Washington and Slavery
«back | homeEmancipation of Slaves, From George Washington's Last Will
| <Ite>m Upon the decease <of> my wife, it is my Will & desire th<at> all the Slaves which I hold in <my> own right, shall receive their free<dom>. To emancipate them during <her> life, would, tho' earnestly wish<ed by> me, be attended with such insu<pera>ble difficulties on account of thei<r interm>ixture by Marriages with the <dow>er Negroes, as to excite the most pa<in>ful sensations, if not disagreeabl<e c>onsequences from the latter, while <both> descriptions are in the occupancy <of> the same Proprietor; it not being <in> my power, under the tenure by which <th>e Dower Negroes are held, to man<umi>t them... [Read more...] |
Documents from Washington's Papers
List of "all my Negroes which are as follows at Mount Vernon and the plantations around it--viz.--" from George Washington's Diaries 18 February 1786
Advertisement for Runaway Slaves. Printed in Maryland Gazette (Annapolis), 20 Aug. 1761, by George Washington.
Appraisement of Slaves Sent to the Dismal Swamp, 4 July 1764
List of Tithables and Taxable Property [includes names of slaves for each year. 1761-1774]
Lease for Mount Vernon, dated 17 December 1754, between George Lee, Ann Lee, and George Washington. The annual lease payment of "Fifteen thousand pounds of Tobacco in fifteen Hogsheads" includes a number of slaves whose value was to be deducate "if it should so happen that any...should Die during the said Term."
| "Neptune, aged 25 or 30, well set, and of about 5 Feet 8 or 9 Inches high, thin jaw'd, his Teeth stragling and fil'd sharp, his Back, if rightly remember'd, has many small Marks or Dots running from both Shoulders down to his Waistband, and his Head was close shaved: Had on a Cotton Waistcoat, black or dark colour'd Breeches, and an Osnabrig Shirt." [Read more...] |
 Images of the original slave lists from Washington's will are available here. |
The Will of George
Washington June 1799 |
List
of Slaves Names and Ages, with Remarks
by Location |
|
|
MANSION
HOUSE
GW | Dower |
MUDDY
HOLE FARM
GW | Dower |
|
RIVER
FARM
GW | Dower |
DOGUE
RUN FARM
GW | Dower |
|
UNION
FARM
GW | Dower |
***** |
|
Washington's Farms. See detailed images from this map
by clicking on each name.
More maps available in our Maps & Images
section.
Articles
| "During the pre-Revolutionary years Washington's views toward slavery were conventional, reflecting those of a typical Virginia planter of his time. If he was perhaps more concerned than some planters with his slaves' welfare, his principal interest was still their contribution to the economic life of the plantation. His slave inventories indicate the number of slaves employed at Mount Vernon at various times over years: in 1759 he owned twenty-four slaves under the age of sixteen; in 1786 he owned slightly over one hundred slaves on his own, with 113 dower slaves; in 1799 there were 164 Washington slaves and 153 dower slaves." [Read more...] |
- Freeing his slaves is one of Washington's greatest legacies, by Nancy Hurrelbrinck
|
"The Washingtons' views about slavery were also probably influenced by their familial relationships with African-Americans, and may have impelled George to change his mind, he suggested. Martha had a mulatto half-sister who lived with her throughout her life and who had a child with Jackie Custis, Martha's son by her first marriage. Jackie Custis died a few years later, but Washington's family acknowledged the child as part of the family. He was free, but married a slave, and their children were emancipated by the husband of one of Martha's granddaughters." [Read more...] |
- George Washington and the Politics of Slavery, by Dennis J. Pogue
|
"It was probably with a strong sense of relief that George Washington wearily made his way to his second-floor bed chamber on the evening of the ninth of July, 1799. A self-described old man at 67 years of age, and with little more than five months of life ahead of him, Washington had just completed a task that seemingly resolved an issue that had troubled him for decades. It was on that day that the former president finished writing his last will and testament, which spelled out his directions for freeing the more than 100 enslaved human beings that he personally owned. Much more than just a functional legal instrument, the will served as Goerge Washington's final message to his country, and the manumission clause represented one of the most symbolic acts of his long and distinguished career in public service." [Read more...] |