Nicholas Spencer, the original patentee of Mount Vernon with the Washingtons.
Other sources credit Col. Richard Blackburn, who also designed Rippon Lodge in
Prince William County and the first Falls Church. His granddaughter Anne
married Bushrod Washington and is interred at the Washingtons' tomb on the
grounds. However, most architectural historians believe that the design of
Mount Vernon is solely attributable to Washington alone and that the
involvement of any other architects is based on conjecture
