Westmoreland County Museum is right on Rt. 3 in Montross.
Westmoreland County Museum expands! A favorite of history buffs because of its everchanging exhibits, the Westmoreland Museum in Montross is the oldest museum in the Northern Neck. It was established in 1941 to display Charles Wilson Peale’s 1768 portrait of William Pitt, the British Parliamentarian behind the repeal of the Stamp Act. And the exhibit still prominently displays the Pitt painting, along with almost a dozen lifesized paintings of prominent Northern Neck historical figures, including Richard Henry Lee and Francis Lighfoot Lee, two leaders of the American Revolution and signers of the Declaration of Independence. In addition to the Lee brothers and William Pitt, the Museum also proudly displays portraits of: Robert W. Lee, who was born in Westmoreland County; Colonial landowner Archibald Campbell; former U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall and Lord Thomas Fairfax. Also displayed are an 1862 Confederate dollar bill and artifacts from the area’s early farming and fishing industries. continue to next page
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The original home of the Westmoreland County Museum was built using the same plans as those used for the Memorial House at George Washington Birthplace National Monument. Many locals still refer to the National Monument as “Wakefield” today.