Today – September 30 – is World Maritime Day. The United Nations and the International Maritime Organization created World Maritime Day in 1978 “to celebrate the international maritime industry’s contribution towards the world’s economy, especially in shipping.” "The South East Prospect of London from the Tower to London Bridge" (1746) by John Maurer. Credit: Royal … Continue reading Maritime History at Kenmore & Ferry Farm
Rappahannock River
Five International Influences on George Washington’s Early Life
An Essay of a New and Compact Map, Containing the Known Parts of the Terrestrial Globe by Jacques-Nicolas Bellin was published in 1750 when George Washington was 18-years-old. Credit: Wikipedia. Ferry Farm was a unique place to live in the mid-1700s. Situated where farm, frontier, city, river, and road converged on the edge of English … Continue reading Five International Influences on George Washington’s Early Life
The Lewis Ships That Sailed the Atlantic World
George Washington’s Ferry Farm is located on a hill overlooking the Rappahannock River. That river connects to the Chesapeake Bay and eventually the Atlantic Ocean. When young George Washington lived at Ferry Farm, the Rappahannock was a gateway to the entire world. Fredericksburg was a port town on the river’s opposite bank from the farm … Continue reading The Lewis Ships That Sailed the Atlantic World
Photos: Nature Walk at George Washington’s Ferry Farm
George Washington's Boyhood Home at Ferry Farm offers a wonderful blend of woods, fields, wetlands, and riverfront. Fox, groundhogs, snakes, lizards, turtles, and deer make Ferry Farm their home. In the meadows, bushy heads of grass seeds provide an important source of food for birds. Beautiful flowers and majestic trees abound across the landscape. A … Continue reading Photos: Nature Walk at George Washington’s Ferry Farm
Photos: Our Urban Nature at Historic Kenmore
Nature shaped the lives of English colonists and enslaved Africans living and working at Kenmore Plantation 200 years ago. Over centuries, humans changed Kenmore’s natural world from a plantation setting into an urban green space. Yet, nature remains just outside the door. This past Saturday at Historic Kenmore, visitors had a chance to explore humans' … Continue reading Photos: Our Urban Nature at Historic Kenmore
The Civil War at the ‘Old Washington Farm’
Editor's Note: Lives & Legacies continues to remember the Civil War as that conflict's 150th anniversary concludes this April and May. During the Civil War, the homes of George Washington and Fielding Lewis – both indispensable to securing American freedom in the Revolution -- served as campsite and hospital in a bloody struggle over the definition … Continue reading The Civil War at the ‘Old Washington Farm’
‘Not Having Been Wett All Over at Once, for 28 Years Past’: Bathing in Early America
Editor’s Note: Looking back in time, people’s personal hygiene, fashion choices, medical treatments, and more sometimes look, at the very least, bizarre, if not outright disgusting. When confronted with these weird or gross practices, our first reaction can be to dismiss our ancestors as primitive, ignorant, or just silly. Before such judgments, however, we should … Continue reading ‘Not Having Been Wett All Over at Once, for 28 Years Past’: Bathing in Early America
George Washington, Baseball Player?
I find that February, though it has the fewest days, can be the longest month of the year. The novelty of winter has worn off and, often, I simply seem to be enduring until the first glimpses of spring in March. I do, however, look forward with excitement to two moments in February: George Washington’s … Continue reading George Washington, Baseball Player?
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