Gunston Hall is committed to an authentic presentation of the mansion and its surrounding landscape. To this end, curatorial staff are engaged in on-going research to understand better how the Masons furnished and used each room and how enslaved and indentured servants interacted with the objects and people in these spaces. Staff have based decisions on sources such as detailed architectural examinations of the house, paint analysis, and studies of furnishings in comparable homes.

Collecting at Gunston Hall serves the purpose of helping visitors better understand the material and intellectual world of the Masons, particularly George.