Building X

In January 1930, George Washington Birthplace National Monument was created as a unit of the National Park Service (NPS). At the same time the park was created, the Wakefield National Memorial Association was working to preserve the landscape of George Washington's childhood. Among the Association's plans was to build a Memorial House Museum worthy of the first president.

During the construction of the Memorial House Museum, archeologists excavated a Colonial-era brick foundation yards away. The NPS waited until the completion of the Memorial House Museum before further investigating the foundation. When the large brick foundation was finally fully exposed in 1936, it led some to speculate that this was the original location of George Washington's birth home, especially when coupled with the numerous 18th century artifacts recovered during the excavation. The foundation was named Building X, due to the uncertainty of what it truly represented.

In the 1970s, another archeological project was completed but yielded no new evidence to prove that Building X was the birth home of George Washington. The NPS, however, began to refer to this location as the definitive ruins of the birth home. During this period, the nation was celebrating its bicentennial in 1976, and the resulting pressure to identify the location of George’s birth may have been the driving force behind this dramatic change.

In the early 21st century, advancements in historic archeology led park staff and archeologists to review the efficacy of past excavations and analyses which, in turn, led to a recommendation to reopen the foundation for reexamination. In partnership with New South Associates Inc., Building X was once again opened in 2022 with hopes of shedding more light on 86 years of uncertainty.

This most recent study of the foundation has shown that Building X represents the remains of a substantial 18th century home, that in its completed form, was intended for a gentry family. It also illustrates that that this building evolved and changed over time. First built as a one-room dwelling, it was later expanded to include at least six additional rooms constructed in at least two separate building campaigns. In its final form before abandonment, Building X likely included two entertaining rooms, passages, and two bedchamber suites on the ground floor, as well as extensive cellars, and additional chambers on the upper story. In addition to its expansive plan, several of the rooms speak to the unusual and upscale character of the house, including the presence of heated closets off each of the two primary bedchambers. These rooms are not closets as we know them today and would have served as small withdrawing rooms, offices, or spaces for study. The house’s size and complexity demonstrate that it was intended for an aspiring elite family and embraced all the requisite spaces for polite living during the second half or middle of the eighteenth century. The home almost certainly belonged to George’s half-brother, Augustine Jr, and then his son, William Augustine, and was likely occupied until the 1770s.

Once abandoned and the above-ground components gone (either dismantled or collapsed) the building’s cellars and crawl spaces were allowed to silt in. Later, the cellars were backfilled. This could have happened in a single episode, but it could have also occurred over a period of time. Evidence suggests that filling took place in the eighteenth century, likely not long after the American Revolution.

While modern archeology has resolved some of the major questions regarding the site, two significant events in its history are quickly approaching: the centennial of George Washington Birthplace National Monument in 2030, and George Washington's Tercentenary (300th birthday) in 2032. Will the location of the original birth home be resolved by then?