a surveyor. He ultimately produced nearly 200 surveys.

Another section examines his enthusiasm for farming and agricultural experimentation. Believing mules were stronger workers than horses, Washington bred them until Mount Vernon had 60 mules and 20 horses near the end of his life. He also tested methods for improving the soil.

The museum confronts Washington’s role as an enslaver. He once described slavery as his “only unavoidable subject of regret,” yet enslaved people provided the forced labor that sustained his 8,000-acre plantation.

They farmed, kept house, made bricks and horseshoes, constructed buildings and worked in the distillery. Artifacts recovered from their living quarters—including a chamber pot, shoe buckle, beads, horseshoes and clay marbles—offer glimpses into their daily lives.

In a digital scene set inside an enslaved family’s quarters, visitors encounter a woman mourning her baby’s death and preparing to ask Washington for permission to serve as a midwife on the plantation.

Revolution, Valley Forge and a new presidency

An immersive Valley Forge display evokes the brutal winter of 1777-1778, with snow falling behind a mounted Washington on his white horse, Blueskin. Visitors can touch a sample of horsehide and hear military drum signals, including the three beats used for a water call.

The 1789 presidential inauguration is recreated from the perspective of a crowded New York street. Robert Livingston administers the oath as Washington places his hand on a Bible held by Samuel Otis.

A thread-by-thread reproduction of Washington’s wool inauguration coat carries a subtle political message. The British called its shade “London brown,” while colonists referred to it as “Congress brown.”

With no established model for the office, Washington had to define the presidency as he served. One display describes the Constitution as his job description, while another highlights his observation: “I walk on untrodden ground.”

The painful story behind Washington’s dentures

The exhibition also addresses one of the most enduring curiosities about Washington: his teeth. He had only one natural tooth when he became president.

New York dentist John Greenwood made Washington’s dentures from lead and animal and human teeth during the 1790s. Docents explain that the appliance was uncomfortable, probably painful and made speaking difficult. They suggest the discomfort may explain Washington’s clenched expression in many portraits.

Visitors can explore the Revolutionary War in a 4D theater, while younger guests can experience elements of 18th-century life in a hands-on room.

Fairfax County Supervisor Dan Storck, Virginia Sen. Scott Surovell, Virginia Del. Paul Krizek and Black Women United for Action founder and president Sheila B. Coates were among those attending the June 11 opening.

Mount Vernon officials describe the $20 million civic-education project as the estate’s birthday gift to America.