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Home , Augustine Washington, Betty (slave), Charles Washington, Daniel Parke Custis, Frances Jones (colonist), George Washington (book)

Part I

Biographical Data Facts About the Presidents 1st PRESIDENT George

Date of birth—Feb. 22, 1732 (Feb. 11 on Term of office—Apr. 30, 1789–Mar. 4, 1797 Julian calendar) Term served—7 years, 308 days Place of birth—Pope’s Creek, Westmore- Administration—lst, 2nd land County, Va. Congresses—1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th Education—Unknown; basic literacy and Age at inauguration—57 years, 67 days mathematical skills Lived after term—2 years, 285 days Religion—Episcopalian Occupation after term—Planter; held Ancestry—English rank of lieutenant general and commander Career—Surveyor, planter, soldier, colonial in chief of the nation’s armies legislator, delegate to Continental Con- Date of death—Dec. 14, 1799 gress, commander in chief of , president of Constitutional Conven- Age at death—67 years, 295 days tion Place of death—, near Alex- Political party—Federalist andria, Va. State represented— Burial place—Family vault, Mount Ver- non, Va.

FAMILY

FATHER sheriff; he ran a plantation using slave labor and went into business as an iron manufac- Name— turer and exporter after ore was found on his Date of birth—1694 land. He is known to have been prone to law- Place of birth—Westmoreland, Va. suits. He is reported to have been a distant First marriage—Jane Butler, Apr. 20, 1715 and preoccupied father, often away from (d. Nov. 24, 1728) home. His first wife, Jane Butler, was about Second marriage—Mary Ball, Mar. 6, 1731 15 years old at the time of their marriage in 1715 and about 28 when she died; they had Occupation—Farmer, planter, iron four children together. With his second wife, exporter, sheriff, justice of the peace Mary Ball, he had six children. Date of death—Apr. 12, 1743 was 11 years old when Place of death—King George County, Va. Augustine died unexpectedly of a stomach Age at death—About 49 years disorder. In some 20,000 surviving letters Augustine Washington was the grandson and other documents written by George of , who immigrated to the Washington, Augustine Washington is men- from the north of tioned a total of three times. circa 1657, and the son of Lawrence and Mildred Warner Washington, who died when MOTHER their children were young. (Mildred Warner Washington was a descendant of King Name at birth—Mary Ball Edward III of England.) Date of birth—1708 Like his father and grandfather, August- Place of birth—Lancaster County, Va. ine was prominent in the colonial govern- Marriage—Augustine Washington, Mar. 6, ment, serving as justice of the peace and 1731

3 Facts About the Presidents

Date of death—Aug. 25, 1789 SIBLINGS Place of death—Near Fredericksburg, Va. Augustine Washington was the father of Age at death—81 years ten children, four by his first wife and six by Mary Washington’s grandfather, William his second wife. George Washington was his Ball, abandoned his English estate during fifth child and the firstborn of Mary Ball England’s Civil War, circa 1650, and fled to Washington. Virginia, where he became a wealthy Children of Jane Butler Washington and grower. Mary was the product of the mar- Augustine Washington riage of his son Joseph, a widower, to a widow named Johnson; from their first marriages, Butler Washington, b. 1716, d. 1716 she had numerous half-siblings. Her father Lawrence Washington, b. 1718, d. July 26, died when she was a toddler, her mother 1752 when she was 12. Augustine Washington, b. 1720, d. May 1762 At the age of 35, after some 13 years of Jane Washington, b. 1722, d. Jan. 17, 1735 marriage, Mary Washington was left a widow Children of and with four sons and a daughter. George, the Augustine Washington eldest, rebelled against her overbearing man- ner and spent long visits with his married George Washington, b. Feb. 22, 1732, d. Dec. half-brothers. He learned surveying and 14, 1799 became a soldier only because she vetoed his Elizabeth (“”) Washington, b. June 20, plan to join the British Navy. She also 1733, d. Mar. 31, 1797 refused to relinquish to him the property that , b. Nov. 16, 1734, d. Dec. he had inherited from his father. Although he 1781 supported her financially during all his adult John Augustine Washington, b. Jan. 13, life, including the years when he was serving 1736, d. Feb. 1787 as commander in chief of the Continental , b. May 2, 1738, d. Sept. Army and as President, she pestered him for 1799 money and embarrassed him by petitioning Mildred Washington, b. June 21, 1739, d. Oct. Virginia’s legislature for a pension she did 23, 1740 not need. Mary Washington died of breast cancer in MARRIAGE her eighties. She was not much mourned by Married—Martha Dandridge Custis President Washington and her grave had no marker until 1894, when a group of Virginia Date of marriage—Jan. 6, 1759 women paid for a marble shaft with the leg- Place of marriage—New Kent County, Va. end “Mary the mother of Washington.”

Courtesy of The George Washington and his family

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Age of wife at marriage—27 years, 199 Washingtons took into their household the days two youngest of these grandchildren—a Age of husband at marriage—26 years, three-year-old girl, Eleanor Parke Custis, 318 days known as Nelly, and an infant boy, George Years married—40 years, 342 days Washington Parke Custis, known as Wash— and acted as parents to both. George Washington’s will bequeathed to CHILDREN his stepgrandson a piece of land on the Poto- George Washington had no children of his mac River. Wash Custis built on it a mansion own. He was stepfather to Martha Park Cus- he called Arlington. It eventually passed to tis (known as Patsy) and , his daughter Mary Ann and her husband, ’s two surviving children army officer Robert E. Lee. During the Civil from her first marriage (she had had two War, while Lee was commanding the armies other children who died very young). Patsy of the Confederacy, the property was confis- died at the age of 17 during an epileptic sei- cated by the Union Army; the mansion was zure. John Parke Custis served during the used as a headquarters and the surrounding Revolutionary War as Washington’s aide-de- parkland as a burial ground. The estate is camp and died of camp fever shortly after the now Arlington National Cemetery, the war ended, leaving four little children. The nation’s chief military cemetery.

THE PRESIDENT’S WIFE

Name at birth—Martha Dandridge Martha Washington grew up in Virginia Date of birth—June 21, 1731 on a small plantation and at the age of 17 Place of birth—New Kent County, Va. married a wealthy planter twice her age, with whom she had four children. She was Mother— Dandridge widowed at 26 and married George Washing- Father—Colonel ton less than two years later. They were in Father’s occupation—Planter their forties when the First marriage— Custis, June asked George to lead the war of independence 1749, Dandridge estate, New Kent County, against Britain. From 1775 until the war’s Va. (d. July 8, 1757) Second marriage—George Washington, January 6, 1759, Custis estate, New Kent County, Va. Children from first marriage—, b. 1751, d. 1754; Frances Parke Custis, b.1753, d. 1757; John Parke Custis, b. 1754, d. 1781; Martha Parke (“Patsy”) Custis, b. 1756, d. 1773 Children from second marriage—None Religion—Episcopalian Date of death—May 22, 1802 Age at death—70 years, 355 days Place of death—Mount Vernon, near Alex- andria, Va. Burial place—Mount Vernon, Va. Years older than the president—246 days Years she survived the President—2 years, 159 days Courtesy of The Library of Congress Martha Washington, wife of George Washington

5 Facts About the Presidents end, Martha joined her husband each year in greeted by a 13-gun salute and cries of “Long the army’s winter camp, where she spent her live Lady Washington!” This was the first time doing what she could to ease the suffer- time that the spouse of a President was ing of sick and freezing soldiers, sewing accorded public honors. shirts and knitting socks for them, patching their torn clothes, and encouraging other THE WASHINGTONS AND THEIR officers’ wives to do likewise. GUESTS Martha Washington outlived two hus- bands, all four of her children, and numerous Although Martha Washington was never siblings, nieces, and nephews, but succeeded consulted by her husband in matters of gov- in maintaining her equanimity and amiabil- ernment, she was his partner in matters of ity. “I am still determined to be cheerful and state ceremony and entertainment, though happy in whatever situation I may be,” she like all First Ladies she received no compen- once wrote to her friend Mercy Warren, “for I sation for the services she performed. The have also learned from experience that the Washingtons hosted weekly receptions for greater part of our happiness or misery dignitaries and members of Congress, with depends on our dispositions and not on our the President holding one reception for men circumstances. We carry the seeds of the one on Tuesday afternoons and his wife holding a or the other about with us in our minds, mixed-sex “drawing room” on Friday eve- wherever we go.” nings. The practice of calling on socially important people and receiving them in turn THE FIRST LADY was observed punctiliously by the Washing- tons: the President maintained regular call- The wife of the nation’s first President was ing hours twice a week and received visitors known as Lady Washington even before her every day but Sunday, while Mrs. Washing- husband took office. She never occupied the ton made it her practice to return all calls in Washington, D.C., as it had within three days. To her near relatives she not been completed during George Washing- confided her longing to be at home in Mount ton’s administration. The seat of government Vernon with her husband. She carried out at the time of his first inauguration was at her ceremonial tasks as a matter of duty, , where the Washingtons lived since she had been, as she once expressed it, first in a mansion on Franklin Square and “taught by the great example which I have so then in a mansion on Broadway. They were long before me never to oppose my private assisted by a secretary, , and a wishes to the public will.” steward, Sam Fraunces, who ran a staff of 14 servants. (Fraunces was the proprietor of the MARTHA WASHINGTON famous Fraunces Tavern, where Washington ESTABLISHED NEW YEAR’S had escaped an assassination attempt during RECEPTION the Revolutionary War.) When the capital was transferred to in 1790, the The New Year’s Day reception, a presiden- Washingtons lived in a house owned by Rob- tial tradition for 140 years, was established ert Morris, the Revolution’s financier. The by Martha Washington on January 1, 1790, government did not furnish the President’s when she received guests in her house in House, and the expense of furnishing was Philadelphia. Except in time of war and borne by the Washingtons. national mourning, the custom continued Martha Washington set a precedent for until the Hoover administration abolished it the treatment of First Ladies in May 1789 in 1930. when she traveled from Mount Vernon to New York City to join her husband, who had ASSESSMENT OF MARTHA been inaugurated a few weeks earlier. WASHINGTON BY A Though most of her journey was made as a CONTEMPORARY private citizen, when she reached New Jersey she boarded the presidential barge and was Martha Washington’s successor as First conveyed by American sailors across New Lady, Abigail Adams, was known as a shrewd York Bay to Manhattan, where she was judge of character. After meeting Martha in

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1789, Mrs. Adams wrote: “Mrs. Washington pleasentness sits upon her countenance & an is one of those unassuming characters which unaffected deportment which renders her the create Love & Esteem. A most becoming object of veneration and respect.”

IMPORTANT DATES IN THE PRESIDENT’S LIFE

1749, licensed as surveyor by College of June 15, 1775, Congress elected Washington William and Mary as general and commander in chief of the July 20, 1749, official surveyor, Culpeper Army of the United Colonies County, Va. July 3, 1775, assumed command at Cam- Nov. 6, 1752, appointed adjutant of one of bridge, Mass. Virginia’s four districts, with rank Mar. 17, 1776, Boston evacuated by the Brit- of major ish Mar. 15, 1754, lieutenant-colonel of Virginia Aug. 27, 1776, Battle of Long Island regiment Oct. 28, 1776, Battle of White Plains June 5, 1754, colonel of Virginia regiment Dec. 25, 1776, recrossed Delaware River May 10, 1755, appointed aide-de-camp (a vol- Dec. 26, 1776, unteer position without rank) by General Jan. 3, 1777, Braddock in French and Indian War Sept. 11, 1777, July 9, 1755, two horses were shot under him Oct. 4, 1777, and four bullets pierced his coat in battle Dec. 19, 1777, winter headquarters estab- near Fort Duquesne, Pa.; withdrew rem- lished at nants of Braddock’s defeated army at the Oct. 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered at Monongahela to Fort Cumberland Yorktown, Va. Aug. 14, 1755, appointed by the legislature May 8, 1783, dinner with Lord Carleton after colonel of the Virginia regiment and com- conference; Washington received 17-gun mander in chief of the Virginia forces pro- salute tecting the frontier against the French and Indians June 19, 1783, elected President General of the Society of the Cincinnati 1755–1758, engaged in recruiting and orga- nizing troops for colonial defense Sept. 3, 1783, Treaty of Peace signed 1758, commanded successful expedition to Nov. 2, 1783, issued Farewell Orders to the Fort Duquesne armies July 24, 1758, elected to House of Burgesses Nov. 25, 1783, reoccupied New York City from Frederick County after British occupation Dec. 1758, resigned commission as colonel of Dec. 4, 1783, bade farewell to his officers at the Virginia regiment and commander in Fraunces’ Tavern chief of the Virginia forces Dec. 23, 1783, surrendered his commission as 1758, resided at Mount Vernon, Va. commander in chief to Congress; returned to private life Oct. 1770, justice of the peace for Fairfax County May 25, 1787, delegate from Virginia to the Federal Convention; elected president Aug. 1773, delegate to the Williamsburg Con- unanimously vention Feb. 4, 1789, unanimously elected President Aug. 1774, member, First Virginia Provincial of the for 1789–1793 term Convention Apr. 30, 1789, inaugurated President at Fed- Aug. 5, 1774, elected delegate to First Conti- eral Hall, New York City nental Congress June 1, 1789, signed first act of Congress Sept. 5, 1774, attended first session of Conti- nental Congress at Philadelphia, Pa. Aug. 25, 1789, his mother, Mary Ball Wash- ington, died at Fredericksburg, Va. Mar. 25, 1775, Second Virginia Provincial Congress selected Washington to attend Dec. 5, 1792, unanimously reelected Presi- Second Continental Congress dent

7 Facts About the Presidents

Mar. 4, 1793, inaugurated at Philadelphia, Mar. 3, 1797, expiration of his second term as Pa., as President of the United States for a President second term July 11, 1798, President Sept. 18, 1793, laid cornerstone of the Capitol appointed him lieutenant general and com- at Washington, D.C. mander in chief of all the armies of the Sept. 17, 1796, issued Farewell Address United States July 13, 1798, accepted appointment

ELECTIONS

THE ELECTION OF 1789 Representatives shall immediately chuse by Ballot one of them for President; and The date of the first election was estab- if no Person has a Majority, then from lished on September 13, 1788, by the Conti- the five highest on the List, the said nental Congress. The first Wednesday in House shall in like Manner chuse the January 1789 was fixed by Congress as the President. But in chusing the President, date for the choosing of electors by the sev- the Votes shall be taken by States, the eral states. The first Wednesday in February Representation from each State having 1789 was fixed as the day on which the elec- one Vote; A quorum for this purpose tors would vote. shall consist of a Member or Members When the first electors cast their ballots, from two-thirds of the States, and a there were no political organizations or politi- Majority of all the States shall be neces- cal parties in existence. Each elector had to sary to a Choice. In every Case, after the vote for two persons. The person who received Choice of the President, the Person hav- the majority of votes was elected President, ing the greatest Number of Votes of the and the person with the next highest number Electors shall be the Vice President. But became Vice President. No distinction was if there should remain two or more who made between votes for President and Vice have equal Votes, the Senate shall chuse President until 1804. from them by Ballot the Vice President. The method of balloting and selecting the It was the intention of the Continental candidate is governed by Article 2, Section 1, Congress that the newly formed government Paragraph 3 of the Constitution: should convene on “the first Wednesday in The Electors shall meet in their respec- March next” (March 4, 1789) at Federal Hall, tive States, and vote by Ballot for two New York City. Only 8 of the 26 senators and persons, of whom one at least shall not 13 of the 65 representatives presented them- be an Inhabitant of the same State with selves on that date, and it was not until April themselves. And they shall make a List 6, 1789, that a quorum was present. John of all the Persons voted for, and of the Langdon, President of the Senate, received, Number of Votes for each; which List opened, and counted the votes of the electors. they shall sign and certify, and transmit George Washington received one vote from sealed to the Seat of the Government of each of the 69 electors from the 10 states and the United States, directed to the Presi- was the unanimous choice for President. The dent of the Senate. The President of the votes were cast by the states as follows: Mas- Senate shall, in the Presence of the Sen- sachusetts 10, Pennsylvania 10, Virginia 10, ate and the House of Representatives, Connecticut 7, South Carolina 7, 6, open all the Certificates, and the Votes New Jersey 6, 5, New Hampshire 5, shall then be counted. The Person having and Delaware 3. the greatest Number of Votes shall be A committee from both houses was the President, if such a number be a appointed to meet him: John Langdon of New Majority of the whole Number of Electors Hampshire, Charles Carroll of Maryland, and appointed; and if there be more than one William Samuel Johnson of Connecticut, rep- who have such Majority, and have an resenting the Senate; and Elias Boudinot of equal number of Votes, then the House of

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New Jersey, of Virginia, was in New York. Consequently, New York’s Thomas Tudor Tucker of South Carolina, vote was not cast. The weather delayed the Egbert Benson of New York, and John Lau- votes of 4 electors, 2 from Maryland and 2 rance of New York, representing the House. from Virginia. Since North Carolina and Charles Thomson was appointed to notify Rhode Island had not yet ratified the Consti- George Washington that he had been elected tution, they did not cast their 7 and 3 votes President and Sylvanus Bourn was appointed respectively. Thus, 22 of the 91 possible votes to notify John Adams that he had been were not cast. elected Vice President. On April 14, 1789, Charles Thomson, sec- ADAMS ELECTED VICE PRESIDENT retary of the Continental Congress, notified Each elector cast 1 of his 2 votes for Wash- George Washington of his election, and on ington, who thus received 69 of the 138 votes. April 16, 1789, Washington left his home at The other 69 were divided among eleven Mount Vernon, Va., for the capital. other candidates; John Adams of Massachu- setts, the candidate with the greatest num- FULL ELECTORAL VOTE NOT CAST IN ber, became Vice President. The other 1789 candidates were John Jay of New York, Rob- On February 4, 1789, the first presidential ert Hanson Harrison of Maryland, John Rut- electors—a total of 69—met in their respec- ledge of South Carolina, John Hancock of tive states to cast their ballots. The electors Massachusetts, George Clinton of New York, of five states—Connecticut, Delaware, Geor- Samuel Huntington of Connecticut, John Mil- gia, New Jersey, and South Carolina—had ton of Georgia, James Armstrong of Pennsyl- been chosen by the state legislatures. Three vania, Edward Telfair of Georgia, and states—Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Vir- Benjamin Lincoln of Massachusetts. ginia—held popular elections. Massachu- Adams received 34 votes as follows: Conn. 5 setts had a system combining popular (of the 7 votes); Mass. 10; N.H. 5; N.J. 1 (of election and appointment by the legislature. the 6 votes); Pa. 8 (of the 10 votes); Va. 5 New Hampshire held a popular election, but (of the 10 votes). The other candidates none of the electors received a majority, and received the following votes: the electors finally chosen were those named Jay—Del. 3; N.J. 5 (of the 6 votes); Va. 1 (of by the state Senate. the 10 votes) Had all of the electors qualified, a total of Harrison—Md. 6 91 votes, instead of 69, would have been cast. Rutledge—S.C. 6 (of the 7 votes) New York had not yet chosen its 8 electors Hancock—Pa. 2 (of the 10 votes); S.C. 1 (of even though the seat of the new government the 7 votes); Va. 1 (of the 10 votes)

Courtesy of The Library of Congress Washington at a reception in his honor

9 Facts About the Presidents

Clinton—Va. 3 (of the 10 votes) group, they realized the futility of organizing Huntington—Conn. 2 (of the 7 votes) to oppose Washington’s reelection and did not Milton—Ga. 2 (of the 5 votes) oppose him. Armstrong—Ga. 1 (of the 5 votes) The schedule for the choosing of presiden- Lincoln—Ga. 1 (of the 5 votes) tial electors in 1792 was not the same as the schedule that had been in force in 1789. Con- Telfair—Ga. 1 (of the 5 votes) gress, in March of 1792, adopted a new plan that allowed the states to choose electors dur- THE ELECTION OF 1792 ing the 34 days preceding the first Wednes- day in December, on which day the electors in Before the conclusion of George Washing- each state would convene and cast their bal- ton’s four-year term, it was necessary to elect lots. These ballots, sealed, were to be for- a President for the second administration. warded to Congress before the first George Washington and John Adams, who Wednesday in January and counted on the were known as Federalists, were advocates of second Wednesday in February. a strong central government. Those in accord When the count was complete, George with their principles wanted them reelected Washington had received 132 of the 264 elec- for a second term of four years. toral votes cast, a unanimous election. The Naturally, not all of the ideas and plans second highest vote, 77 out of a possible 132, advocated by them were acceptable to every- was for John Adams of Massachusetts, who one. Those who differed were known as Dem- was thus reelected Vice President. The ocratic-Republicans or Republicans. As the remaining electoral votes were cast for Democratic-Republicans were a minority George Clinton of New York (50), of Virginia (4), and Aaron Burr of New York (1).

INAUGURATIONS

FIRST TERM The President of the United States on the day of his inauguration, appeared April 30, 1789 dressed in a complete suit of Homespun George Washington took the oath of office Cloaths; the cloth was of a fine fabric, as President of the United States on Thurs- and as handsomely finished, as any day, April 30, 1789, outdoors, on the balcony European superfine cloth. A circum- of the Senate Chamber at Federal Hall, Wall stance, which must be considered as not and Nassau Streets, New York City. The oath only highly flattering to our manufactur- was administered by Robert R. Livingston, ers in particular, but interesting to our Chancellor of New York State. The Bible on countrymen in general. His Excellency which Washington took his oath was bor- the Vice President appeared also in a rowed from St. John’s Lodge, Free and suit of American manufacture and sev- Accepted Masons. His hand rested on Psalm eral members of both Houses are distin- 127:1 when he took the oath. He then pro- guished by the same token of attention to ceeded to the Senate Chamber to deliver his the manufacturing interests of their inaugural address. After the ceremony, he country. was escorted to the President’s House by a After Chancellor Robert R. Livingston troop of cavalry, assistants, a committee of administered the oath of office to George Representatives, and a committee of the Sen- Washington on April 30, 1789, he proclaimed, ate. “Long live George Washington, the President The evening celebration was opened and of the United States.” closed by 13 skyrockets and 13 cannon. The first inaugural ball was held Thurs- A weekly, the U.S. Chronicle of May 21, day, May 7, 1789, in the Assembly Rooms on 1789, recorded: the east side of Broadway, a little above Wall Street, New York City. It was attended by

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President Washington, Vice President SECOND TERM Adams, the French and Spanish ministers, Chancellor Livingston, Baron von Steuben, March 4, 1793 General Knox, John Jay, Alexander Hamil- The government having moved from New ton, and the majority of the House of Repre- York City to Philadelphia, George Washing- sentatives and the Senate. Fans which were ton took the oath of office for his second term decorated with a medallion portrait of Presi- on Monday, March 4, 1793, in the Senate dent George Washington in profile were pre- Chamber, Federal Hall, Philadelphia, Pa. sented as souvenirs to the ladies. Martha Washington was the first President to be Washington did not attend, as she did not inaugurated at Philadelphia and the first arrive in the city until the end of May. inaugurated on March 4th. The oath was administered by William Cushing of Massa- chusetts, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.

THE VICE PRESIDENT

Name—John Adams (1st V.P.) Occupation after term—President of the Political party—Federalist United States State represented—Massachusetts For further biographical information, see the chapter on John Adams, 2nd President, Term of office—Apr. 21, 1789–Mar. 4, 1797 on page 27. Age at inauguration—53 years, 173 days

Courtesy of The Library of Congress Washington delivering his inaugural address in April 1789, at the old city hall in New York, New York.

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