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Collection Reference Number GLC07487
From Archive Folder Documents Relating to 1789 
Title George Washington to John Fairfax with instructions for the management of the estate
Date March 1789
Author Washington, George (1732-1799)  
Document Type Correspondence
Content Description Before leaving Mount Vernon to serve his first term as President of the United States, Washington instructs Fairfax regarding management of the estate. States that all matters should ultimately be directed by his nephew, Major George Augustine Washington. Encourages Fairfax to manage Mount Vernon more diligently, stating "I have a very good opinion of your honesty, sobriety and industry, and now is the time to give me proofs of your capacity and skill." Laments the current condition of his manor, stating "it is idle and vain for me to attempt to stall feed any kind of Meats; when I have only my expence for my trouble, without a joint of meat which is fit to appear at a Gentlemans Table.- But I will rest in hope, that all these things will undergo a change for the better." Informs Fairfax that if he marries, his wife may "in all respects fare as you do."
Subjects President  Mount Vernon  Agriculture and Animal Husbandry  Diet and Nutrition  Marriage  Labor  
People Fairfax, John (fl. 1789)  Washington, George (1732-1799)  Washington, George Augustine (1763-1793)  
Place written Mount Vernon, Virginia
Theme The Presidency; Agriculture; Women in American History
Sub-collection The Gilder Lehrman Collection, 1493-1859
Additional Information Signer of the U.S. Constitution.
Copyright The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
Module Settlement, Commerce, Revolution and Reform: 1493-1859
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