Happy Birthday, George!! Two-hundred and eighty five years ago today on February 22, 1732, George Washington was born. Americans have commemorating his birth and his life for centuries, since he rose to prominence as the commanding general of the Continental Army and the nation's very first president. For centuries, his likeness has been added to … Continue reading Photos: Washington Memorabilia
Photos: Washington’s Birthday & Archaeology Day 2017
Every February, Presidents' Day weekend is a celebratory one at George Washington's Ferry Farm! As always this year, George's boyhood home marked his birthday on Saturday, February 18 and then held Archaeology Day on Monday, February 20. Here are some photos from both days.
Photos: Building George’s House – Windows & Weatherboard
Over the past several weeks, following the timber framing and while the shingling of the roof was taking place, The George Washington Foundation's carpenters Steve Chronister, Tom Rainey, and Josh Schwenk installed the Washington house windows and the beaded weatherboard, enclosing the house and shifting most of the work from the exterior to the interior. Read … Continue reading Photos: Building George’s House – Windows & Weatherboard
Five Notable Americans Named George Washington
Parents, perhaps hoping to spur their offspring to similar greatness, have named their children George Washington ever since the most famous George Washington rose to prominence as commander of the Continental Army and the nation’s first president. Few other George Washingtons ultimately achieved the original’s stature, although a few perhaps came close. As we mark … Continue reading Five Notable Americans Named George Washington
Video: Building George’s House – Timber Framing
The timber framing of the Washington house is complete. In this video, we get a close-up view of the construction of the house's timber frame. For a timelapse view of the timber framing, watch this video. To see how the beams in the frame were fashioned, watch this video. Learn more about the Washington House … Continue reading Video: Building George’s House – Timber Framing
Photos: Building George’s House – Shingling the Roof
This past autumn, workers from Peter Post Restorations lead by Peter himself added the shingles to the roof of the Washington house at Ferry Farm. The handmade riven shingles were sawn from a tree trunk, smoothed on one side, and decoratively scalloped. Because they were handmade, each shingle was a different width. The roofers laid the shingles … Continue reading Photos: Building George’s House – Shingling the Roof
Drink Your Vegetables: A Special 18th Century Wedgwood Ware
Fads come and go. Such is life. Eighteenth century colonists were not immune to flash-in-the-pan trends. However, given that information traveled a bit slower before the digital age, in the 18th century a ‘quick trend’ may have lasted 10 or 20 years, instead of 10 or 20 months. Such is the case with ‘vegetable ware’, … Continue reading Drink Your Vegetables: A Special 18th Century Wedgwood Ware
Video: Building George’s House – Laying the Stone Foundation
In this video, we see how stonemasons Ray Cannetti, Robert Hall, and Kevin Nieto laid the handmade Aquia sandstone foundation stones around and on top of the Washington house's concrete cradle foundation, which protects original architectural remains underground. Watch these videos about the concrete cradle and the oyster burning process. Learn more about the Washington House here … Continue reading Video: Building George’s House – Laying the Stone Foundation
Tales of a Patch Stand and a Porringer
For the past year or so my focus here at George Washington’s Ferry Farm has been determining what types of ceramics were owned by the Washington family. Once we have this information we want to acquire accurate examples to place in the reconstructed house for all to see. From door hardware to teacups, most of … Continue reading Tales of a Patch Stand and a Porringer
“A time to be born… a time to plant”: Timing Labor in the Washington Family
Recently I was contemplating Augustine and Mary Washington’s family bible. Like many families at the time, the Washingtons recorded the births of their children on their bible’s end pages. As I casually perused the handwritten notes that I had read so many times, I discovered something that I had never noticed before: each of Mother … Continue reading “A time to be born… a time to plant”: Timing Labor in the Washington Family
Lives & Legacies 