Mount Vernon, home of George Washington, in Fairfax County, Virginia, on the Potomac River, 24 km (15 mi) south of Washington, D.C. The Washington mansion, beautifully situated on a hill, is a three-story building of wood. It was built in 1743 by Washington's half brother Lawrence, who called it Mount Vernon in honor of Admiral Edward Vernon, under whom he had served in the British navy. George Washington inherited Mount Vernon in 1752. Both he and his wife Martha Washington are buried in an ivy-covered mausoleum a few hundred meters from the house. The Mount Vernon Ladies' Association acquired the mansion in 1860 and maintains it as a place of national interest.