Rising Sun Tavern (Fredericksburg, Virginia)
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The Rising Sun Tavern is a historic building in
Fredericksburg, Virginia Fredericksburg is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,982. The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States Department of Commerce combines the city of Fredericksburg wi ...
. It was built in about 1760 as a home by
Charles Washington Charles Washington (May 2, 1738 – September 16, 1799) was a Virginia planter and government official in several counties, who founded a town in the Shenandoah Valley which was named Charles Town in his honor shortly after his death and that o ...
, youngest brother of
George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...
, and became a tavern in 1792.


History

This house, built by the youngest brother of George Washington, was occupied by the Washington family until about 1780. The property was sold to Larkin Smith in 1791 and in 1792 was bought by Colonel Gustav Wallace who rented the building to Mr. John Frasier, who operated a tavern there. Though the tavern became known as the "Rising Sun Tavern" in the 20th century, it was actually known as the "Golden Eagle" or the "Eagle" in the 1790s. The ordinary at the old Washington family home served travelers into the 1820s under various owners. The Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities, which is now called Preservation Virginia, purchased the building in 1907 and it was given to the Fredericksburg branch of that group to operate. In 1933, the Society of Cincinnati hosted a Sesquicentennial celebration on the property and presented Preservation Virginia with a bronze medal in appreciation of their preservation efforts. The building is filled with period furnishings and stories of early life in Fredericksburg. In mid-2012, Preservation Virginia signed an agreement passing ownership to the newly created "Washington Heritage Museums" group by 2013. The site continues to be open as a museum. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966. and   (at Virginia DHR, with topographical map showing location) Originally, the large front porch was not part of the structure. It was added during the tavern phase of the property. No longer serving food and drink, guides provide visitors with a lively interpretation of eighteenth-century tavern life. The site is open daily.


References


External links

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Rising Sun Tavern, Fredericksburg, one photo at Virginia DHR
* {{Authority control Historic American Buildings Survey in Virginia Houses completed in 1760 National Historic Landmarks in Virginia Museums in Fredericksburg, Virginia Houses in Fredericksburg, Virginia Taverns in Virginia Taverns in the American Revolution Historic house museums in Virginia Washington family residences Georgian architecture in Virginia Colonial architecture in Virginia Drinking establishments on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Fredericksburg, Virginia Historic district contributing properties in Virginia