WASHINGTON — George Washington’s spirits are being revived with help from Brown-Forman Corp., Diageo Plc, and other distillers.

They are among companies kicking in a total of more than $2 million to help a team of historians and craftsmen bring back Washington’s whiskey distillery, the largest in early America. The project is part of a $113 million expansion at Mount Vernon, Washington’s Virginia estate, whose grand opening will be October 27. The distillery revival and 67,000-square-foot addition to the property are the most extensive upgrade ever to the most-visited American historic home. Mount Vernon stands out from the museums of other presidents because it exists entirely on private donations — which curators say gives donors more say in shaping the museum.

“We listen to our donors and listen to our visitors more closely than institutions that get government checks,” Mount Vernon’s executive director, Jim Rees, said.

That the shrine to Washington takes no government money is fitting. He was not just the nation’s first president, between 1789 and 1797, and a Revolutionary War hero but also one of America’s most successful entrepreneurs. He was probably the most affluent American president, according to Forbes magazine.

In addition to running the distillery, Washington’s workers caught 1.3 million fish a year in the Potomac River and shipped them as far away as Portugal. He bred horses and ran a cooperage to make barrels for storing and shipping whiskey, flour, and salted fish at what was then an 8,000-acre plantation.

The fund-raising campaign for the renovations and additions began in 1998, and the “vast majority” of the 90,000 donations came from individuals, Mr. Rees said. Companies and corporate philanthropies also helped finance work on the 263-year-old mansion that Washington designed, which overlooks the Potomac.