Mount Vernon (Va. : Estate). River Farm

River Farm (25 acres/10.1 ha), home to the American Horticultural Society (AHS) headquarters, is a historic landscape located at 7931 East Boulevard Drive, Alexandria, Virginia. The estate takes its name from a larger plot of land which formed an outlying part of George Washington's Mount Vernon estate. As discussed below, the farm was put up for sale in September, 2020, pursuant to a multi-phase arrangement by then-AHS Chair Eric Vietenheimer, who first arranged a merger with the American Public Gardens Association, then resigned his AHS position because of an appearance of a conflict of interest due to legal fees charged by his firm.[1]

The River Farm property was established in 1653–54 by Giles Brent and his wife, Mary Kittamaquund, a princess of the Piscataway tribe. Brent received a grant of 1,800 acres (7.3 km2) named Piscataway Neck. In 1739 his successor George Brent transferred the property to his brother-in-law William Clifton, who renamed the property Clifton's Neck. In 1757 Clifton completed the brick house that now serves as AHS headquarters.

Following financial difficulties, Clifton sold the land to neighbor, founding father George Washington, who obtained the property for £1,210 through a bankruptcy sale in 1760. Washington changed the name of Clifton's Neck to River Farm and leased the property to tenant farmers.

Key acquisitions made during this twenty year span include the Mill tract at the head of Dogue Creek, the Clifton tract that later became River Farm, and three parcels that comprised the Ferry Farm. By the early 1770s, Washington accumulated 6,500 acres of nearly contiguous land fronting on the Potomac with Mount Vernon at the center on the river.

List of enslaved people, organized by farm subdivisions established by George Washington.

By 1799 the Mount Vernon estate totaled nearly 8,000 acres and was divided into five farms: Mansion House, Dogue Run, Muddy Hole, River, and Union, plus a gristmill and distillery. Each site has its own overseers, enslaved workers, livestock, equipment, and buildings.