LITR 4231 Early American Literature Sample Research Posts 2014 (research post assignment) Research Post 2

Thomas Dion

April 20, 2014

George Washington: The Cherry Grove and Beyond

While discussing my research post with Dr. White, we had an interesting conversation about how we remember our founding fathers like Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, and John Adams for their writings, but not others like George Washington. Naturally, the question was brought up ‘why?’ Here is Washington, the Father of Our Country, where popular knowledge holds more weight on what is written about him, than what he wrote himself. Other than Washington’s “Farewell Address,” I personally could not recount anything else the man had ever written. I wanted to find out why this was and what made Washington the character unforgettable, as opposed to Washington the writer.

In Washington’s own time he was a man greatly revered: General of the Continental Army, first President of the United States—elected unanimously twice—and business man. These facts tell us about the man found in most history books—a champion of freedom and independence. This information was held in popular opinion then as it is now and leads to an early criticism and focal point of Washington’s first biographer, Mason Locke Weems. In his semi-biographical pamphlet The Life of Washington with Curious Anecdotes, Equally Honorable to Himself and Exemplary to His Young Countrymen, published a year after Washington’s death in 1800, Weems explores the boundaries of poetic license in creating an in-depth molding of Washington the character. It is in Weems’s eighty-page pamphlet that we find the origin of the most famous Washington myths: the cherry tree, skipping a silver dollar over the Potomac River, and his religiosity at Valley Forge. It was Weems's intent to shed light on the “shade of [Washington’s] private life” by embellishing or at times, creating fictional stories about Washington in order to illustrate what Washington’s virtuous image signified (Weems 11). Weems wrote several other well selling semi-biographical pamphlets about Washington including A History of the Life and Death, Virtues, and Exploits of General George Washington which sold just as well to a mourning American public seeking for an idealized symbol of virtue to up lift their infant country. This trend of romanticizing Washington continued into and well past the 1860s and can be seen in the various works of literature and art from the time.

Laura Dove et al. explores this theme and states on her website The Apotheosis of George Washington: Brumidi’s Fresco & Beyond: “more than 400 essays and books were published over Washington between the years of 1800 - 1860.” Therefore, it is no wonder that the image of Washington continued to embody the American virtues of honor and truth. Even though Washington’s romanticized image has stayed relevant throughout the centuries, Dove is quick to insert that “society’s view of George has changed with the view of itself.” Dove classifies these evolving viewpoints, each with their own beholding of Washington, into four major periods: during his life, antebellum America, post-Civil War and current day. The first has already been covered, and the antebellum American view can be clearly seen in the deification of Washington in the fresco by Constantino Brumidi’s “The Apotheosis of George Washington” found in the Rotunda of the nation’s capitol building. Dove also mentions that Washington’s aurora was so immense that during the Civil War both sides agreed on making Mount Vernon neutral territory, regarding it sacred and inconsiderable to hold as a war trophy. During the post-Civil War era Washington’s character was elevated even higher as he becomes the weight and measure of each passing president. Currently satirical images appear more today than at any time of Washington in comics, television, and car ads. Has the allure of Washington faded? I am proud to say a renewed emphasis has been raised to get to know the “real” character of Washington, and it is easier than ever to get to know him.

How does one get to know the “real” George Washington? By going directly to the source, that is to say; go directly to Washington’s own writings. Apparently the initial attraction this man stood for still stands today. The Papers of George Washington is a website constructed by the University of Virginia and the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association of the Union and is dedicated to publishing all of Washington’s correspondence. To date over 135,000 documents are in their project room and nearly two thirds have been processed for print publication. Many of these texts can be seen in their original form on the web sites database.

There is also the George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate, a web-site in connection with the operators of Washington’s old home run today as a museum. The web-site which posts on its “Key Facts” page a table with Washington’s birth date, height, weight, religion, and political affiliation as if they were details on the back of a modern day trading card. There were scores of intriguing and less than well known facts about Washington including being the first to sign the constitution, an avid dancer, and owning and operating the largest Whiskey distillery in America at its time in 1799. One can still buy whiskey distilled from the same spot today through the operators! (This puts the Whiskey Rebellion in a whole new light.) The last fact can be perceived as a far cry from Weems’s virtuous and pious stories about Washington; however, this speaks to Dove’s position that the image of Washington will continue to change as the image of ourselves changes.

The opening pages of Weems’ biography recounts a short dialogue between Napoleon Bonaparte and two Americans; where Bonaparte puts Washington on a pedestal as a greater man than he (3). Even as fictional as this account may be, the sentiment of the message still rings true today. Reported on by Jasper Copping of the United Kingdom news outlet Telegraph, “George Washington was Named Britain’s Greatest Ever Foe” during a special event held at the National Army Museum in Chelsea, West London. A panel of 70 judges voted after first listening to 40 minute presentations from professional historians for the different historical candidates. Coming in on top was Washington, receiving 45 per cent of the vote, over other great adversaries of the Crown: Michael Collins, Erwin Rommel, and of course Napoleon Bonaparte.

Of course we all know that Washington eventually defeats the British at Yorktown, but according to the records Washington lost more battles than he won against the British (Mount Vernon). Surely the historians that took part in the “Greatest Foe” vote, like Stephen Brumwell, knew these facts, so how did Washington win if he is a loser? The argument Brumwell opined was an old one but a good one. Washington is the “greatest” because of “his ability to not only provide inspirational battlefield leadership but to work with civilians who were crucial to sustaining the war-effort; and the kind of man he was” (Telegraph). These statements speak to the heart of Washington’s character and not so much the “real” factual Washington but the virtuous and inspirational Washington found in paintings like Emanuel Leutze “Washington Crossing the Delaware.” Which brings us full circle to the character of Washington brought center stage and the factual Washington incorporated like decorative fringe—adding to and never hampering our view of the apotheosis of a man.

I originally set out to explore Washington’s writings and by the end of my research I found that the writing’s about Washington were just as numerous and remarkable as his own. After reading that the grim-faced man on the dollar bills in my pocket is an avid dancer, it struck me what Weems says about the way to knowing the man “is through his private life” (Mount Vernon; Weems 3). Personally, just imagining Washington dancing with a warm smile on his face makes the character seem so much more real than cold historical facts. Weems attempted to personalize Washington through virtuous stories, Brumidi attempted mystifying him in a majestic fresco, and the University of Virginia continues today by preserving Washington’s writings in hopes a new story and a new character of Washington will yet be found. I hope whoever reads this post explores the sources and links; and finds them—as I have—justly rewarding.   

Works Cited

Dove, Laura, et al. The Apotheosis of George Washington: Brumidi’s Fresco & Beyond. Second Extension. University of Virginia. 1995. Web. 16 April 2014.

“George Washington named Brittan’s greatest ever foe.” Copping, Jasper. The Telegraph. 14 April 2012. Web. 18 April 2014.

“Key Facts.” George Washington Mount Vernon. Robert H. Smith. 2014. Web. 16 April 2014.

The Papers of George Washington. University of Virginia and Mount Vernon Ladies Association of the Union. Web. 16 April 2014.

Weems, Mason Locke. The Life of Washington with Curious Anecdotes, Equally Honorable to Himself and Exemplary to His Young Countrymen. 1800. University of North Carolina Library. Web. 16 April 2014.