Gunston Hall

06/24/2026

☀️🇺🇸 Spend the Summer with Gunston Hall! 🌻🎉

Join us this summer for a special edition of our annual Summer Saturdays program in celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States!

Each Summer Saturday features a full day of hands-on activities, games, crafts, music, snacks, and civic-themed fun. 🎨🎶🍪 Along the way, you'll meet local community partners and museum friends who will help bring history, citizenship, and community connections to life.

🔎 Discover how historians uncover stories of the past
🇺🇸 Explore the nation's 250th anniversary
✂️ Learn how crafts and protests have shaped history
🤝 Celebrate our local community and civic engagement
🧠 Test your knowledge during a day of trivia and friendly competition

Attend one program or join us for them all—each Summer Saturdays event is included with general admission to Gunston Hall. 🎟️

Visit our website for the full schedule of themes and activities. We can't wait to spend the summer with you!

06/23/2026

Collections Technician Caroline spotted a familiar name while abroad in London, England!

Located on the grounds of Middle Temple Inn – where George Mason’s brother, Thomson Mason, studied law – is Temple Church. It was in this very building in the 13th century that the Magna Carta was negotiated. This charter is one of the earliest extant legal documents enumerating certain rights and liberties of citizens as discrete and independent from the whims of a given leader or government. In the centuries since, the Magna Carta has become potent symbol of liberty for Brits and Americans alike!

Today, in honor of America’s 250th, the Church features a gallery of state and federal constitutional documents which draw inspiration from the Magna Carta. This includes a segment on our very own George and Virginia Declaration of Rights! (A segment that is quite a bit longer, might we add, than the mention of James Madison and the Bill of Rights... 😉). Mason undeniably was influenced by the centuries of political though and debate which preceded him – and in turn, influenced the thinkers and governments who would follow him.

Swipe to read what the exhibition has to say – and visit Gunston Hall and for more information on Mason’s influences, legacy, and the VDR!

06/21/2026

☀️ Happy first day of summer from the Gunston Hall Riverside Garden!

Although the past few weeks have felt unseasonably warm, we're excited to officially welcome summer and watch some of our favorite warm-season crops and flowers begin to bloom and flourish.

Come enjoy a peaceful stroll through the gardens—we're open for tours and garden wandering Sunday–Tuesday and Thursday–Saturday from 9:30 a.m.–5 p.m. 🌻🌿🌼

06/20/2026

We are just ONE WEEK from the kick-off of our Summer Saturdays programs for the summer!

Join us and our community partners for a day of learning How To: History! We will be working with partners like Fairfax Archaeology, Preservation Virginia, Libby, and Historic Fairfax to make history fun! Learn and play with us to find out how historians learn about people of the past in order to shape our future!

We’ll have games, activities, music, and PIZZA provided by History Made by Us, in honor of Civic Season! Don’t miss out! Help us kick off Summer Saturdays in a big way! And remember: Summer Saturdays is free with general admission to the museum. We’ll see you there!

06/19/2026

Tomorrow is our June Storytime Saturday! Come by to read, learn, and play with us! This month’s theme is Tradition, where we’ll be reading Let's Celebrate!: Special Days Around the World by Kate DePalma and illustrated by Martina Peluso.

After our story, we will practice gross and fine motor skills with a drawing activity and dancing. Then we’ll wrap up the program with a shortened tour of the Mansion that focuses on what tradition means.

This program will run rain or shine, so please dress for the weather.

We look forward to seeing you Saturday at 10:30 a.m.!
🎟️ https://tinyurl.com/ycaafbpt

06/18/2026

🌸✨ Mark your calendars! ✨🌸

Join us on July 17 for a Garden Party in our Riverside Garden!

Spend a summer evening wandering tranquil gardens, soaking in historic charm, savoring delicious cocktails and food, and enjoying great company. Whether you're looking to relax, connect with friends, or simply experience the beauty of Gunston Hall in bloom, this is an event you won't want to miss.

☀️ Friday, July 17 6 - 9 p.m.
📍 George Mason's Gunston Hall
🎟️ www.gunstonhall.org

06/18/2026

Adventure awaits! Strap on your explorer boots and join us for Nature Thursdays on July 2 at 10:30 a.m.

Your preschool-aged ecologists will join Gunston Educators for a themed story time and a guided nature hike to traverse the woods and waterways on the Grounds of Gunston Hall. Exciting exploratory activities will help preschoolers gain essential skills including preschool readiness, respect for our environment, gross and fine motor refinement, self-expression and more!

The theme for July is Flowers! We’ll be reading The Hidden Rainbow by Christie Matheson. Together, we’ll observe the weather and learn about measuring the temperature. During our guided hike, we’ll identify and gather flowers from our surroundings. Later, we'll use the flowers we collected and organize them by size and color, before arranging our flowers to bring home!

This program runs rain or shine, so please practice outdoor preparedness and dress for the weather!

Please register in advance as this program tends to sell out!
🎟️ https://tinyurl.com/uc8h4xan

06/17/2026

We’re 30 minutes out from our next History Bites episode! 🎙️

Join us over your lunch break TODAY at 12:30 p.m. as we introduce our Freedom of Religion miniseries with a talk by Dr. Charles Haynes.

Charles C. Haynes, Ph.D. is Senior Fellow for Religious Freedom at the Freedom Forum and chair of the Committee for Religious Liberty. A leading authority on religious freedom and First Amendment issues, he is the principal drafter of Religion and Public Schools: A First Amendment Guide and the author or co-author of numerous books on religious liberty. He holds degrees from Emory University and Harvard Divinity School.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel to be notified when the program goes live:
https://tinyurl.com/ynws32tw

06/16/2026

🎙️ We are just 1 day away from the newest episode of History Bites! Join us on YouTube tomorrow, Wednesday, June 17 at 12:30 p.m. for a new episode of History Bites! We will introduce our Freedom of Religion miniseries with a talk by Dr. Charles Haynes from the Freedom Forum.

Catch up on previous episodes now on our channel, along with other great programs like History in the Kitchen.

🔔 Subscribe to our YouTube channel to be notified when programs go live:
https://tinyurl.com/ynws32tw

06/16/2026