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George Washington Autograph Document Signed...
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$20,000.00
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Description
George Washington Autograph Document Signed "G. Washington". One page with map on integral page, 12.25" x 7.5", [Augusta County, Virginia]; April 18, 1751. A survey description and plat map by Washington for a plot of 400 acres of land in dispute between Samuel Farrington and William Warden. The deed to the land had been drawn up in Mary Nisewangor's name. Washington's survey sought to clarify the boundaries of the land and includes a hand-drawn map of the property. It reads, in full:"Then survey'd a certain tract of waste and ungranted land on Cacapehon [Cacapon] where on Saml. Farrington now lives and in dispute between the sd Farrington and William Warden bounded as followeth viz
Beginning at a White Oak and red Oak beg. Cont. to Wm Hilborn on a Mountain side and extended along the said Mountain S°40W. Two hundd and eighty poles to a white oak and two pines corner to John Woodfin. Hence with if sd Woodfins line S°Et Two hundd & sixty three poles to his corner two [illegible] in low ground thence N°29Et. Two hund and eighty poles to Wm Hilbourns since thence with the sd line N°40W. Two hundd & fourteen poles to the Beg. Contg four hundd acres." Boldly signed by Washington. With docketing on verso.
The survey contains a hand drawn map of the property by Washington on the integral page, with the axes marked A-D. These types of surveys are among the earliest surviving examples of Washington's handwriting and signature. In 1751, he started using a less stylized "G: Washington." For his final survey in 1752, he used the more familiar "Go: Washington."
Before he became the famous Revolutionary general and our nation's first president, George Washington sought a career as a surveyor, boldly venturing into the wilderness to do land surveys. From the ages of 17 to 20, Washington completed more than 190 surveys working for Lord Fairfax's Northern Neck Proprietary. Washington gained familial ties to the powerful Fairfax family when, in 1743, his half-brother Lawrence, the owner of Mount Vernon, married Ann Fairfax, the daughter of Colonel William Fairfax, who was the first cousin of Lord Fairfax. The Fairfax family heavily influenced the teenage George Washington. William served as a land agent for Lord Fairfax and he commissioned sixteen-year-old George Washington in 1748 with his first surveying job. In July of 1749, Washington took the Oath of Public Office to become Culpeper County's first official surveyor, a well-paid position, which soon enabled him to buy land in the Shenandoah Valley.
Condition: Flattened mail folds, with some toning throughout and darker toning at the folds. Archival tape on verso to reinforce the folds. The letter is tipped into a larger sheet of paper, so that both sides may be visible, measuring 13" x 18" overall. There is a small tear through the text, which does not affect the legibility of any words. Minor foxing.
Auction Info
2019 May 14 Historical Manuscripts Grand Format Auction - Dallas #6210 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
May, 2019
14th
Tuesday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 5
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