diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 764180a..6bb6976 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 ## master
 
+* Include the initial working directory in serialized session state.
 * Eliminated a workspace lookup on pty-based exits.
 * Removed the polyfill for ResizeObserver and set the required Atom version to 1.19+ to ensure the presence of native support.
 
diff --git a/lib/terminal-session.js b/lib/terminal-session.js
index 9d0ae2f..1cb8c7e 100644
--- a/lib/terminal-session.js
+++ b/lib/terminal-session.js
@@ -47,35 +47,10 @@ export default class TerminalSession {
     return spawnPty(this.shellPath, shellArguments, {
       name: 'xterm-color',
       env: this.sanitizedEnvironment,
-      cwd: this._getWorkingDirectory()
+      cwd: this.workingDirectory
     });
   }
 
-  //
-  // Select a working directory for a new terminal.
-  // Uses the project folder of the currently active file, if any,
-  // otherwise falls back to the first project's folder, if any,
-  // or the user's home directory.
-  //
-  _getWorkingDirectory() {
-    const activeItem = atom.workspace.getActivePaneItem();
-    if (activeItem
-        && activeItem.buffer
-        && activeItem.buffer.file
-        && activeItem.buffer.file.path) {
-      return atom.project.relativizePath(activeItem.buffer.file.path)[0];
-    } else {
-      const projectPaths = atom.project.getPaths();
-      let cwd;
-      if (projectPaths.length > 0) {
-        cwd = projectPaths[0];
-      } else {
-        cwd = process.env.HOME;
-      }
-      return path.resolve(cwd);
-    }
-  }
-
   //
   // Clears the contents of the terminal buffer. This is a simple proxy to the
   // `clear()` function on the Xterm instance.
@@ -107,7 +82,8 @@ export default class TerminalSession {
       config: {
         sanitizeEnvironment: this.sanitizedEnvironmentKeys,
         shellArgs: this.shellArguments,
-        shellPath: this.shellPath
+        shellPath: this.shellPath,
+        workingDirectory: this.workingDirectory
       }
     };
   }
@@ -133,6 +109,30 @@ export default class TerminalSession {
     return this.emitter.on('did-destroy', callback);
   }
 
+  //
+  // Select a working directory for a new terminal.
+  // Uses the project folder of the currently active file, if any,
+  // otherwise falls back to the first project's folder, if any,
+  // or the user's home directory.
+  //
+  _getWorkingDirectory() {
+    if (this._workingDirectory) return this._workingDirectory;
+
+    const activeItem = atom.workspace.getActivePaneItem();
+    if (activeItem && activeItem.buffer && activeItem.buffer.file && activeItem.buffer.file.path) {
+      return atom.project.relativizePath(activeItem.buffer.file.path)[0];
+    }
+
+    const projectPaths = atom.project.getPaths();
+    let cwd;
+    if (projectPaths.length > 0) {
+      cwd = projectPaths[0];
+    } else {
+      cwd = process.env.HOME;
+    }
+    return path.resolve(cwd);
+  }
+
   get sanitizedEnvironment() {
     const sanitizedEnvironment = Object.assign({}, process.env);
     const variablesToDelete = this.sanitizedEnvironmentKeys;
@@ -167,6 +167,12 @@ export default class TerminalSession {
       || atom.config.get('terminal-tab.shellSettings.sanitizeEnvironment');
   }
 
+  get workingDirectory() {
+    if (this._workingDirectory) return this._workingDirectory;
+    return this._workingDirectory = this.config.workingDirectory
+      || this._getWorkingDirectory();
+  }
+
   getDefaultLocation() {
     return atom.config.get('terminal-tab.defaultLocation');
   }