Family
Parlor
 ntil
the completion of the more formal White Parlor
in 1855, this room served both the Custis family and the Lees as a family sitting
room and as a place for formal entertaining. From an early date three arches have
divided the large room north of the hall into a family parlor and a small dining
room. Here, beneath the center archway, Lt. Robert
E. Lee and Mary Anna Randolph Custis
were married on June 30, 1831. The Family Parlor is also said to have been the
site of several other weddings including those of several slave couples including
Charles and Maria Syphax, and Thornton
and Selina Gray.
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View
of Family Parlor from Center Hall.
Click on picture to view QuickTime movie of the room. (204 KB) QuickTime plug-in is required and can be downloaded free at the QuickTime Web site. |
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Day
to day, the family parlor was a favorite gathering and entertaining place of the
Lees and Custises. Each day, the entire household—family, guests, and slaves—would
gather here for morning and evening prayers, summoned by Mrs. Custis's prayer
bell. The family spent many winter evenings in this room, talking, listening to
Mr. Custis's stories of his boyhood at Mount Vernon, or enjoying music.
Today,
visitors see a number of original pieces in the Family Parlor, including a violin
which was given to Mr. Custis
by George Washington and the engagement portrait of Mary Anna Randolph Custis
which hangs over the fireplace. Copies of other family portraits also hang in
the room. |
