Summer 2017

tents in 1909 (Fig. 9). Washington used the marquee tent as his sleeping quarters and off ice space while he ser ved as Commander in Chief of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. After the war, Martha Washington’s descendants inherited the tent, and it was relocated to Arlington House (part of pre sent-day A rl i ng ton Nat iona l Cemetery), built by George Washington Parke Custis to house the treasury of Washington relics he received. Robert E. Lee married Custis’ daughter and lived at the family’s mansion. When Union sol- diers occupied the Confederate general’s home at the start of the Civil War, Selina Gray, an A fric an-Americ an woman enslaved to the Custis-Lee family, helped to protect the tent from relic-hunting troops. Seeking to raise money to support Confederate widows in R ichmond, Virginia, Mary Custis Lee, Robert E. Lee’s oldest daughter, sold the tent to Reverend Burk. In 2003, Burk’s collec- tion was transferred to the American Revolution Center, now the Museum of the American Revolution. The tent is on public display for the f irst time in decades. The mu s e um’s c u r a t o r i a l a nd education teams have worked hand-in- glove to write the exhibit narrative and object labels using v isitor-f riend ly language to explain complex themes and stories. Touchscreen and tactile interactives are included throughout the main exhibit, but they do not overwhelm the experience. In one touchscreen interactive, visitors can explore real stories of five African-American men and women, four of them enslaved and one free man, who chose different routes to freedom in 1781 Virginia. The interactive draws from new scholarly research and uses newly commissioned illustrations, as well as cutting-edge technology, to dramatize their stories. The museum will contribute to a greater understanding of Philadelphia’s long history and national signif icance. Archaeological discoveries made on the site of the museum Summer 134 www.afamag.com | w ww.incollect.com Fig. 8: Epaulettes, North America or France, 1780–1783. Silk, L. 8½, W. 3 in. Museum of the American Revolution; Gift of James B. Richardson III. Fig. 9 : After he purchased General Washington’s tent in 1909, Reverend W. Herbert Burk set it up in the snow at Valley Forge. This photograph dates to about 1911. The tent will be on exhibit as a result of the combined efforts of textile conservators, engineers, historical tent experts, and museum staff. To protect the integrity of the tent for long-term display, a custom-made, umbrella-like aluminum frame and sub-tent support the weight of the historic textile and reduce the stress on the linen. The project to display Washington’s tent is comparable in scale to the Smithsonian Institution’s multi-year effort to conserve and exhibit the Star-Spangled Banner. the American Army, Reverend W. Herbert Burk founded the Valley Forge Museum of American History and the Washington Memorial Chapel in the early 1900s. Burk amassed a collection of objects to educate future generations of Americans. As his centerpiece, he purchased one of General Washington’s military