Mason Locke Weems, usually referred to as Parson Weems, was an American minister, evangelical bookseller and author who wrote the first biography of George Washington immediately after his death. Some popular stories about Washington thought during the 20th century to be apocryphal can be traced to Weems, including the cherry tree tale. Weems' biography of Washington was a bestseller that depicted Washington's virtues and was intended to provide morally instructive tales for the youth of the young nation. Recent examinations of Weems, particularly by James Bish, and Dr. Richard Gardiner have found that Weems' knowledge and sourcing may have been stronger than assumed by previous scholars. Weems corresponded with Washington, had family ties to Washington, and evidently relied on members of the Washington family for information.

Dumfries, officially the Town of Dumfries, is a town in Prince William County, Virginia. The population was 4,961 at the 2010 United States Census.