1.
Pennsylvania Packet
–
The Pennsylvania Packet, or the General Advertiser was an American newspaper founded in 1771 that, in 1784, became the first successful daily newspaper published in the United States. The paper was founded by John Dunlap as a paper in late 1771. It was based in Philadelphia except during the British occupation of the city in 1777–1778, claypoole eventually became a partner with Dunlap. As of September 21,1784, the paper was issued as the Pennsylvania Packet, on September 21,1796, it was the first to publish George Washingtons Farewell Address. In 1800, Zachariah Poulson purchased the paper and renamed it Poulsons American Daily Advertiser, in 1825, the Marquis De Lafayette granted an interview to Poulsons Advertiser during his famous visit to the United States. Poulson ran the paper for almost 40 years, and at end of 1839 sold out to the owners of the recently founded North American, the North American featured the 1771 founding of the Packet as its heritage. To the extent it can honestly be traced past this point, the final successor of the Packet can be said to be The Philadelphia Inquirer
Pennsylvania Packet
–
October 28, 1771 edition
2.
Wikisource
–
Wikisource is an online digital library of free content textual sources on a wiki, operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. Wikisource is the name of the project as a whole and the name for each instance of that project, the projects aims are to host all forms of free text, in many languages, and translations. Originally conceived as an archive to store useful or important historical texts, the project officially began in November 24,2003 under the name Project Sourceberg. The name Wikisource was adopted later that year and it received its own domain name seven months later, the project has come under criticism for lack of reliability but it is also cited by organisations such as the National Archives and Records Administration. The project holds works that are either in the domain or freely licensed, professionally published works or historical source documents, not vanity products. Verification was initially made offline, or by trusting the reliability of digital libraries. Now works are supported by online scans via the ProofreadPage extension, some individual Wikisources, each representing a specific language, now only allow works backed up with scans. While the bulk of its collection are texts, Wikisource as a whole hosts other media, some Wikisources allow user-generated annotations, subject to the specific policies of the Wikisource in question. Wikisources early history included several changes of name and location, the original concept for Wikisource was as storage for useful or important historical texts. These texts were intended to support Wikipedia articles, by providing evidence and original source texts. The collection was focused on important historical and cultural material. The project was originally called Project Sourceberg during its planning stages, in 2001, there was a dispute on Wikipedia regarding the addition of primary source material, leading to edit wars over their inclusion or deletion. Project Sourceberg was suggested as a solution to this, perhaps Project Sourceberg can mainly work as an interface for easily linking from Wikipedia to a Project Gutenberg file, and as an interface for people to easily submit new work to PG. Wed want to complement Project Gutenberg--how, exactly, and Jimmy Wales adding like Larry, Im interested that we think it over to see what we can add to Project Gutenberg. It seems unlikely that primary sources should in general be editable by anyone -- I mean, Shakespeare is Shakespeare, unlike our commentary on his work, the project began its activity at ps. wikipedia. org. The contributors understood the PS subdomain to mean either primary sources or Project Sourceberg, however, this resulted in Project Sourceberg occupying the subdomain of the Pashto Wikipedia. A vote on the name changed it to Wikisource on December 6,2003. Despite the change in name, the project did not move to its permanent URL until July 23,2004, since Wikisource was initially called Project Sourceberg, its first logo was a picture of an iceberg
Wikisource
–
The original Wikisource logo
Wikisource
–
Screenshot of wikisource.org home page
Wikisource
–
::: Original text
Wikisource
–
::: Action of the modernizing tool
3.
George Washington
–
George Washington was an American politician and soldier who served as the first President of the United States from 1789 to 1797 and was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He served as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and he is popularly considered the driving force behind the nations establishment and came to be known as the father of the country, both during his lifetime and to this day. Washington was widely admired for his leadership qualities and was unanimously elected president by the Electoral College in the first two national elections. Washingtons incumbency established many precedents still in use today, such as the system, the inaugural address. His retirement from office two terms established a tradition that lasted until 1940 when Franklin Delano Roosevelt won an unprecedented third term. The 22nd Amendment now limits the president to two elected terms and he was born into the provincial gentry of Colonial Virginia to a family of wealthy planters who owned tobacco plantations and slaves, which he inherited. In his youth, he became an officer in the colonial militia during the first stages of the French. In 1775, the Second Continental Congress commissioned him as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army in the American Revolution, in that command, Washington forced the British out of Boston in 1776 but was defeated and nearly captured later that year when he lost New York City. After crossing the Delaware River in the middle of winter, he defeated the British in two battles, retook New Jersey, and restored momentum to the Patriot cause and his strategy enabled Continental forces to capture two major British armies at Saratoga in 1777 and Yorktown in 1781. In battle, however, Washington was repeatedly outmaneuvered by British generals with larger armies, after victory had been finalized in 1783, Washington resigned as commander-in-chief rather than seize power, proving his opposition to dictatorship and his commitment to American republicanism. Washington presided over the Constitutional Convention in 1787, which devised a new form of government for the United States. Following his election as president in 1789, he worked to unify rival factions in the fledgling nation and he supported Alexander Hamiltons programs to satisfy all debts, federal and state, established a permanent seat of government, implemented an effective tax system, and created a national bank. In avoiding war with Great Britain, he guaranteed a decade of peace and profitable trade by securing the Jay Treaty in 1795 and he remained non-partisan, never joining the Federalist Party, although he largely supported its policies. Washingtons Farewell Address was a primer on civic virtue, warning against partisanship, sectionalism. He retired from the presidency in 1797, returning to his home, upon his death, Washington was eulogized as first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen by Representative Henry Lee III of Virginia. He was revered in life and in death, scholarly and public polling consistently ranks him among the top three presidents in American history and he has been depicted and remembered in monuments, public works, currency, and other dedications to the present day. He was born on February 11,1731, according to the Julian calendar, the Gregorian calendar was adopted within the British Empire in 1752, and it renders a birth date of February 22,1732. Washington was of primarily English gentry descent, especially from Sulgrave and his great-grandfather John Washington emigrated to Virginia in 1656 and began accumulating land and slaves, as did his son Lawrence and his grandson, Georges father Augustine
George Washington
–
George Washington by
Gilbert Stuart, 1797
George Washington
–
Washington's birthplace
George Washington
–
Washington's map, accompanying his Journal to the Ohio (1753–1754)
George Washington
–
A
mezzotint of
Martha Washington, based on a 1757 portrait by
Wollaston
4.
Ancestry of George Washington
–
This table sets out the ancestry of President George Washington for five generations, numbered according to the Ahnentafel genealogical numbering system. Bibliography of George Washington Ancestry of Thomas Jefferson
Ancestry of George Washington
–
Coat of arms of the Washington family
5.
Military career of George Washington
–
The military career of George Washington spanned over forty years of service. Washingtons service can be broken into three periods with service in three different armed forces, Virginias Royal Governor, Robert Dinwiddie, appointed Washington a major in the provincial militia in February 1753. In that year the French began expanding their control into the Ohio Country. These competing claims led to a world war 1756–63 and Washington was at the center of its beginning, the Ohio Company was one vehicle through which British investors planned to expand into the territory, opening new settlements and building trading posts for the Indian trade. Washington delivered the letter to the local French commander, who refused to leave. Governor Dinwiddie sent Washington back to the Ohio Country to protect an Ohio Company group building a fort at present-day Pittsburgh, before he reached the area, a French force drove out the companys crew and began construction of Fort Duquesne. The French responded by attacking and capturing Washington at Fort Necessity in July 1754 and he was allowed to return with his troops to Virginia. The experience demonstrated Washingtons bravery, initiative, inexperience and impetuosity and these events had international consequences, the French accused Washington of assassinating Jumonville, who they claimed was on a diplomatic mission similar to Washingtons 1753 mission. Both France and Britain responded by sending troops to North America in 1755, in 1755, Washington was the senior Colonial aide to British General Edward Braddock on the ill-fated Braddock Expedition. This was at the time the largest ever British military expedition ventured into the colonies, the French and their Indian allies were able to ambush the expedition, mowing down over 900 casualties including the mortally-wounded Braddock. The Virginia Regiment was the first full-time American military unit in the colonies, Washington was ordered to act defensively or offensively as he thought best. In command of a soldiers, Washington was a disciplinarian who emphasized training. He led his men in brutal campaigns against the Indians in the west, in 10 months units of his regiment fought 20 battles, and lost a third of its men. Washingtons strenuous efforts meant that Virginias frontier population suffered less than that of other colonies, in 1758, Washington participated in the Forbes Expedition to capture Fort Duquesne. He was embarrassed by a fire episode in which his unit and another British unit thought the other was the French enemy and opened fire. In the end there was no fighting for the French abandoned the fort. Upon his return to Virginia, Washington resigned his commission in December 1758 and he closely observed British military tactics, gaining a keen insight into their strengths and weaknesses that proved invaluable during the Revolution. He demonstrated his toughness and courage in the most difficult situations, including disasters and he developed a command presence—given his size, strength, stamina, and bravery in battle, he appeared to soldiers to be a natural leader and they followed him without question
Military career of George Washington
–
Washington's 1754 map showing
Ohio River and surrounding region
Military career of George Washington
–
Portrait of George Washington in military uniform, painted by
Rembrandt Peale.
Military career of George Washington
–
Major-General Braddock's death at the Battle of the Monongahela, July 9, 1755.
Military career of George Washington
–
Portrait by
Charles Willson Peale. Painted in 1772, it depicts Washington as colonel of the
Virginia Regiment, and is his earliest known likeness.
6.
George Washington in the American Revolution
–
George Washington commanded the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War, and was the first President of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. Because of his role in the founding of the United States. His devotion to republicanism and civic virtue made him a figure among early American politicians. Washington played a military and political role in the American Revolution. His involvement began as early as 1767, when he first took political stands against the acts of the British Parliament, after the war broke out with the Battles of Lexington and Concord in April 1775, his role became military with his appointment as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army. He appeared before the Second Continental Congress in military uniform, signaling that he was prepared for war, Congress created the Continental Army on June 14, the next day it selected Washington as commander-in-chief. At the end of the year in both 1775 and 1776, he had to deal with expiring enlistments, since the Congress had only authorized the existence for single years. In 1777 Washington was again defeated in the defense of Philadelphia, Washingtons activities from late 1778 to 1780 were more diplomatic and organizational, as his army remained outside New York, watching Sir Henry Clintons army that occupied the city. His attention was drawn to the frontier war, which prompted the 1779 Continental Army expedition of John Sullivan into upstate New York. When General Clinton sent the turncoat General Benedict Arnold to raid in Virginia, the arrival of Lord Cornwallis in Virginia after campaigning in the south presented Washington with an opportunity to strike a decisive blow. The army was disbanded after peace in 1783, and Washington resigned his commission as commander-in-chief on December 23,1783. Born into a well-to-do Virginia family near Fredericksburg in 1732, Washington was schooled locally until the age of 15, the early death of his father when he was 11 eliminated the possibility of schooling in England, and his mother rejected attempts to place him in the Royal Navy. Thanks to the connection by marriage of his half-brother Lawrence to the wealthy Fairfax family, Washington was appointed surveyor of Culpeper County in 1749 and its investors also included Virginias Royal Governor, Robert Dinwiddie, who appointed Washington a major in the provincial militia in February 1753. Washington played a key role in the outbreak of the French and Indian War and he closely observed British military tactics, gaining a keen insight into their strengths and weaknesses that proved invaluable during the Revolution. He demonstrated his toughness and courage in the most difficult situations, including disasters and he developed a command presence—given his size, strength, stamina, and bravery in battle, he appeared to soldiers to be a natural leader and they followed him without question. Washington learned to organize, train, and drill, and discipline his companies, from his observations, readings and conversations with professional officers, he learned the basics of battlefield tactics, as well as a good understanding of problems of organization and logistics. He gained an understanding of strategy, especially in locating strategic geographical points. He developed a negative idea of the value of militia, who seemed too unreliable, too undisciplined
George Washington in the American Revolution
–
Currier and Ives depiction of Washington accepting his
Continental Army commission from the
Second Continental Congress
George Washington in the American Revolution
–
Washington was in the vanguard of British forces that occupied
Fort Duquesne, recently abandoned by the French, in 1758.
George Washington in the American Revolution
–
Washington in 1772
George Washington in the American Revolution
–
British forces evacuate the city at the end of the
Siege of Boston
7.
Valley Forge
–
Valley Forge was the military camp 18 miles northwest of Philadelphia where the American Continental Army spent the winter of 1777–78 during the American Revolutionary War. Starvation, disease, malnutrition, and exposure killed more than 2,500 American soldiers by the end of February 1778, General George Washington sought quarters for his men with winter almost setting in, and with greatly diminishing prospects for campaigning. Washington and his troops had fought in early December what was the last major engagement of 1777 at the Battle of White Marsh and he devised to pull his troops from their present encampment in the White Marsh area and move to a more secure location for the coming winter. Several locations were considered for the winter quarters, but Washington selected Valley Forge. Valley Forge was named for a forge on Valley Creek in Whitemarsh. It was not the best place to set up camp for the Continental Army. This location also left the vulnerable under-supplied army in striking distance of the British, the area was close enough to the British to keep their raiding and foraging parties out of the interior of Pennsylvania, yet far enough away to halt the threat of British surprise attacks. The densely forested plateau of Mount Joy and the adjoining two-mile-long plateau of Mount Misery made the area easily defensible and it also provided abundant forests of timber that were used to construct thousands of log huts. Seventy-eight of the huts in the camp housed the soldiers, on December 19,1777, Washingtons poorly fed, ill-equipped army staggered into Valley Forge, weary from long marches. Winds blew as the 12,000 Continentals prepared for winters fury, only about one in four of them had shoes, and many of their feet had left bloody footprints from the marching. Grounds were selected for brigade encampments, and defense lines were planned, the first properly constructed hut appeared in three days. One hut required 80 logs, and timber had to be collected from miles away and it went up in one week with the use of only one axe. These huts provided sufficient protection from the cold and wet conditions of a typical Pennsylvania winter. By the beginning of February, construction was completed on 2,000 huts and they provided shelter, but did little to offset the critical shortages that continually plagued the army. Washington ordered that two windows should be cut into each hut during the springtime, as the climate grew considerably warmer, mud was also chipped between the logs to improve ventilation. The soldiers received inadequate supplies of meat and bread, some getting their only nourishment from firecake, occasionally, there would be pepper pot soup, a black pepper-flavored tripe broth. So severe were conditions at times that Washington despaired that unless some great, starve, dissolve, or disperse, in order to obtain subsistence in the best manner they can. Snow was limited and small in amounts, the layer of snow was often too thin to be collected and melted into drinking water
Valley Forge
–
Washington and Lafayette at Valley Forge
Valley Forge
–
The encampment, winter 1777
Valley Forge
–
Encampment at Valley Forge in 1778 (1830 engraving by G. Boynton)
Valley Forge
–
General Von Steuben, 1930 Issue
8.
Battle of Trenton
–
The Battle of Trenton was a small but pivotal battle during the American Revolutionary War which took place on the morning of December 26,1776, in Trenton, New Jersey. After a brief battle, nearly the entire Hessian force was captured, the battle significantly boosted the Continental Armys flagging morale, and inspired re-enlistments. The Continental Army had previously suffered several defeats in New York and had forced to retreat through New Jersey to Pennsylvania. Because the river was icy and the severe, the crossing proved dangerous. Two detachments were unable to cross the river, leaving Washington with only 2,400 men under his command in the assault, the army marched 9 miles south to Trenton. The Hessians had lowered their guard, thinking they were safe from the American army, Washingtons forces caught them off guard and, after a short but fierce resistance, most of the Hessians surrendered. Almost two thirds of the 1, 500-man garrison was captured, and only a few troops escaped across Assunpink Creek, despite the battles small numbers, the American victory inspired rebels in the colonies. With the success of the revolution in doubt a week earlier, the dramatic victory inspired soldiers to serve longer and attracted new recruits to the ranks. In early December 1776, American morale was very low, the Americans had been ousted from New York by the British and their Hessian auxiliaries, and the Continental Army was forced to retreat across New Jersey. Ninety percent of the Continental Army soldiers who had served at Long Island were gone, men had deserted, feeling that the cause for independence was lost. Washington, Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, expressed doubts, writing to his cousin in Virginia. At the time a town in New Jersey, Trenton was occupied by three regiments of Hessian soldiers commanded by Colonel Johann Rall. Washingtons force comprised 2,400 men, with divisions commanded by Major Generals Nathanael Greene and John Sullivan. Washington had stationed a spy named John Honeyman, posing as a Tory, Honeyman had served with Major General James Wolfe in Quebec at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham on September 13,1759, and had no trouble establishing his credentials as a Tory. Honeyman was a butcher and weaver, who traded with the British and this enabled him to gather intelligence, and also to convince the Hessians that the Continental Army was in such a low state of morale that they would not attack Trenton. Shortly before Christmas, he arranged to be captured by the Continental Army, after being questioned by Washington, he was imprisoned in a small hut, to be tried as a Tory in the morning, but a small fire broke out nearby, enabling him to escape. The American plan relied on launching coordinated attacks from three directions, General John Cadwalader would launch a diversionary attack against the British garrison at Bordentown, New Jersey, to block off reinforcements from the south. General James Ewing would take 700 militia across the river at Trenton Ferry, seize the bridge over the Assunpink Creek and prevent enemy troops from escaping
Battle of Trenton
–
Battle of Trenton, by
H. Charles McBarron, Jr., 1975
Battle of Trenton
–
The American plan of attack under Washington
Battle of Trenton
–
The Hessian Sketch of the Battle of Trenton
Battle of Trenton
–
Passage of the Delaware, painting by American
Thomas Sully, 1819
9.
Mount Vernon Conference
–
The Mount Vernon Conference was a meeting of delegates from Virginia and Maryland held March 21–28,1785, to discuss navigational rights in the states common waterways. On March 28,1785, the group drew up a thirteen-point proposal to govern the two rights on the Potomac River, Pocomoke River, and Chesapeake Bay. Ratified by the legislature of both states, the compact helped set a precedent for later meetings between states for discussions into areas of mutual concern. The conference, initially scheduled to begin March 21,1785 in Alexandria, Virginia, was a meeting of delegates from Maryland, Samuel Chase, none of Virginias delegates were present when Marylands arrived for the meeting. The conference reconvened at Mount Vernon on March 21,1785 with Washington presiding, Marylands representatives were empowered to discuss with Virginia shared concerns involving the Potomac and Pocomoke Rivers, and the Chesapeake Bay. To the contrary, the Virginia legislatures instructions to its appointees focused solely on the Potomac, nonetheless, common ground was found and on March 28,1785, a final report was prepared for the two state legislatures. The report contained 13 clauses and was ratified by both Maryland and Virginia and it declared the Potomac, which was under Marylands sole jurisdiction, to be a common waterway for use by Virginia as well. It also provided for reciprocal fishing rights, dividing the costs of constructing navigation aids, cooperation on defense and it also called for commissioners to deal with any future problems that might arise. Political leaders in Pennsylvania and Delaware were invited to join the agreement as well, the circumstances that led to the conference began as the country emerged victorious from the Revolutionary War. Lacking an effective central government under the Articles of Confederation, the states quarreled among themselves and some even established proprietary regulations, tariffs, and currency. This awareness led to the chartering of the Potomac Company to make improvements to the Potomac River, the companys goal was the linking of the East Coast with the trans-Appalachian northwest. The Mount Vernon Conference became a model of interstate cooperation outside the framework of the Articles of Confederation and its success encouraged James Madison to advocate for further discussions on constitutional issues facing the states. He had little to show for efforts to get Virginias delegates in the Continental Congress to seek expanded powers to deal with trade issues, instead, he introduced a proposal in the Virginia General Assembly to act on the suggestion of the Compact commissioners for further debate of interstate issues. With Marylands agreement, on January 21,1786, Virginia invited all the states to attend another meeting on commercial issues, delegates from five states gathered to discuss ways to facilitate commerce between the states and establish standard rules and regulations. As a result of the gathering, commissioners called for there to be another constitutional convention at which possible improvements to the Articles could be discussed, the desired convention took place in Philadelphia in the summer of 1787. There, Gouverneur Morris of Pennsylvania made oblique reference to the success of the Mount Vernon Conference, in 1908, a government commission would associate these related events more closely
Mount Vernon Conference
–
George Washington's Mount Vernon Estate, Fairfax County, Virginia
Mount Vernon Conference
–
View of the Potomac from Mount Vernon, Fairfax County, Virginia, toward the Maryland shore
10.
Constitutional Convention (United States)
–
The Constitutional Convention took place from May 25 to September 17,1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The delegates elected George Washington to preside over the Convention, the result of the Convention was the creation of the United States Constitution, placing the Convention among the most significant events in the history of the United States. Most of the time during the Convention was spent on deciding these issues, while the powers of legislature, executive, once the Convention began, the delegates first agreed on the principles of the Convention, then they agreed on Madisons Virginia Plan and began to modify it. A Committee of Detail assembled during the July 4 recess eventually produced a draft of the constitution. Most of the draft remained in place, and can be found in the final version of the constitution. After the final issues were resolved, the Committee on Style produced the final version, before the Constitution was drafted, the nearly 4 million inhabitants of the 13 newly independent states were governed under the Articles of Confederation, created by the Second Continental Congress. It soon became evident to all that the chronically underfunded Confederation government. As the Articles of Confederation could only be amended by unanimous vote of the states, in addition, the Articles gave the weak federal government no taxing power, it was wholly dependent on the states for its money, and had no power to force delinquent states to pay. Once the immediate task of winning the American Revolutionary War had passed, the states began to look to their own interests, another impetus for the convention was Shays Rebellion. A political conflict between Boston merchants and rural farmers over issues such as property seizures for tax debts had broken out into an open rebellion. This rebellion was led by a former Revolutionary War captain, Daniel Shays, himself a farmer with tax debts. The rebellion took months for Massachusetts to put down completely, in September 1786, at the Annapolis Convention, delegates from five states called for a Constitutional Convention in order to discuss possible improvements to the Articles of Confederation. The Constitutional Convention took place in Philadelphia on May 14,1787, Rhode Island, fearing that the Convention would work to its disadvantage, boycotted the Convention and, when the Constitution was put to the states, initially refused to ratify it. James Madison arrived first, and soon most of the Virginia delegation arrived, while waiting for the other delegates, the Virginia delegation produced the Virginia Plan, which was designed and written by James Madison. On May 25, the delegations convened in the Pennsylvania State House, George Washington was unanimously elected president of the Convention, and it was agreed that the discussions and votes would be kept secret until the conclusion of the meeting. Although William Jackson was elected as secretary, his records were brief, Madisons Notes of Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787, supplemented by the notes of Robert Yates, remain the most complete record of the Convention. Throughout the debate, delegates constantly referred to precedents from history in support of their position, most commonly, they referred to the history of England, in particular the Glorious Revolution, classical history, and recent precedents from Holland and Germany. Outside the Convention in Philadelphia, there was a convening of the Society of the Cincinnati
Constitutional Convention (United States)
–
Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States
Constitutional Convention (United States)
–
Independence Hall's Assembly Room
Constitutional Convention (United States)
–
James Madison, the author of the Virginia Plan
Constitutional Convention (United States)
–
Front side of the Virginia Plan
11.
Presidency of George Washington
–
The presidency of George Washington, began on April 30,1789, when he was inaugurated as the 1st President of the United States, and ended on March 4,1797. Washington took office after the 1788–89 presidential election, the nations first quadrennial presidential election, as specified by the newly ratified Constitution, the President was chosen by the Electoral College. In this election, the method for selecting electors was decided by each state legislature–by public vote in some states, each elector was given two votes to cast for President. Washington received the support of one of the electors, each of whom cast one of the two ballots for him. John Adams, who received 34 votes, was the runner-up and was named vice president. President Washington was re-elected as President, again unanimously, in 1792, in 1796, he refused to run for a third term, establishing the customary policy of a maximum of two terms for a president, which later became law by the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution. Washington reluctantly accepted the presidency, and he never enjoyed being President, nonetheless, he proved an able administrator. An excellent delegator and judge of talent and character, he held cabinet meetings to debate issues before making a final decision. In handling routine tasks, he was systematic, orderly, energetic, solicitous of the opinion of others but decisive, intent upon general goals and his leadership guaranteed the survival of the United States as a powerful and independent nation, and set the standard for future presidents. Washington was inaugurated as the first President of the United States on April 30,1789, near New York Citys Wall Street and he was sworn in by Robert Livingston who administered the presidential oath of office. Borrowing a British robe in which the British monarch would address Parliament annually and he insisted on having Barbados Rum served after the swearing in ceremony. Washingtons second inauguration occurred in the Senate Chamber of Congress Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on March 4,1793 and he was sworn in by Associate Justice William Cushing, who also administered the oath of office. Washingtons inaugural address was incredibly brief at just 135 words, the 1st United States Congress voted to pay Washington a salary of $25,000 a year—a large sum in 1789, valued at about $340,000 in 2015 dollars. Washington faced financial troubles then, yet he initially declined the salary, upon taking office, Washington initially focused on the establishment of the federal judiciary and executive departments. When Washington assumed office, the government of the United States had not yet been developed, aside from the constitutionally established offices, no other agencies existed and no courts had yet been established. Instead of focusing on the branch, Washingtons first acts were to establish the judiciary. Through the Judiciary Act of 1789, Washington established a six-member Supreme Court, the court was composed of one Chief Justice and five Associate Justices. Under the Supreme Court, the Judiciary Act created 13 judicial districts within the 11 states that had ratified the Constitution
Presidency of George Washington
–
Presidency of George Washington
Presidency of George Washington
–
The first page of the Judiciary Act of 1789
Presidency of George Washington
–
Washington's handwritten notes for the first State of the Union Address, 1790 (Click on image to view all 7 pages)
Presidency of George Washington
–
BEP engraved portrait of Washington as President.
12.
First inauguration of George Washington
–
The first inauguration of George Washington as the first President of the United States was held on April 30,1789 on the balcony of Federal Hall in New York City, New York. The inauguration marked the commencement of the first four-year term of George Washington as President, chancellor of New York Robert Livingston administered the presidential oath of office. With his inauguration, the branch of the United States government officially began operations under the new frame of government established by the 1787 Constitution. The first term of John Adams as Vice President commenced on April 21,1789, when he took the vice presidential oath of office. The first presidential term started on March 4,1789, the set by the Congress of the Confederation for the beginning of operations of the federal government under the new U. S. Constitution. However, due to delays, that did not happen. On that date, the House of Representatives and the Senate convened, as a result, the Presidential Electoral Votes could not be counted or certified. On April 1, the House convened with a present for the first time. The Senate first achieved a quorum on April 6 and that same day, the House and Senate met in joint session and the electoral votes were counted. Washington and Adams were certified as having been elected president and vice president respectively. It was 5 p. m. at Mount Vernon on April 14,1789, the letter had been sent by Senator John Langdon of New Hampshire, the first president pro tempore of the United States Senate, who had presided over the counting of the electoral votes. He left early the morning for another welcome awaiting him in Trenton. On April 23 he took a barge with 13 pilots through the Kill Van Kull tidal strait into the Upper New York Bay. Thousands had gathered on the waterfront to see him arrive, Washington landed at Murrays Wharf, where he was greeted by New York Governor George Clinton as well as other congressmen and citizens. A plaque now marks the landing site and they proceeded through the streets to what would be Washingtons new official residence,3 Cherry Street. Washington dressed in an American-made dark brown suit with silk stockings and silver shoe buckles, he also wore a steel-hilted sword. Washington moved to the second-floor balcony, chancellor of New York Robert Livingston administered the presidential oath of office in view of throngs of people gathered on the streets. The Bible used in the ceremony was from St. Johns Lodge No,1, A. Y. M. and due to haste, it was opened at random to Genesis 49,13
First inauguration of George Washington
–
First Presidential Inauguration of George Washington
First inauguration of George Washington
–
Federal Hall, location of inaugural ceremonies.
13.
Judiciary Act of 1789
–
The Judiciary Act of 1789 was a United States federal statute adopted on September 24,1789, in the first session of the First United States Congress. It established the judiciary of the United States. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution prescribed that the power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court. It made no provision for the composition or procedures of any of the courts, the existence of a separate federal judiciary had been controversial during the debates over the ratification of the Constitution. Anti-Federalists had denounced the judicial power as an instrument of national tyranny. Indeed, of the ten amendments that eventually became the Bill of Rights, even after ratification, some opponents of a strong judiciary urged that the federal court system be limited to a Supreme Court and perhaps local admiralty judges. The Congress, however, decided to establish a system of trial courts with broader jurisdiction. The Senate Journal records that Richard Henry Lee reported the bill out of committee on June 12,1789. The bill passed the Senate 14–6 on July 17,1789, the House passed an amended bill 37–16 on September 17,1789. The Senate struck four of the House amendments and approved the remaining provisions on September 19,1789, the House passed the Senates final version of the bill on September 21,1789. President George Washington signed the Judiciary Act of 1789 into law on September 24,1789, among the nominees were John Jay for Chief Justice of the United States, John Rutledge, William Cushing, Robert H. Harrison, James Wilson, and John Blair Jr. The Act set the number of Supreme Court justices at six, one Chief Justice, the Act also created 13 judicial districts within the 11 states that had then ratified the Constitution. Each state comprised one district, except for Virginia and Massachusetts, Massachusetts was divided into the District of Maine and the District of Massachusetts. Virginia was divided into the District of Kentucky and the District of Virginia and this Act established a circuit court and district court in each judicial district. The circuit courts also had jurisdiction over the district courts. The single-judge district courts had jurisdiction primarily over admiralty cases, petty crimes, notably, the federal trial courts had not yet received original federal question jurisdiction. Congress authorized all people to represent themselves or to be represented by another person. The Act did not prohibit paying a representative to appear in court, Congress authorized persons who were sued by citizens of another state, in the courts of the plaintiffs home state, to remove the lawsuit to the federal circuit court
Judiciary Act of 1789
–
The first page of the Judiciary Act of 1789
Judiciary Act of 1789
–
Judiciary Act of 1789
14.
Whiskey Rebellion
–
The Whiskey Rebellion was a tax protest in the United States beginning in 1791 during the presidency of George Washington. The so-called whiskey tax was the first tax imposed on a product by the newly formed federal government. It became law in 1791, and was intended to generate revenue for the war debt incurred during the Revolutionary War. The tax applied to all distilled spirits, but American whiskey was by far the countrys most popular distilled beverage in the 18th century, farmers of the western frontier were accustomed to distilling their surplus rye, barley, wheat, corn, or fermented grain mixtures into whiskey. In these regions, whiskey often served as a medium of exchange, throughout Western Pennsylvania counties, protesters used violence and intimidation to prevent federal officials from collecting the tax. Resistance came to a climax in July 1794, when a U. S. marshal arrived in western Pennsylvania to serve writs to distillers who had not paid the excise. The alarm was raised, and more than 500 armed men attacked the home of tax inspector General John Neville. Washington responded by sending peace commissioners to western Pennsylvania to negotiate with the rebels, Washington himself rode at the head of an army to suppress the insurgency, with 13,000 militiamen provided by the governors of Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. The rebels all went home before the arrival of the army, about 20 men were arrested, but all were later acquitted or pardoned. Most distillers in nearby Kentucky were found to be all but impossible to tax—in the next six years, numerous examples of resistance are recorded in court documents and newspaper accounts. The Whiskey Rebellion demonstrated that the new government had the will and ability to suppress violent resistance to its laws. The events contributed to the formation of parties in the United States. The whiskey tax was repealed in the early 1800s during the Jefferson administration, a new U. S. federal government began operating in 1789, following the ratification of the United States Constitution. The previous central government under the Articles of Confederation had been unable to levy taxes, it had borrowed money to meet expenses and fund the Revolution, the state governments had amassed an additional $25 million in debt. Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton sought to use this debt to create a system that would promote American prosperity. In his Report on Public Credit, he urged Congress to consolidate the state, Congress approved these measures in June and July 1790. A source of government revenue was needed to pay the amount due to the previous bondholders to whom the debt was owed. By December 1790, Hamilton believed that import duties, which were the primary source of revenue, had been raised as high as feasible
Whiskey Rebellion
–
George Washington reviews the troops near
Fort Cumberland, Maryland, before their march to suppress the Whiskey Rebellion in western Pennsylvania.
Whiskey Rebellion
–
Alexander Hamilton in a 1792 portrait by
John Trumbull
Whiskey Rebellion
–
"Famous Whiskey Insurrection in Pennsylvania", an 1880 illustration of a
tarred and feathered tax collector being made to
ride the rail
Whiskey Rebellion
–
In his 1796 book, Congressman
William Findley argued that Alexander Hamilton had deliberately provoked the Whiskey Rebellion.
15.
Residence Act
–
The federal government was located in New York City at the time the bill was passed and had previously been located in Philadelphia, Annapolis, and several other locations. Congress passed the Residence Act as part of a compromise brokered between James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton, Madison and Jefferson favored a southerly site for the capital on the Potomac River, but they lacked a majority to pass the measure through Congress. Meanwhile, Hamilton was pushing for Congress to pass the Assumption Bill, with the compromise, Hamilton was able to muster support from the New York State delegates for the Potomac site, while four delegates switched from opposition to support for the Assumption Bill. The Residence Act gave authority to President George Washington to select a site for the capital, along the Potomac. In the meantime, Philadelphia was chosen as a temporary capital, Washington had authority to appoint three commissioners and oversee the construction of Federal buildings in the District, something to which he gave much personal attention. Thomas Jefferson was a key adviser to Washington, and helped organize a competition to solicit designs for the United States Capitol, during the American Revolutionary War, the Second Continental Congress convened in Philadelphia at the Pennsylvania State House. On account of British military actions, the Continental Congress was forced to relocate to Baltimore, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Congress requested that John Dickinson, the governor of Pennsylvania, call up the militia to defend Congress from attacks by the protesters. In what became known as the Pennsylvania Mutiny of 1783, Dickinson sympathized with the protesters, as a result, Congress was forced to flee to Princeton, New Jersey on June 21,1783, and met in Annapolis and Trenton, before ending up in New York City. The United States Congress was established upon ratification of the United States Constitution in 1789, the question of where to establish the capital was raised in 1783. The Southern states refused to accept a capital in the North, another suggestion was for there to be two capitals, one in the North and one in the South. Congress approved a plan in 1783 for a capital on the Potomac, near Georgetown, in Maryland, and another capital on the Delaware River, this plan was rescinded the following year. Establishing the capital was put on hold for years, until the Constitutional Convention was held in 1787. The Constitution said nothing about where the district would be. The debate heated up in 1789 when Congress convened for the first time under the Constitution, two sites were favored by members of Congress, one site on the Potomac River near Georgetown, and another site on the Susquehanna River near Wrights Ferry. The Susquehanna River site was approved by the House in September 1789, while the Senate bill specified a site on the Delaware River near Germantown, Congress did not reach an agreement at the time. The selection of a location for the capital resurfaced in the summer of 1790, at the same time, Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton was pushing for Congress to pass a financial plan. A key provision of Hamiltons plan involved the Federal government assuming states debts incurred during the American Revolutionary War, northern states had accumulated a huge amount of debt during the war, amounting to 21.5 million dollars, and wanted the federal government to assume their burden. The Southern states, whose citizens would effectively be forced to pay a portion of debt if the Federal Government assumed it
Residence Act
–
Sketch of Washington, D.C. by
Thomas Jefferson (March 1791)
Residence Act
–
Residence Act of 1790
Residence Act
–
The Residence Act was passed in 1790, while Congress was convening at
Federal Hall in
New York City.
Residence Act
–
President's House,
Philadelphia. This Philadelphia mansion served as the presidential mansion of George Washington, 1790-97, and John Adams, 1797-1800. Adams first occupied the
White House on November 1, 1800.
16.
Washington, D.C.
–
Washington, D. C. formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D. C. is the capital of the United States. The signing of the Residence Act on July 16,1790, Constitution provided for a federal district under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Congress and the District is therefore not a part of any state. The states of Maryland and Virginia each donated land to form the federal district, named in honor of President George Washington, the City of Washington was founded in 1791 to serve as the new national capital. In 1846, Congress returned the land ceded by Virginia, in 1871. Washington had an population of 681,170 as of July 2016. Commuters from the surrounding Maryland and Virginia suburbs raise the population to more than one million during the workweek. The Washington metropolitan area, of which the District is a part, has a population of over 6 million, the centers of all three branches of the federal government of the United States are in the District, including the Congress, President, and Supreme Court. Washington is home to national monuments and museums, which are primarily situated on or around the National Mall. The city hosts 176 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of international organizations, trade unions, non-profit organizations, lobbying groups. A locally elected mayor and a 13‑member council have governed the District since 1973, However, the Congress maintains supreme authority over the city and may overturn local laws. D. C. residents elect a non-voting, at-large congressional delegate to the House of Representatives, the District receives three electoral votes in presidential elections as permitted by the Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1961. Various tribes of the Algonquian-speaking Piscataway people inhabited the lands around the Potomac River when Europeans first visited the area in the early 17th century, One group known as the Nacotchtank maintained settlements around the Anacostia River within the present-day District of Columbia. Conflicts with European colonists and neighboring tribes forced the relocation of the Piscataway people, some of whom established a new settlement in 1699 near Point of Rocks, Maryland. 43, published January 23,1788, James Madison argued that the new government would need authority over a national capital to provide for its own maintenance. Five years earlier, a band of unpaid soldiers besieged Congress while its members were meeting in Philadelphia, known as the Pennsylvania Mutiny of 1783, the event emphasized the need for the national government not to rely on any state for its own security. However, the Constitution does not specify a location for the capital, on July 9,1790, Congress passed the Residence Act, which approved the creation of a national capital on the Potomac River. The exact location was to be selected by President George Washington, formed from land donated by the states of Maryland and Virginia, the initial shape of the federal district was a square measuring 10 miles on each side, totaling 100 square miles. Two pre-existing settlements were included in the territory, the port of Georgetown, Maryland, founded in 1751, many of the stones are still standing
Washington, D.C.
–
Clockwise from top left:
Smithsonian Institution Building,
Rock Creek Park,
National Mall (including the
Lincoln Memorial in the foreground),
Howard Theatre and the
Frederick Douglass National Historic Site
Washington, D.C.
–
Map of the District of Columbia in 1835, prior to the
retrocession
Washington, D.C.
–
Ford's Theatre in the 19th century, site of the 1865
assassination of
President Lincoln
Washington, D.C.
–
Crowds surrounding the
Reflecting Pool during the 1963
March on Washington
17.
United States presidential election, 1792
–
The United States presidential election of 1792 was the second quadrennial presidential election. It was held from Friday, November 2 to Wednesday, December 5,1792, incumbent President George Washington was elected to a second term by a unanimous vote in the electoral college. As in the first presidential election, Washington is considered to have run unopposed, Electoral rules of the time, however, required each presidential elector to cast two votes without distinguishing which was for president and which for vice president. The recipient of the most votes would become president. Incumbent Vice President John Adams received 77 votes and was also re-elected and this election was the first in which each of the original 13 states appointed electors. It was also the presidential election that was not held exactly four years after the previous election. The second inauguration was on March 4,1793 at the Senate Chamber of Congress Hall in Philadelphia, in 1792, presidential elections were still conducted according to the original method established under the U. S. Constitution. Under this system, each elector cast two votes, the candidate who received the greatest number of votes became president, while the runner-up became vice president. The Twelfth Amendment would eventually replace this system, requiring electors to cast one vote for president and one vote for vice president, because of this, it is difficult to use modern-day terminology to describe the relationship between the candidates in this election. Washington is generally held by historians to have run unopposed, indeed, the incumbent president enjoyed bipartisan support and received one vote from every elector. The choice for president was more divisive. They had no chance of unseating Washington, but hoped to win the presidency by defeating the incumbent. The Republicans would have preferred to nominate Thomas Jefferson, their ideological leader, however, this would have cost them the state of Virginia, as electors were not permitted to vote for two candidates from their home state and Washington was also a Virginian. Instead, they settled on Governor George Clinton, though Jefferson would receive the votes of four Kentucky electors, madison was at first a Federalist until he opposed the establishment of Hamiltons First Bank of the United States in 1791. He formed the Democratic-Republican Party along with Anti-Federalist Thomas Jefferson in 1792, the elections of 1792 were the first ones in the United States to be contested on anything resembling a partisan basis. In New York, the race for governor was fought along these lines, the candidates were Chief Justice John Jay, a Hamiltonian, and incumbent George Clinton, who was allied with Jefferson and the Democratic-Republicans. Although Washington had been considering retiring, both encouraged him to remain in office to bridge factional differences. Washington was supported by all sides throughout his presidency and gained more popularity with the passage of the Bill of Rights
United States presidential election, 1792
–
132 electoral votes of the
Electoral College 67 electoral votes needed to win
United States presidential election, 1792
–
President
George Washington
United States presidential election, 1792
–
Vice President
John Adams
18.
Second inauguration of George Washington
–
The second inauguration of George Washington as President of the United States was held in the Senate Chamber of Congress Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on March 4,1793. The inauguration marked the commencement of the second term of George Washington as President. The presidential oath of office was administered to George Washington by Associate Justice William Cushing and this was the first inauguration to take place in Philadelphia, and took place exactly four years after the new federal government began operations under the U. S. Constitution. George Washingtons second inaugural address remains the shortest ever delivered, at just 135 words, fellow Citizens, I am again called upon by the voice of my country to execute the functions of its Chief Magistrate. Previous to the execution of any act of the President the Constitution requires an oath of office. Presidency of George Washington First inauguration of George Washington United States presidential election,1792 More documents from the Library of Congress
Second inauguration of George Washington
–
Washington's inauguration at Philadelphia by
Jean Leon Gerome Ferris
19.
Jay Treaty
–
The terms of the treaty were designed primarily by Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton and strongly supported by chief negotiator John Jay and also by President George Washington. The treaty gained many of the primary American goals, the Americans were granted limited rights to trade with British colonies in the Caribbean in exchange for some limits on the American export of cotton. The treaty was hotly contested by the Jeffersonians in each state and they feared that closer economic ties with Great Britain would strengthen Hamiltons Federalist Party, promote aristocracy, and undercut republicanism. Washingtons announced support proved decisive, and the treaty was ratified by a majority of the U. S. Senate in November 1794 without a single vote to spare. The treaty became an issue of contention, leading to the formation of the First Party System, with the Federalists favoring the British. The treaty was for ten years duration, efforts failed to agree on a replacement treaty in 1806 when Jefferson rejected the Monroe–Pinkney Treaty, as tensions escalated toward the War of 1812. The outbreak of war between France and Great Britain in 1793 ended the peace that had enabled the new nation to flourish in terms of trade. The United States now emerged as an important neutral country with a large shipping trade, from the British perspective, improving relations with the United States was a high priority lest it move into the French orbit. British negotiators ignored elements that wanted harsher terms in order to get a suitable treaty, the British government used the Royal Navy to capture nearly 250 neutral American merchant ships carrying goods from French colonies in the West Indies. Americans were outraged and Republicans in Jeffersons coalition demanded a declaration of war, British officials told Indian tribes near the Canada-U. S. border that the border no longer existed and sold weapons to them. Congress voted for an embargo against Britain in March 1794. Hamilton devised a framework for negotiations, and President George Washington sent Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Jay to London to negotiate a comprehensive treaty, Britain said it was in response to American refusals to pay debts that had been agreed upon. The British were continuing to impress American sailors into the Royal Navy to fight against France, American merchants wanted compensation for 250 merchant ships which the British had confiscated in 1793 and 1794. Southern interests wanted monetary compensation for slaves owned by Loyalists who were away to the West Indies along with their masters in 1781-83. American merchants wanted the British West Indies to be reopened to American trade, the boundary with Canada was vague in many places, and needed to be more sharply delineated. The British were providing munitions for Indian attacks on settlers in the Northwest, several issues were sent to arbitration, which were resolved amicably mostly in favor of the U. S. Britain paid $11,650,000 for damages to American shipping, while international arbitration was not entirely unknown, the Jay Treaty gave it a strong impetus and is generally taken as the start of modern International arbitration. The British agreed to vacate the western forts by June 1796, the treaty was surprisingly generous and allowing Americans to trade with the British Isles on a most-favored-nation basis
Jay Treaty
–
First page of the Jay Treaty
20.
List of monuments dedicated to George Washington
–
List of monuments dedicated to George Washington, Copy after Bust of George Washington by Giuseppe Ceracchi, White House. Enthroned Washington, by Horatio Greenough, for the United States Capitol, now in the National Museum of American History. Washington Resigning His Commission, by Ferdinand Pettrich, Smithsonian American Art Museum Washington Monument, Robert Mills, architect, equestrian statue of George Washington, by Clark Mills, Washington Circle The George Washington University. Founded as Columbian College, the name was changed in agreement with the George Washington Memorial Association, statues in University Yard and elsewhere on main campus. Second-tallest tree in the world, prior to a 2003 lightning strike and 2005 collapse, the first non-segregated public park in the city. A replica of French & Potters statue in Paris, France, replicas are in Flushing, Queens, New York City, Wallingford, Connecticut, Alexandria, Virginia, Detroit, Michigan, Lexington, Massachusetts, Lansing, Michigan, and Indianapolis, Indiana. Washington Academy, a school in East Machias, founded in 1792 Washington College. Chartered in 1782 as the College at Chester, it was renamed for Washington by 1783, Washington Monument, Robert Mills, architect, Enrico Causici, sculptor, Mount Vernon Place, Baltimore Washington Monument, Washington Monument State Park, Boonsboro. The first completed monument to Washington, George Washington, by Edward Sheffield Bartholomew, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore George Washington, by Lee Lawrie, Washington College, Chestertown. A bronze version of Lawries marble statue at the National Cathedral in Washington, daniels, Mower County Courthouse, Austin Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis. A copy after Henry Shradys equestrian statue in Brooklyn, New York, Copy of George Washington by Jean-Antoine Houdon, Washington University, St. Louis Mount Washington, Mount Washington State Park George Washington, by Mahlon Dickerson Eyre, Montgomery Plaza, Trenton. Exhibited at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a copy of De Lues 1967 statue is at the Freedoms Foundation in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Bust of George Washington, by Giuseppe Ceracchi, Metropolitan Museum of Art Washington Square Park, created as Washington Military Parade Ground, renamed 1871. Bounded by Waverly Place, University Place, West 4th Street, equestrian statue of George Washington, by Henry Kirke Brown, Union Square, Manhattan. This was the first equestrian statue of Washington, George Washington, by John Quincy Adams Ward, in front of Federal Hall National Memorial, Manhattan Washington Square Arch, Stanford White, architect, Washington Square Park, Manhattan. Exhibited at the 1964 New York Worlds Fair, a replica of Henry Kirke Browns Union Square, Manhattan, equestrian statue. Copy after George Washington by Jean-Antoine Houdon, Alfred E, set aside as a public park by William Penn in 1682, it was named for Washington in 1825. George Washington, by Joseph A. Bailly, in front of Independence Hall and this bronze replica was installed in 1910, the original marble is now in Philadelphia City Hall
List of monuments dedicated to George Washington
–
Copy (c. 1815) after Bust of
George Washington by
Giuseppe Ceracchi (1795),
White House
List of monuments dedicated to George Washington
–
Enthroned Washington (1840), by
Horatio Greenough,
National Museum of American History
List of monuments dedicated to George Washington
–
Washington Resigning His Commission (ca. 1841), by
Ferdinand Pettrich,
Smithsonian American Art Museum
List of monuments dedicated to George Washington
–
Washington Monument,
Robert Mills, architect,
National Mall
21.
Cultural depictions of George Washington
–
George Washington has inspired artistic and cultural works for more than two hundred years. The following lists cover various media to include items of historic interest, enduring works of high art, the entries represent portrayals that a reader has a reasonable chance of encountering rather than a complete catalog. Lesser known works are not included, for purposes of classification, popular culture music is a separate section from operas and oratorios. Television covers live action series, TV movies, miniseries, and North American animation but not Japanese anime, George Washington George Washington on U. S
Cultural depictions of George Washington
–
George Washington at Princeton, by
Charles Willson Peale, 1779
Cultural depictions of George Washington
–
A ca. 1810-1815
French Empire mantel clock, portraying George Washington. In the drapery swag under the dial can be read the famous quote by Henry Lee.
Cultural depictions of George Washington
–
The
United States one-dollar bill has George Washington's face on it.
Cultural depictions of George Washington
–
The statue of Washington outside
Federal Hall in New York City, looking on
Wall Street.
22.
George Washington and slavery
–
George Washington, the first President of the United States, held people in slavery for virtually all of his life. His will provided for freeing the people he held upon the death of his widow Martha Washington. In January 1801 Martha freed her husbands slaves, just over a year after his death. However, while she lived, Martha did not emancipate any of the people she held, for his wife Marthas use during her lifetime and controlled by Washington, they were legally part of the property of her late first husbands estate. As on other plantations during that era, Washingtons slaves worked from dawn until dusk unless injured or ill and they were fed, clothed, and housed as inexpensively as possible, in conditions that were probably meager. Before the American Revolution, Washington expressed no moral reservations about slavery, the historian Henry Wiencek speculates that Washingtons slave buying, particularly his participation in a raffle of 55 slaves in 1769, may have initiated a gradual reassessment of slavery. In 1782 the Virginia legislature made manumissions easier, while requiring documentation, slaveholders were allowed to free any adult slave under the age of forty-five, either by executing a deed or adding provisions to a will. By the 1820s, it required approval for each act of manumission. After the war, Washington often privately expressed a dislike of the institution of slavery, in 1786, he wrote to a friend that I never mean. To possess another slave by purchase, it being among my first wishes to see some plan adopted, by which slavery in this Country may be abolished by slow, sure and imperceptible degrees. To another friend he wrote there is not a man living who wishes more sincerely than I do to see some plan adopted for the abolition of slavery. He expressed moral support for plans by his friend the Marquis de Lafayette to emancipate slaves and resettle them elsewhere and he held more slaves than he needed at Mount Vernon, making the operation unprofitable. The changes from tobacco to mixed-crop production lowered the labor needs, Washington wrote, It is demonstratively clear that on this Estate I have more working Negroes by a full than can be employed to any advantage in the farming system. Washington could have sold his surplus slaves and immediately have realized a substantial revenue, in 1790, Washington signed the Naturalization Act, providing a means for foreigners to become citizens. This act limited U. S. citizenship to free white persons, at the time, these were Europeans. In 1793, President Washington signed the Fugitive Slave Act and this act, which implemented the Fugitive Slave Clause in the United States Constitution, gave slaveholders the right to capture fugitive slaves in any U. S. state. This act was done to allow the recapture of slaves who escaped into any safe harbors or slave sanctuaries. In 1794, Washington signed into law the first Slave Trade Act, the monetary relief and weapons counted as a repayment for loans granted by France to the Americans during the Revolutionary War
George Washington and slavery
–
George Washington (
John Trumbull, 1780), also depicts
William Lee, Washington's enslaved personal servant, who for many years spent more time in Washington's presence than any other man.
George Washington and slavery
–
List of taxable property belonging to General Washington in Truro Parish, April 1788. Tax list with names of Washington's
slaves, along with 98 horses, 4 mules and a
chariot.
George Washington and slavery
–
The slave burial ground at Washington's
Mount Vernon.
George Washington and slavery
–
Slave memorial at Mount Vernon.
23.
The Papers of George Washington
–
The Washington Papers aims to place Washington in a larger context and to bring individuals, such as Martha Washington and Washington family members, into sharper focus. The project is headed by editor-in-chief and director Edward G. Lengel and is the largest collection of its type. The project had its start in 1966 when the state archivist of Virginia proposed that the university launch a documentary editing project for the Washington papers, two years later the Washington Papers was launched with the help of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association. Its first editor-in-chief, Donald Jackson, was appointed and the sought to be the most comprehensive compilation yet and include not just letters Washington wrote. To this end the project out and procured copies of 140,000 documents. Starting in 1976 the Washington Papers project began releasing sets of its collection via the University Press of Virginia, sets are separated into different collections depending on the type of material and the time period. In 2004 the project digitized the collection with the help of the Ladies Association, the digitized collection was called the Papers of George Washington Digital Edition and is regularly updated. The following year the project presented the White House with a set of the Papers of George Washington. Since its inception the project has expanded to several projects that are intended to help increase the availability. Some of the expansions have been done as part of projects with other organizations such as NARA. In October 2010 NARA and the University of Virginia Press announced their intention to create Founders Online, work on the project began in October 2011 and went online in October 2013, and includes content from the Washington Paperss print volumes. Prior to this the Papers of George Washington were originally available online through the Papers of George Washington Digital Edition. The Financial Papers Project was officially launched in 2011 with grant funding from NARA, once completed, the project will provide users with access to material that will describe the context and meaning of each text that significantly portrays George Washington. The Washington Papers intend to publish her correspondence online and in a print edition. Work on the Barbados Diary project began in the summer of 2015, the project will transcribe George Washington’s ship log and diary from his journey to Barbados with his brother Lawrence in 1751. The Washington Papers has released several volumes of work relating to and reprinting the Washingtons papers, to date 63 volumes have been published. The Diaries of George Washington is a six volume set released between 1976 and 1979 that was edited by Dorothy Twohig, the third editor-in-chief of the Washington Papers project, the diaries cover most of Washingtons adult life starting in 1748 and concluding in 1799, shortly before his death. There are some gaps in the due to some of Washingtons diaries having never been found
The Papers of George Washington
–
Volumes from the Colonial, Revolutionary, Confederation, Presidential, and Retirement series
The Papers of George Washington
–
Gilbert Stuart Williamstown Portrait of George Washington
The Papers of George Washington
–
Theodore Crackel, Christine Patrick, Philander Chase, John Pinheiro, and Bruce Cole with President George W. Bush in the Oval Office
The Papers of George Washington
–
Former Editor-in-Chief Ted Crackel stands second from the right with President George W. Bush and the recipients of the 2005 National Humanities Medal
24.
President of the United States
–
The President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the executive branch of the government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces. The president is considered to be one of the worlds most powerful political figures, the role includes being the commander-in-chief of the worlds most expensive military with the second largest nuclear arsenal and leading the nation with the largest economy by nominal GDP. The office of President holds significant hard and soft power both in the United States and abroad, Constitution vests the executive power of the United States in the president. The president is empowered to grant federal pardons and reprieves. The president is responsible for dictating the legislative agenda of the party to which the president is a member. The president also directs the foreign and domestic policy of the United States, since the office of President was established in 1789, its power has grown substantially, as has the power of the federal government as a whole. However, nine vice presidents have assumed the presidency without having elected to the office. The Twenty-second Amendment prohibits anyone from being elected president for a third term, in all,44 individuals have served 45 presidencies spanning 57 full four-year terms. On January 20,2017, Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th, in 1776, the Thirteen Colonies, acting through the Second Continental Congress, declared political independence from Great Britain during the American Revolution. The new states, though independent of each other as nation states, desiring to avoid anything that remotely resembled a monarchy, Congress negotiated the Articles of Confederation to establish a weak alliance between the states. Out from under any monarchy, the states assigned some formerly royal prerogatives to Congress, only after all the states agreed to a resolution settling competing western land claims did the Articles take effect on March 1,1781, when Maryland became the final state to ratify them. In 1783, the Treaty of Paris secured independence for each of the former colonies, with peace at hand, the states each turned toward their own internal affairs. Prospects for the convention appeared bleak until James Madison and Edmund Randolph succeeded in securing George Washingtons attendance to Philadelphia as a delegate for Virginia. It was through the negotiations at Philadelphia that the presidency framed in the U. S. The first power the Constitution confers upon the president is the veto, the Presentment Clause requires any bill passed by Congress to be presented to the president before it can become law. Once the legislation has been presented, the president has three options, Sign the legislation, the bill becomes law. Veto the legislation and return it to Congress, expressing any objections, in this instance, the president neither signs nor vetoes the legislation
President of the United States
–
Incumbent
Barack Obama since January 20, 2009 (2009-01-20)
President of the United States
–
Presidential Seal
President of the United States
–
Obama signing legislation at the
Resolute desk
President of the United States
–
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, successfully preserved the
Union during the
American Civil War
25.
Mount Vernon
–
Mount Vernon was the plantation house of George Washington, the first President of the United States, and his wife, Martha Dandridge Custis Washington. The estate is situated on the banks of the Potomac River in Fairfax County, Virginia, near Alexandria, across from Prince Georges County, the Washington family had owned land in the area since the time of Washingtons great-grandfather in 1674. In 1739 they embarked on an expansion of the estate that continued under George Washington, who came into possession of the estate in 1754, the mansion is built of wood in a loose Palladian style, and was constructed by George Washington in stages between 1758 and 1778. It occupies the site of an earlier, smaller house built by George Washingtons father Augustine and it remained Washingtons country home for the rest of his life. Following his death in 1799, under the ownership of successive generations of the family. Escaping the damage suffered by many plantation houses during the American Civil War, Mount Vernon was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960 and is today listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is still owned and maintained in trust by The Mount Vernon Ladies Association, allowing the public to see the estate is not an innovation, but part of a 200-year-old tradition started by George Washington himself. In 1794 he wrote, I have no objection to any sober or orderly persons gratifying their curiosity in viewing the buildings, Gardens, when George Washingtons ancestors acquired the estate, it was known as Little Hunting Creek Plantation, after the nearby Little Hunting Creek. Vernon had been Lawrences commanding officer in the British Royal Navy, when George Washington inherited the property, he retained the name. The current property consists of 500 acres, the main buildings, the present house was built in phases from 1758, by an unknown architect, on the site of the Washingtons former farmhouse. This staggered and unplanned evolution is indicated by the main door. As completed and seen today, the house is in a loose Palladian style, the principal block, dating from 1758, is a two-storied corps de logis flanked by two single-story secondary wings, built in 1775. These secondary wings, which house the hall on the northern side. The corps de logis and secondary wings have hipped roofs with dormers, the rooms at Mount Vernon have mostly been restored to their appearance at the time of George and Martha Washingtons occupancy. These rooms include Washingtons study, two dining rooms, the West Parlour, the Front Parlour, the kitchen and some bedrooms, instead they range from severe Palladianism to a finer and later neoclassicism in the style of Robert Adam. This varying of the style is best exemplified in the doorcases. Today, visitors to Mount Vernon are shown Washingtons study, a room to which in the century only a privileged few were granted entrée. It is a furnished room Washington used as a combined bathroom, dressing room and office
Mount Vernon
–
Mount Vernon Estate, Virginia
Mount Vernon
–
In classic Palladian style, on the western side, the main house is flanked by advancing, single-story secondary wings creating a cour d'honneur.
Mount Vernon
–
The eastern facade, facing the Potomac
Mount Vernon
–
Mount Vernon (1796) with the Washington family on the terrace (
Benjamin Henry Latrobe)
26.
Pamphlet
–
A pamphlet is an unbound booklet. The UNESCO definitions are, however, only meant to be used for the purpose of drawing up their book production statistics. Pamphiluss name is derived from the Greek name Πάμφιλος, meaning beloved of all, the poem was popular and widely copied and circulated on its own, forming a slim codex. Its modern connotations of a tract concerning an issue was a product of the heated arguments leading to the English Civil War. In some European languages other than English, this connotation, of a disputatious tract, has come to the fore, compare libelle, from the Latin libellus. Pamphlets can contain anything from information on kitchen appliances to medical information, Pamphlets are very important in marketing because they are cheap to produce and can be distributed easily to customers. Pamphlets have also long been an important tool of political protest, a pamphleteer is a historical term for someone who produces or distributes pamphlets, especially for a political cause. Ephemeral and to wide array of political or religious perspectives given voice by the ease of production. Substantial accumulations have been amassed and transferred to ownership of academic research libraries around the world, the pamphlet has been widely adopted in commerce, particularly as a format for marketing communications. Long-form journalism Flyer Randy Silverman,1987, small, Not Insignificant, a Specification for a Conservation Pamphlet Binding Structure, The Book and Paper Group Annual 6. Historical overview focusing on pamphlet binding, information about a project that digitised 26,000 19th century pamphlets from UK research libraries. Collection of 19th century pamphlets, predominantly of Irish interest and covering a spectrum of subjects. 19th Century Social History Pamphlets Collection, Collection of pamphlets relating to 19th century Irish social history, particularly the themes of education, health, famine, poverty, business and communications
Pamphlet
–
An 18th-century painting of a girl with a basket of pamphlets
Pamphlet
–
Due to their low cost and ease of production, pamphlets have often been used to popularize political or religious ideas.
Pamphlet
–
The pamphlet form of literature has been used for centuries as an economical vehicle for the broad distribution of information.
Pamphlet
27.
Electoral College (United States)
–
Citizens of the United States vote in each state at a general election to choose a slate of electors pledged to vote for a partys candidate. The Twelfth Amendment requires each elector to cast one vote for president, each state chooses electors, amounting in number to that states combined total of senators and representatives. There are a total of 538 electors, corresponding to the 435 representatives and 100 senators, the Constitution bars any federal official, elected or appointed, from being an elector. The Office of the Federal Register is charged with administering the Electoral College, all states except Maine and Nebraska and California before 1913 have chosen electors on a winner-take-all basis since the 1880s. Under the winner-take-all system, the electors are awarded to the candidate with the most votes in that state. Maine and Nebraska use the congressional district method, selecting one elector within each district by popular vote. Although no elector is required by law to honor their pledge. If no person receives a majority of votes for vice president, then the Senate will select the vice president. The Constitutional Convention in 1787 used the Virginia Plan as the basis for discussions, the Virginia Plan called for the Congress to elect the president. Delegates from a majority of states agreed to this mode of election, however once the Electoral College had been decided on, several delegates openly recognized its ability to protect the election process from cabal, corruption, intrigue, and faction. Some delegates, including James Wilson and James Madison, preferred popular election of the executive, the right of suffrage was much more diffusive in the Northern than the Southern States, and the latter could have no influence in the election on the score of Negroes. The substitution of electors obviated this difficulty and seemed on the whole to be liable to the fewest objections, the Convention approved the Committees Electoral College proposal, with minor modifications, on September 6,1787. Delegates from states with smaller populations or limited land area such as Connecticut, New Jersey, in The Federalist Papers, James Madison explained his views on the selection of the president and the Constitution. 39, Madison argued the Constitution was designed to be a mixture of state-based and population-based government, Congress would have two houses, the state-based Senate and the population-based House of Representatives. Meanwhile, the president would be elected by a mixture of the two modes, alexander Hamilton in Federalist No.68 laid out what he believed were the key advantages to the Electoral College. The electors come directly from the people and them alone for that purpose only and this avoided a party-run legislature, or a permanent body that could be influenced by foreign interests before each election. Hamilton explained the election was to place among all the states. The choice was to be made by a majority of the Electoral College, Hamilton argued, electors meeting in the state capitals were able to have information unavailable to the general public
Electoral College (United States)
–
Certificate for the electoral vote for
Rutherford B. Hayes and
William A. Wheeler for the State of Louisiana
Electoral College (United States)
–
Electoral College map showing the results of the
2012 U.S. presidential election. President
Barack Obama (
D -
IL) won the popular vote in 26 states and the
District of Columbia (denoted in blue) to capture 332 electoral votes. Former Governor
Mitt Romney (
R -
MA) won the popular vote in 24 states (denoted in red) to capture 206 electoral votes.
28.
United States presidential election, 1796
–
The United States presidential election of 1796 was the third quadrennial presidential election. It was held from Friday, November 4 to Wednesday, December 7,1796 and it was the first contested American presidential election and the only one in which a president and vice president were elected from opposing tickets. Their opponents were former Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson from Virginia along with Senator Aaron Burr of New York of the Democratic-Republicans, at this point, each man from any party ran alone, as the formal position of running mate had not yet been established. Unlike the 1792 election, where the outcome was a conclusion, Democratic-Republicans campaigned heavily for Jefferson. Paradoxically, Hamilton himself opposed Adams and worked to undermine his election, in foreign policy, Republicans denounced the Federalists over Jays Treaty. Federalists attacked Jeffersons moral character, alleging he was an atheist, Federalist John Adams defeated Democratic-Republican Thomas Jefferson. Despite the vituperation between their respective camps, neither Adams nor Jefferson actively campaigned for the presidency and this became a long-standing tradition in American lasting into the second half of the 19th century. Jefferson received the second highest number of votes and was elected vice president according to the prevailing rules of electoral college voting. Prior to the ratification of the 12th Amendment in 1804, each elector was to vote for two persons, but was not able to indicate which vote was for president and which was for vice president. Instead, the recipient of the most electoral votes would become president, as a result, both parties ran multiple candidates for president, in hopes of keeping one of their opponents from being the runner-up. These candidates were the equivalent of running mates, but under the law they were all candidates for president. Thus, both Adams and Jefferson were technically opposed by members of their own parties. The Federalists nominee was John Adams of Massachusetts, the incumbent vice president, Adamss main running mate was Thomas Pinckney, who due to electoral law at the time was technically running against Adams for president. The scheme ultimately failed, but it set the stage for tension between Adams and Hamilton for the four years. Tennessee was admitted into the United States after the 1792 election and this was one of only two times that New York voted for the Federalists, the other being in 1812. Under the system in place in 1796, electors were to cast votes for two persons, both votes were for president, the runner-up in the presidential race was elected vice-president. There were rumors that southern electors pledged to Jefferson were coerced by Alexander Hamilton to give their vote to Pinckney in hope of electing him president instead of Adams. Indeed, as it turned out, all eight electors in Pinckneys home state of South Carolina, as well as at least one elector in Pennsylvania, despite these extra votes, they were overwhelmed by at least 20 Adams electors who failed to cast their other vote for Pinckney
United States presidential election, 1796
–
138 electoral votes of the
Electoral College 70 electoral votes needed to win
United States presidential election, 1796
United States presidential election, 1796
–
Vice President
John Adams
United States presidential election, 1796
–
Thomas Pinckney from
South Carolina
29.
Republicanism in the United States
–
Republicanism is the guiding political philosophy of the United States. It has been a part of American civic thought since its founding. American republicanism was founded and first practiced by the Founding Fathers in the 18th century, for them, according to one team of historians, republicanism represented more than a particular form of government. It was a way of life, an ideology, an uncompromising commitment to liberty. Republicanism was based on Ancient Greco-Roman, Renaissance, and English models and it formed the basis for the American Revolution, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, as well as the Gettysburg Address. The term republicanism is derived from the republic, but the two words have different meanings. A republic is a form of government, republicanism refers to the values of the citizens in a republic, two major parties have used the term in their name – the Democratic-Republican party of Thomas Jefferson, and the current Republican Party, founded in 1854. The colonial intellectual and political leaders in the 1760s and 1770s closely read history to compare governments, the Revolutionists were especially concerned with the history of liberty in England and were primarily influenced by the country party. Country party relied heavily on the classical republicanism of Roman heritage, it celebrated the ideals of duty and it drew heavily on ancient Greek city-state and Roman republican examples. This approach produced a political ideology Americans called republicanism, which was widespread in America by 1775, Republicanism was the distinctive political consciousness of the entire Revolutionary generation. American republicanism was centered on limiting corruption and greed, Virtue was of the utmost importance for citizens and representatives. Revolutionaries took a lesson from ancient Rome, they knew it was necessary to avoid the luxury that had destroyed the Empire, a virtuous citizen was one who ignored monetary compensation and made a commitment to resist and eradicate corruption. The Republic was sacred, therefore, it is necessary to serve the state in a representative way, ignoring self-interest. Republicanism required the service of those who were willing to give up their own interests for a common good, virtuous citizens needed to be strong defenders of liberty and challenge the corruption and greed in government. The duty of the virtuous citizen became a foundation for the American Revolution, the commitment of most Americans to republican values and to their property rights helped bring about the American Revolution. The greatest threat to liberty was thought by many to be corruption – not just in London, the colonists associated it with luxury and, especially, inherited aristocracy, which they condemned. Historian Thomas Kidd argues that during the Revolution Christians linked their religion to republicanism and he states, With the onset of the revolutionary crisis, a major conceptual shift convinced Americans across the theological spectrum that God was raising up America for some special purpose. Kidd further argues that new blend of Christian and republican ideology led religious traditionalists to embrace wholesale the concept of republican virtue, as virtuous republicans, citizens had a growing moral obligation to eradicate the corruption they saw in the monarchy
Republicanism in the United States
–
The
Capitol exalted classical republican virtues
30.
James Madison
–
James Madison, Jr. was an American statesman and Founding Father who served as the fourth President of the United States from 1809 to 1817. He is hailed as the Father of the Constitution for his role in drafting and promoting the United States Constitution. Madison inherited his plantation Montpelier in Virginia and therewith owned hundreds of slaves during his lifetime and he served as both a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and as a member of the Continental Congress prior to the Constitutional Convention. After the Convention, he one of the leaders in the movement to ratify the Constitution. His collaboration with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay produced The Federalist Papers, Madisons political views changed throughout his life. During deliberations on the Constitution, he favored a national government. In 1789, Madison became a leader in the new House of Representatives and he is noted for drafting the first ten amendments to the Constitution, and thus is known also as the Father of the Bill of Rights. He worked closely with President George Washington to organize the new federal government, breaking with Hamilton and the Federalist Party in 1791, he and Thomas Jefferson organized the Democratic-Republican Party. In response to the Alien and Sedition Acts, Jefferson and Madison drafted the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions, as Jeffersons Secretary of State, Madison supervised the Louisiana Purchase, which doubled the nations size. Madison succeeded Jefferson as president in 1809, was re-elected in 1813, after the failure of diplomatic protests and a trade embargo against the United Kingdom, he led the U. S. into the War of 1812. The war was a morass, as the United States had neither a strong army nor financial system. As a result, Madison afterward supported a national government and military, as well as the national bank. Madison has been ranked in the aggregate by historians as the ninth most successful president, James Madison, Jr. was born on March 16,1751, at Belle Grove Plantation near Port Conway, Virginia, to father James Madison, Sr. and mother Nelly Conway Madison. He grew up as the oldest of twelve children, Nelly and James Sr. had seven more boys and four girls. Three of James Jr. s brothers died as infants, including one who was stillborn, in the summer of 1775, his sister Elizabeth and his brother Reuben died from a dysentery epidemic that swept through Orange County because of contaminated water. His father, James Madison, Sr. was a planter who grew up on a plantation, then called Mount Pleasant. He later acquired more property and slaves, and with 5,000 acres, he became the largest landowner, James Jr. s mother, Nelly Conway Madison, was born at Port Conway, the daughter of a prominent planter and tobacco merchant. In these years, the colonies were becoming a slave society, in which slave labor powered the economy
James Madison
–
James Madison
James Madison
–
Montpelier, Madison's tobacco plantation in Virginia
James Madison
–
James Sharples, James Madison,
Princeton University Art Museum
James Madison
–
Page one of the original copy of the
U.S. Constitution
.jpg)
Washington's Farewell Address. Wikisource.
