Germantown White House (formerly the Deshler-Morris House) - Pennsylvania

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Photo of Germantown White House (formerly the Deshler-Morris House) courtesy NPS

Built by Quaker merchant, David Deshler before the Revolution, this handsome stone house faces historic Market Square. During the Battle of Germantown in 1777, British Commander Sir William Howe, made the house his headquarters.

While the yellow fever epidemic raged in Philadelphia in 1793, business of the new republic continued at the Germantown "White House" Here, President Washington presided over meetings with his divided cabinet: Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, Henry Knox and Edmund Randolph. The president returned with his family to spend the following summer in Germantown's pleasant surroundings.

More recently, the Morris family lived here for over one hundred years, donating it to the National Park Service in 1948. Now a unit of Independence National Historical Park, guided tours of the Germantown "White House" offers a glimpse into the private world of our first president.

Facilities available at Germantown White House (formerly the Deshler-Morris House):