Historic Mount Vernon’s Grand Opening of 25 New Galleries and Theatres, Friday, Oct. 27, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Wow, this is a big, long awaited day, years and $110 million in the making. It takes place on the one-of-a-kind pasture roof of the new Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center there. All kinds of new interactive displays, a 20-minute Hollywood produced action adventure movie, three life-size wax models and a collection of over 700 objects are being introduced to give visitors an unprecedented look at the personal effects of the Washington family. Plenty of fife and drum corps, Army Band Brass Quintet and youth chorus music accompanies the ceremony, along with bagpipes and re-enactors and, oh yes, some speeches, too. Mt. Vernon has been open to the public since 1858 and is owned by America’s oldest national preservation organization. It is just 16 miles from the nation’s capital.