George washington

By Mark Mastromarino George Washington (1732-1799), the most celebrated person in American history, was born on 22 February 1732 on his father’s plantation on Pope’s Creek in Westmoreland county, Virginia. His father, Augustine, a third-generation English colonist firmly established in the middle ranks of the Virginia gentry, was twice married. He had two sons, Lawrence and Augustine, in 1718 and 1720, before his first wife, Jane Butler Washington, died in 1728. In 1731 Augustine married Mary Ball (1709-1789), and George was born a year later. Five other children followed Samuel, Elizabeth, John Augustine, Charles, and Mildred (who died in infancy). About 1735 the Washington family moved from Westmoreland County to Augustine, Sr.’s plantation on Little Hunting Creek, and lived there until they moved to a farm on the Rappahannock river opposite Fredericksburg in 1738. Surveying the Land: An Early Career for Young Washington George Washington became the “Father of his country” despite having lost his own father at an early age. In 1743, when George was eleven years old, Augustine Washington died and left the bulk of his estate to George’s half-brothers. Lawrence inherited Little Hunting Creek plantation (which he later renamed Mount Vernon in honor of Admiral Edward Vernon under whom he had served in the War of Jenkins’ Ear), and Augustine, Jr., inherited the Westmoreland County plantation where George was born. George himself inherited the more modest Rappahannock River pla...

Birth and Early Life Birth Date February 22, 1732 Birth Place Pope's Creek, Virginia Father Augustine Washington (1694-1743) Mother Brothers Samuel Washington (1734-1781) John Augustine Washington (1736-1787) Half-Brothers Butler Washington (1716-1716) Augustine Washington Jr. (1720-1762) Sisters Mildred Washington (1737-1740) Half-Sister Jane Washington (1722-1734) Formal Education None Religion Anglican/Episcopalian George Washington's first career was as a surveyor. Washington first attempted measuring land near Mount Vernon in the 1740s. Then in 1748, when he was 16-years-old, he accompanied George William Fairfax on a surveying expedition through the western frontier of Virginia. The next year, Washington secured an appointment as county surveyor for the newly created frontier county of Culpeper. Learn More George Washington contracted smallpox while visiting Barbados. In 1751, George Washington accompanied his older half-brother Lawrence Washington to the island of Barbados. This was the only time George Washington ever left the mainland of North America. On November 17, 1751, George Washington contracted smallpox. Fortunately, he recovered and became immune for the rest of his life. This would become crucial in the American Revolution during a smallpox epidemic. Learn More George Washington led an attack that started a world war. In 1754, Washington led a surprise attack upon a small French force at Jumonville Glen. His subsequent surrender to French forces at the B...

• Known For: Revolutionary War hero and America's first president • Also Known As: The Father of His Country • Born: February 22, 1732 in Westmoreland County, Virginia • Parents: Augustine Washington, Mary Ball • Died: December 14, 1799 in Mount Vernon, Virginia • Spouse: Martha Dandridge Custis • Notable Quote: "To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace." Early Life George Washington was born on February 22, 1732, in Westmoreland County, Virginia to Augustine Washington and Mary Ball. The couple had six children—George was the oldest—to go with three from Augustine's first marriage. During George's youth his father, a prosperous planter who owned more than 10,000 acres of land, moved the family among three properties he owned in Virginia. He died when George was 11. His half-brother Lawrence stepped in as a father figure for George and the other children. Mary Washington was a protective and demanding mother, keeping George from joining the British Navy as Lawrence had wanted. Lawrence owned the Little Hunting Creek plantation—later renamed Mount Vernon—and George lived with him from the age of 16. He was schooled entirely in Colonial Virginia, mostly at home, and didn't go to college. He was good at math, which suited his chosen profession of surveying, and he also studied geography, Latin, and English classics. He learned what he really needed from backwoodsmen and the plantation foreman. In 1748 when he was 16, Washington traveled wi...

George Washington is one of the most recognized figures in U.S. history. But familiarity breeds contempt. More often than not, Washington is an old painting on the wall - solemn, impersonal and distant - or the subject of childhood stories and nursery rhymes. We all know that he chopped down a cherry tree and had wooden teeth. The actual Washington is much more compelling. We can all see the brilliant flourishes of Jefferson's pen, Madison's constitutional handiwork or the success of Hamilton's economic policies, and that can cause us to overlook or underestimate the magnitude of Washington's achievement. Yet he really was, as Washington's greatest biographer, James Flexner, put it, the "indispensable man" of the American founding. Remember that we look at history with the luxury of knowing what happened. What might seem inevitable or obvious in hindsight was more often than not a bold course, the outcome of which was uncertain at best. We must recapture this sense of contingency and daring if we are to understand Washington. A soldier by profession and a surveyor by trade, Washington was first and foremost a man of action. He was at every important intersection of the American founding; his decisions and practical wisdom were crucial to the success of the effort at every stage. And at every moment - from the time he became commander in chief to his death - his project was to found a self-governing nation, a constitutional republic. It is here that we see the brilliance of...

Cornell University LibraryWashington received unanimous support to become the first president of the United States. Both of the political parties that had debated over the Constitution supported him, and he was well respected not just in America but also throughout Europe. Though he was hesitant to accept the presidency, he did so through a sense of duty. On April 30, 1789, he was inaugurated as the first president in New York City, which was then serving as the country’s capital, and delivered his