As 2017 begins, Lives & Legacies would like to hear from its readers! What would you like to know about George Washington’s boyhood, his mother Mary, his sister Betty, and his brothers? Maybe, you’re interested in the life of Fielding Lewis and the sacrifices he made to help the Patriot case. Perhaps, you’re wondering about the archaeological work we do and the artifacts we’ve discovered. Surely, some of you are curious about how we’re creating a replica of the Washington house.  Send us your questions using the comment form below and we may just write a blog post to answer your question!

In the meantime, as we bring Lives & Legacies’ second year to a close, we thought it might be worthwhile to share several of our most read entries published in 2016. We hope you enjoy reading them for the first time or reading them again as we move into 2017.

Here are our Top 5 Most Read Posts of 2016:

#5 Samuel Washington: George’s Brother and Wartime Confidant – This biographical sketch recounts the life of Samuel and the relationship he shared with his famous brother George.

#4 Put that in Your Pipe and Smoke It: Tobacco & Politics in the 1700s – This post examines a fragment of a smoking pipe unearthed at Ferry Farm and discusses what that pipe fragment may illustrate about the Washington family.

#3 Introducing the New George Washington’s Ferry Farm – This blog post presents an overview of The George Washington Foundation’s effort to create a replica of the Washington house and outlines Ferry Farm’s transition to an outdoor living museum.

#2 Petticoats and Pink Lightning – An investigation into some fascinating fashions from across the centuries!

#1 Glue: The Coolest Thing I’ve Ever Found – Archaeologists are often asked “what’s the coolest thing you’ve ever found?” and for one of the Foundation’s archaeologist the answer to that question is the glue on Mary Washington’s punch bowl.

Zac Cunningham
Manager of Educational Programs