#1: Washington, George

George Washington February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799


This is a blind contour line drawing.

Things I learned from the encyclopedia (italics throughout are mine):

• Washington's friend George Mercer wrote of him in 1760: "He may be described as being straight as an Indian, measuring 6 feet 2 inches in his stockings, and weighing 175 pounds . . . A large and straight rather than a prominent nose; blue-gray penetrating eyes . . . He has a clear through rather colorless pale skin which burns with the sun . . . dark brown hair which he wears in a queue. . . . His mouth is large and generally firmly closed, but which from time to time discloses some defective teeth . . . "
• Washington had a difficult mother, who refused to let him go away to become a sailor, crushing his teenage dreams.
• Before his military career, George made his fortune as a surveyor of the Shenandoah Valley and he liked arithmetic. His first expedition (and first long trip away from home) was with Lord Fairfax, the largest landowner in Virginia. "The month-long expedition set out on horseback in March, 1748. Washington learned to sleep in the open and hunt for food. By the time he returned to Mount Vernon, he felt he had grown into a man. He was also now shaving."
• Between the ages of 16 and 42, he continued to make money as a country gentleman (farmer, businessman, popular legislator, and a county court judge). He was ahead of his time in using certain farm methods, such as crop rotation and prevention of soil erosion. He also used the refuse from his fishing operation to fertilize his fields.
• After Washington's first major battle in the French and Indian War, he commented that he liked the swishing sound of bullets.
• The Virginians that Washington recruited to serve under him in his early military career were described by a British officer as "an extremely bad collection of broken inn-keepers, horse jockeys, and Indian traders." A motley crew.
• Some of his contemporaries in the colonies and in England had funny names, e.g., Governor Dinwiddie. The man who invented the legend of Washington cutting down the cherry tree was a clergyman named Mason Locke "Parson" Weems.
• (Why you should always dress for the job you want:) At the First Constitutional Congress, Washington didn't do much. At the Second Continental Congress, the early battles of the Revolutionary War had already happened in Massachusetts. "To express his desire for action, Washington began wearing his red and blue uniform of the French and Indian War. He was appointed to one military committee after another." And ultimately, he was elected Commander in Chief.
• Washington's first inauguration took place in New York City, at Federal Hall, on the corner of Broad and Wall Streets. His second took place in Philadelphia. And by the time he left office, plans were underway to build a new capital, in a federal district located on the Potomac River.
• During his two terms in office as the first president of the new nation, Washington presided over the Neutrality Proclamation (staying out of the the conflict between France and Great Britain), the Whiskey Rebellion (flexing federal muscle), a cabinet scandal (his Secretary of State Edmund Randolph was accused of treason), and the rise of political parties (the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans). He was very busy. When it was suggested in his second term that he should be impeached because he had overdrawn on his $25,000 salary, "Washington's feelings were very hurt."
• He died in retirement of what historians now believe was a streptococcal infection of the throat. He was bled three times, before he finally said to his doctors, "You had better not take any more trouble about me, but let me go off quietly. I cannot last long." According to World Book, "At around 10 p.m. [on December 14, 1799], Washington whispered: 'I am just going. Have me decently buried, and do not let my body be put in the vault less than two days after I am dead. Do you understand me?' His secretary answered: 'Yes, sir.' Washington said: ' 'Tis well.' He felt his own pulse. Then he died."