A Journal of my Journey over the Mountains began Fryday the 11^{th}
of March 1747-8.[1]
Fryday March 11^{th} 1747-8. Began my Journey[2] in Company with
George Fairfax, Esqr.;[3] we travell'd this day 40 Miles to M^r
George Neavels[4] in Prince William County.[5]
[Footnote 1: Double dating of the year, as is done here, was an old
custom observed between January 1st and the 25th of March. For all
other portions of the year a single date was used. Although January
1st had been generally accepted as the beginning of the historical
year in Christian countries, yet March 25th was held by some as
the beginning of the civil or legal year. The Gregorian chronology
or new style had not, at the time this journal was written, been
adopted by England, and, indeed, was not until September 2nd, 1752.]
[Footnote 2: The party on this expedition set out from "Belvoir,"
the home and plantation of the Hon. William Fairfax, described by
General Washington as "within full view of Mount Vernon, separated
by water only, is one of the most beautiful seats on the river."
(Letter to John Sinclair, 11 December, 1796.) It was founded by
William Fairfax, cousin and agent to Lord Thomas Fairfax, and was
his residence until his death in 1757. The estate then passed to
his eldest son, George William Fairfax, also one of Lord Fairfax's
agents, and was his residence until July, 1773, when, accompanied
by his wife, he went to England to attend to some property he had
inherited there. Washington, his friend and neighbor, consented to
act as his agent during his absence, which, at the time, neither
anticipated would be of long continuance.
"Law's delay" and business interests making it important for Mr.
Fairfax to remain in England, he directed Washington to dispose
of his stock, farm fixtures and household effects at public sale.
After due advertisement, this was done August 15, 1774. A second
sale at "Belvoir" took place December 5, 1774.
The following bill of household effects bought at this first sale
at Belvoir by George Washington has been preserved among his
private papers and was in the possession of one of his inheritors,
Lawrence Washington, in January 1891. The bill in the auctioneer's
handwriting was folded and endorsed in Washington's known
hand:--"Articles bought by G^o Washington at Col^o Fairfax's Sale
15 August 1774."
"Inventory of House Furnishings bought by Col^o George Washington
at Col^o Fairfax's Sale at Belvoir 15 August 1774.
£ s. d.
Gilbert Simpson's 5 Bott. or Pickle Pots 7 6
2 Potts from Lawson Parker do do 2
6 Pickle Potts different sizes 4 6
2 Doz. mountain wine 1 4
4 Chariot Glasses frames 12 6
Irons for a boat canopy with tiller 12 6
12 Pewter Water Plates 1 6
1 Mahogany Shaving Desk 4
1 Settee-bed and furnature 13
4 Mahog'y chairs 4
1 Chamber Carpet 1 1
1 Oval Glass with guilt frame in the Green room 4 5
1 Mahog'y chest and drawers in M^{rs} Fx chamber 12 10
1 Mahog'y Side Board 12 5
1 Mahog'y Cistern & stand 4
1 Mahog'y voider a dish tray & a knife tray 1 10
1 Japan Bread tray 7
12 Chairs & 3 window curtains from y^e dining room 31
1 Looking glass & Guilt Frame 13 5
2 Candlesticks & a bust of the Imortal Shakespere 1 6
3 floor carpets in the gent's room 3 5
1 Large carpet 11
1 Mahog'y wash Desk bottle &c. 1 2 6
1 Mahog'y Close Stool--part broke 1 10
2 Matrasses 4 10
1 Pair andirons, tongues, fender & shovel 3 10
1 Pair do " " " " 3 17 6
1 Pair do " " " " 1 17 6
1 Pair Dogirons in Great Kitchen 3
1 Pot Rache " " " 4
A Roasting Fork 2 6
A Plate Basket 3
1 Mahog'y Spider make tea table 1 11
1 Old Skreen 10
1 Carpet 2 15
1 Pair Bellows & Brush 11
2 Window Curtins 2
1 Large Marble Morter 1 1
1 Pot Rache in the cellar 1 7 6
2 Mahog'y Card Tables 4
A bed a pair of blankets & 19 quilts or coverlets
Pillows Bolsters &c 1 Mahog'y card Table for Col^o Lee 11
---------
£169.12.6
The following admirable description of the estate is taken from
an advertisement in the Pennsylvania _Gazette_ of Philadelphia,
October 19, 1774:
"TO BE RENTED FROM YEAR TO YEAR, OR FOR A TERM OF YEARS,--Belvoir,
the beautiful seat of the Honorable Geo. W. Fairfax, Esq., upon the
Potomac river, in Fairfax county, about 14 miles below Alexandria.
"The mansion is of brick, two stories high, with four convenient
rooms, and a large passage on the lower floor; five rooms and a
large passage on the second; servants' hall and cellar below;
convenient to it are offices, stables and coach-house; adjacent is
a large and well furnished garden stored with a great variety of
fruits, all in good order.
"Appertaining to the tract on which these houses stand and which
contains near 2,000 acres (surrounded in a manner by navigable
water), are several valuable fisheries and a good deal of clear
land in different parts which may be let all together or separately
as shall be found most convenient.
"The terms may be known of Colonel Washington who lives near the
premises, or of me in Berkeley county.
"FRANCIS WILLIS, Junior."
The estate was leased to the Rev. Andrew Morton for a term of seven
years. Unfortunately the mansion was destroyed by fire only a few
years later. The owner's long absence, and the fact that there was
no house to invite a careful tenant, together with the excitement
and derangement of business incident to the war for independence,
caused the estate rapidly to depreciate in value. Early in 1775
Washington relinquished the agency of George W. Fairfax's business
in America, as his time was fully taken up in directing the
momentous affairs of the Revolution.]
[Footnote 3: George William Fairfax, eldest son of the Hon. William
Fairfax, of "Belvoir," Va., was born in Nassau, New Providence,
West Indies, in 1724. His father having been appointed to the
custom house in Salem, Massachusetts, he was taken to that town and
resided there until 1734, about which time his father accepted the
agency of Lord Fairfax's lands in Virginia, and removed to that
province. For a time he resided in Westmoreland county, Va., but
after a couple of years he settled upon and developed the "Belvoir"
estate on the Potomac river. George William Fairfax was educated
in England, and coming to his majority settled at "Belvoir," and
married Sarah, daughter of Col. Wilson Cary, of Hampton, Va., who
some writers, on rather apocryphal testimony, endeavor to show
was an object of Washington's ardent devotion when a mere youth.
The same compliment has also been claimed for her sister Mary,
who married Edward Ambler, and for other belles of that period
in Virginia, as well as in some of the other colonies. George W.
Fairfax, after his marriage, resided part of the time at "Belvoir,"
and part at "Greenway Court," as agent of Lord Fairfax, in the
vicinity of which he owned and cultivated lands. On his father's
death in 1757 he inherited "Belvoir," where he continued to reside
until the summer of 1773, when, accompanied by his wife, he went
to England to look after some property he had inherited there. The
proprietors of "Belvoir" and "Mount Vernon" and their families
were always on the most friendly terms, as the letters extant of
each attest, and Washington's diaries fully confirm. Mr. Fairfax
favored the early protests by the colonies and petitions to the
king in the interests of the colonies, but opposed measures looking
to forcible resistance. Washington consented to act as his agent
while he was absent, presuming his stay in England would be of
short duration. But a complication of matters detained him abroad
so that he instructed his agent to sell off his stock at "Belvoir"
and lease the property. A sale was accordingly held on the estate
in August, 1774, which continued two days. A second and further
sale was held in December the same year. The property was leased
in 1774 for seven years, but shortly after this the mansion house
was burned down and never rebuilt. During the Revolutionary war
some of Mr. Fairfax's property in Fairfax county was escheated to
the state. His loss of income from America led him to limit his
expense, he therefore removed from Yorkshire to Bath and lived in a
modest way, dividing generously, from his limited means, with the
American prisoners of war held in England. He had no children. A
friendly correspondence was kept up between him and Washington to
the close of his life. He was urged to return to America, but his
mansion at "Belvoir" having been destroyed by fire he kept putting
it off and never returned. He left "Belvoir" and some other landed
property to Ferdinand, son of his half-brother, Rev. Bryan Fairfax,
and died at Bath in England, April 3, 1787, and was buried in
Wirthlington church. His will appointed George Washington as one of
his executors. His wife survived him until 1812. Her remains were
placed by the side of her husband's.]
[Footnote 4: George Neville, Esq., was among the earliest
planters to settle in the western part of Prince William county,
Va. As early as, or before 1730, he selected a large body of
desirable land lying on the main road by way of Ashby's Gap from
Fredericksburg to Winchester. Here his residence was beautifully
situated on high, healthy and productive land near the head springs
of Bull Run, a tributary of the Occoquan river, and 34 miles
from Fredericksburg, the head of tide water on the Rappahannock
river. Squire Neville, the proprietor of this fine estate, as
he was usually called, was a man of steady and industrious
habits, possessed a fine constitution, gentle in his manners, and
cultured in his tastes, enterprising and thrifty, with a genius
for overcoming such difficulties as always beset the path of the
pioneer in a new country. As the lands to the west of him, and
particularly those in the Shenandoah valley beyond the Blue Ridge,
began to attract settlers the travel on the road past his house
became considerable, and as a matter of accommodation to the public
he opened an ordinary and kept a store for general merchandizing.
Neville's Ordinary was a land mark, and is to be found on Fry and
Jefferson's Map of Virginia, as well as on Governor Pownall's and
other early maps of Virginia. In 1750 Washington surveyed for Mr.
Neville 400 acres of land. By marriage George Neville was related
to the Fairfax family of Virginia. His wife, Ann Burroughs,
was a cousin to Lord Thomas Fairfax of "Greenway Court," the
proprietor of the Northern Neck of Virginia. Squire Neville and
his wife were blessed with a numerous family of healthy sons and
daughters, who inherited the sturdy virtues of their parents, and
who founded families for themselves, and whose descendants are
to be found throughout the southern and western states. Joseph
Neville, son of George, was a prosperous planter in the western
part of Prince William county, Va., in 1760. (See Washington's
Diary.) He served as a colonel in the Revolution, was one of the
commissioners for running the boundary line between Pennsylvania
and Virginia, and was a member of Congress 1793-5; died in Hardy
county, Va., 1819. John Neville, another son, was colonel of the
4th Virginia regiment in the Revolution, and brigadier-general
in the Pennsylvania militia at the close of the war. He was born
in Virginia 26 July, 1731. From his youth he had a fondness for
military affairs and served in the Braddock expedition, and also
in the Dunmore Indian war. He and his brothers were early and
life-long friends of General Washington, the acquaintance beginning
when they were youths. At an early date John Neville took up
considerable tracts of land in Frederick and Augusta counties, Va.
He resided for some years in the Shenandoah valley, being at one
time sheriff of Frederick county. He also acquired large tracts of
land on Chartier's creek in Pennsylvania, and had built himself
a house preparatory to taking up his residence there, when the
Revolutionary war began, in which he took an active and honorable
part. This event postponed, for some years, his removal with his
family to Pennsylvania. On the 24th August, 1754, he was united in
marriage to Winifred Oldham, by whom he had two children, a son
and a daughter, Presley and Amelia. Presley Neville married Nancy,
daughter of General Daniel Morgan, and they became the progenitors
of the large and influential family of Nevilles of Pittsburg, Pa.
Colonel Presley Neville, as he was called, served in the Revolution
for three years on the staff of General Lafayette. Amelia Neville
married Major Isaac Craig of the Revolution, and they became
the founders of the well known and esteemed family of Craigs of
Pittsburg.--_Eagle's Pennsylvania Genealogies._]
[Footnote 5: Prince William county, Va., formed in 1730 from
Stafford and King George counties, embraced territory extending
from the Potomac river on the east to the summit of the Blue Ridge
on the west; it was divided from Loudoun county by the Occoquan and
Bull Run streams. Prior to 1822 the county seat was at Dumfries,
but at that date it was removed to Brentville.]
Saturday March 12^{th} this Morning M^r James Genn y^e surveyor[6]
came to us, we travel'd over y^e Blue Ridge[7] to Cap^t Ashbys[8]
on Shannondoah River,[9] Nothing remarkable happen'd.
[Footnote 6: James Genn, a licensed surveyor in Virginia, much
employed by Lord Fairfax, and frequently mentioned by Washington,
and whose name often appears signed to surveys in which the latter
was engaged, as the surveyor or director, is doubtless the person
to whom reference is here made.]
[Footnote 7: Blue Ridge--the most easterly of the mountain ranges
of the United States. The name properly restricted however, applies
especially to that portion of the Appalachian range south of
the Potomac river. In some parts of Pennsylvania it is known as
Kittatinny and at some places in Maryland as South Mountain. It
attains its greatest altitude in Virginia at the Peaks of Otter,
which are about 4,000 feet above sea level.]
[Footnote 8: Capt. Ashby resided on the Shenandoah river above
Burwell's island and the great bend of that stream, at which place
he maintained a ferry and kept a house of entertainment. It was on
the natural line by which travel came from the tide-water region of
Virginia, through a gap in the Blue Ridge and across the Shenandoah
valley to the country beyond. Being a man of great courage and
usefulness, he was deservedly popular among the early settlers, and
his name was given not only to his ordinary but also to the gap
and to the ferry. There was, too, a Fort Ashby on Patterson creek,
near the town of Frankfort. There are numerous families bearing
the name of Ashby throughout the southern and western states, who
are probably descendants of this famous pioneer. General Turner
W. Ashby, an officer of distinction in the Confederate army, is
presumably of this family. The name still attaches to the gap in
the mountains, but it has been superseded at the old ferry.]
[Footnote 9: Shenandoah river--this is the largest tributary of
the Potomac. The name is of Indian origin, and in the aboriginal
language is said to signify "the daughter of the stars." Kercheval,
in his History of the Valley of Virginia, says the name was first
written Gerando, then Sherandoch, and now we have Shenandoah. The
river has its head in Augusta county near the divide where the
head-waters of the James river take their rise. The Shenandoah
flows for about 170 miles through a broad valley over a limestone
bed between the North mountain on the one side and the Blue Ridge
on the other, to the Potomac river at Harper's Ferry. This valley
was the theater of many important military operations during the
late war. The name of Sherando is perpetuated in the name of a
post-office in Augusta county on the head-waters of the Shenandoah.]
Sunday March 13 Rode to his Lordships Quarter[10] about 4 Miles
higher up y River we went through most beautiful Groves of Sugar
Trees & spent y^e best part of y Day in admiring y^e Trees &
richness of y^e Land.
[Footnote 10: Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord and Baron of Cameron,
born in England in 1691, died at his residence "Greenway Court,"
Frederick county, Virginia, on the 12th of December, 1781. His
remains were interred within the Episcopal church of Winchester,
Va. His residence and other improvements were familiarly called
"Quarters" and "Hunting Lodge," chiefly because he had in
contemplation the erection of a commodious mansion. Lord Fairfax
was the son of Thomas, 5th Lord Fairfax and his wife Catherine,
daughter of Lord Culpeper, once governor of Virginia. He was
educated at Oxford and afterward held a commission in the British
army. He was a fine scholar, and is said to have been a contributor
to _The Spectator_. He succeeded to his father's title and to his
mother's extensive landed estate known as the "Northern Neck of
Virginia," lying between the Potomac and Rappahannock rivers and
estimated at 5,700,000 acres. For some years after coming into
possession of this property it was left in the hands of agents. He
finally employed his cousin, the Hon. William Fairfax, son of Henry
and Anne (Harrison) Fairfax, as his agent in the management of his
lands. About 1739 Lord Fairfax first visited his estate in America.
For a year he devoted himself to becoming thoroughly acquainted
with his possessions and then returned to England. Four years
later, in 1745, he returned to this country and for a time made his
home at "Belvoir," the seat of his relative and agent.
A branch office for the sale of lands in the valley of Virginia,
had been opened in Frederick county in 1742. The main office and
records, however, were not removed from "Belvoir" until 1761.
Lord Fairfax built for himself a stone lodge with quarters for
his servants, reserving around it a manor of 10,000 acres which
he called "Greenway Court." The lodge was about twelve miles
south-east of Winchester, at which place he purposed to build
a castle, but this was never erected. His lodge was, however,
sufficiently spacious for him to live in comfortably, and exercise
a generous hospitality. He possessed a good library and was
frequently visited by men of note whom he entertained in an elegant
manner. He was fond of the chase and took an active interest in the
management of his estate, as well as in the affairs of the colony,
as his letters fully prove. He identified himself with the people
as far as was practicable, and was deservedly popular. He served
as lieutenant of Frederick county in the militia organizations;
presided as one of the judges in the county courts at Winchester,
and was an overseer of the public roads.
He met at "Belvoir," George Washington, when a youth, and, pleased
with his energy and talents, employed him to survey lands beyond
the Blue Ridge, which were to be sold. This was Washington's first
remunerated employment. The acquaintance thus begun, ripened into
a friendship that was cherished by both through life.
Although a frank loyalist, his age and prudence in refraining
from all participation in the Revolutionary struggle, protected
him from being interfered with either by the government or by his
neighbors. He died at the age of ninety-three, before peace was
restored. His barony and its prerogatives, according to English
law, descended, in the absence of a son, to his eldest brother,
Robert, who thus became 7th Lord Fairfax. The latter died in Leeds
Castle, England, 1791, without a son. The baronial title then fell
to the Rev. Bryan Fairfax, of "Towlston Hall," Fairfax county,
Va., who died 7 August, 1802. The great landed estates with their
entails were, however, in effect confiscated by the success of the
Revolution. The Legislature of Virginia in 1785 passed an act in
relation to the "Northern Neck" to the following effect. "And be
it further enacted, that the land holders within the said district
of the Northern Neck shall be for ever hereafter exhonorated and
discharged from composition and quit rents, any laws, customs or
usage, to the contrary notwithstanding." Revised Code of the Laws
of Virginia, vol. 1, p. 351, 2, 3. "Greenway Court" was devised by
his lordship to his nephew, Rev. Denny Martin, residing in England,
on condition of his obtaining the consent of Parliament to change
his name to Fairfax. This was done, and he was afterward known as
"Denny, Lord Fairfax." Like his uncle, he left no children and
therefore bequeathed the estate to two maiden sisters in England.
The legatees of the Fairfax estate sold their interest to Chief
Justice John Marshall, Raleigh Colston, Esq. and General Henry Lee.
They divided it up and sold it out in small farms, and quieted the
titles. It is believed that no part of this vast body of Fairfax
land is now held by any member of the family.--_Sparks, Drake and
others._]
Monday 14^{th} We sent our Baggage to Cap^t Hites[11] (near
Frederick Town)[12] went ourselves down y^e River about 16 Miles to
Cap^t Isaac Penningtons (the Land exceeding Rich & Fertile all y^e
way produces abundance of Grain Hemp Tobacco &c^a) in order to Lay
of some Lands on Cates Marsh & Long Marsh.[13]
[Illustration: Surveying
A Plan of a piece of Meadow called Hell Hole Situate on the River
Potowmack near Little Hunting Creek]
[Footnote 11: Capt. Joist Hite came to Virginia from Pennsylvania
in 1732 with his family, settled on the Opequon creek about five
miles south of the town of Winchester. The year before he had
bought from John and Isaac Van Meter a warrant for nearly 40,000
acres of land in the Shenandoah valley which they had obtained
from Governor Gooch of Virginia in 1730. Capt. Hite brought with
him from Pennsylvania sixteen families, all of whom settled in the
same vicinity on fine arable ground. They were all judges of good
lands and devoted to agriculture. The descendants of Hite are quite
numerous throughout the southern and south-western states, and
many farms in the valley are still held under titles derived from
him. Kercheval says, Joist Hite built a stone house on the Opequon
shortly after his coming to the valley. It is still standing and
has a very ancient appearance though there are no discoverable
marks to fix the date. On the wall plate of a frame barn, however,
built by Hite, the figures "1747" are plainly marked and can still
be read.]
[Footnote 12: "Frederick Town," properly Winchester, is the capital
of Frederick county, Va. The latter was formed out of Orange county
by Act of Assembly of Virginia in 1738, at the same time that
Augusta county was formed. The choice of this site for the capital
of the county was determined by the simple fact that a few hardy,
adventurous Indian traders, as early as 1732 or even before that
date, had built themselves cabins at this point known as the "Big
Shawane Springs." These settlers gradually attracted others until
a village was developed. This spring or one near it, an example of
the great springs which are to be found in most limestone regions,
furnishes the town of Winchester, to the present time, with an
abundant supply of pure potable water. The site of the town was,
all things considered, well chosen, in a fertile region and on
the line of travel, whether across the valley to the Alleghany
mountains and the waters of the Ohio river beyond, or along the
great valley of the Shenandoah. James Wood was the projector of
the town of Winchester, which was incorporated in 1752 by the
Assembly of Virginia. However, twenty-six lots had been laid out
and sold by James Wood prior to this. Lord Fairfax shortly after
this date made an addition to the town, and donated the ground
for an Episcopal church. Frederick county early took measures to
give protection to its settlers by building forts, making roads
and establishing ferries. Its productive soil at the same time
bountifully rewarded the husbandman for his labor. As the Frederick
county courts were held at Winchester, the people adopted the
southern habit of calling the place where the courts met by the
name of the county, thus it was frequently spoken of as Frederick
Town and is so designated in several of the early maps. Fort
Loudoun was erected here by direction of the Assembly of Virginia
in 1756, under the immediate supervision of Major Washington.]
[Footnote 13: Cate's marsh and Long marsh--these are names of small
streams which flow from the foot hill of North mountain to the
Shenandoah river and have along their course considerable meadow
or marshy land. Long marsh is of sufficient importance to be named
upon the maps of Virginia.]
Tuesday 15^{th} We set out early with Intent to Run round y^e s^d
Land but being taken in a Rain & it Increasing very fast obliged
us to return, it clearing about one oClock & our time being too
Precious to Loose we a second time ventured out & Worked hard till
Night & then return'd to Penningtons we got our Suppers & was
Lighted into a Room & I not being so good a Woodsman as y^e rest
of my Company striped myself very orderly & went in to y^e Bed as
they called it when to my Surprize I found it to be nothing but a
Little Straw--Matted together without Sheets or any thing else but
only one thread Bear blanket with double its Weight of Vermin such
as Lice Fleas &c[14] I was glad to get up (as soon as y Light was
carried from us) I put on my Cloths & Lays as my Companions. Had we
not have been very tired I am sure we should not have slep'd much
that night I made a Promise not to Sleep so from that time forward
chusing rather to sleep in y. open Air before a fire as will appear
hereafter.
[Footnote 14: For comments on fleas and other vermin see note 4.
Washington's "Rules of Civility and Decent Behaviour," p. 14,
Washington's association with frontiersmen in their primitive
cabins, which the position of a surveyor in the then almost
unbroken forest necessitated, was to him a new and peculiar
experience. His observations and reflections of the first few days
are recorded with a naivete which is truly charming.]
March y. 15^{th} 1747-8 Survey'd for George Fairfax Esqr. a Tract
of Land lying on Cates Marsh and Long Marsh Begining at three Red
Oaks Fx on a Ridge the N^o Side a Spring Branch being corner to
y^e 623 Acre Tract & Extending thence N^o 30° E^t 436 poles to a
Large Hickory and Red Oak Fx near John Cozines house thence N^o 60°
W^t 90 Poles to a Large White Oak Fx thence N^o 7° E^t 365 poles
to Long Marsh 420 poles to 2 Red Oaks and W: Oak in a Poyson'd
field[15] by a Road thence N^o 65° W^t 134 Poles to a W: Oak by
y^e s^d Marsh thence crossing y^e Marsh S^o 20° W^t 126 poles to
another Branch: of Long Marsh 218 poles to a Red Oak Fx thence
N^o 80° W^t 558 po: to a Large Red Oak & White Oak Fx in a Valley
thence S 25° W^t 144 poles to a Black Walnut in a Poysond Field by
a Lime stone Rock thence S^o 33½° E^t 96 to a White Oak thence S^o
20 E^t 316 po. to three Red Oaks in a Bottom in W^m Johnstones line
thence with Johnstones S^o 80° E^t 30 po to a Double Hickory Coll^o
Blackburns corner 114 po to 3 Hickorys Johnstones corner & corner
to y^e afores^d 623 Acre Tract thence along y^e lines thereof East
280 poles to 3 Red Oaks finally along another of the lines thereof
S 15° E^t 262 po. to y^e beginning
HENRY ASHBY } _Chainmen_.
RICHARD TAYLOR }
ROBERT ASHBY _Marker_.
W^M LINDSY _Pilot_.
[Footnote 15: This probably has reference to some pernicious weeds
unfavorable to tillage and injurious to grazing animals, as St.
John's wort. Farmers believe that this, and certain other noxious
weeds which occasionally invade pasture fields, cause sore mouths
and legs in horses and horned cattle and affect the milk of cows
grazing where it grows.]
Wednesday 16^{th} We set out early & finish'd about one oClock &
then Travell'd up to Frederick Town where our Baggage came to us
we cleaned ourselves (to get Rid of y. Game[16] we had catched y.
Night before) & took a Review of y. Town & thence return'd to our
Lodgings where we had a good Dinner prepar'd for us Wine & Rum
Punch[17] in Plenty & a good Feather Bed[18] with clean Sheets
which was a very agreeable regale.
[Footnote 16: This facetious term "game," referring to his
misfortune the first night he lodged in the valley, has a touch of
humor in it; and while it is true that Washington was not given
to punning or indulging in witticisms, he was not deficient in
imagination or unappreciative of the exercise of this talent on
suitable occasions by others. He knew that good humor minimized
most of the petty annoyances of life.]
[Footnote 17: The office and art of the surveyor were held in high
esteem by the early settlers. It is, therefore, not surprising that
the people for whom surveys were executed, made special efforts to
give the surveying parties good dinners, even going so far as to
set before them "wine and rum punch." I may add here that there
is neither tradition nor record that Washington was ever known to
have been indiscreet from youth to age in the use of wine or strong
drinks.]
[Footnote 18: Feather beds, a great luxury in former times, have
nearly gone out of use among well-to-do people. By the wealthy, as
well as by the laborers, they were once a greatly prized comfort
and often devised by will as valuable inheritances. Hair, cotton
and spring mattresses have displaced them from popular favor, but
"clean sheets" belong to the category of comforts in even early
times and must be a delight and joy forever.]
Thursday 17^{th} Rain'd till Ten oClock & then clearing we reached
as far as Major Campbells one of there Burgesses about 25 Miles
from Town. nothing Remarkable this day nor Night but that we had a
Tolerable good Bed lay on.
Fryday 18^{th} We Travell'd up about 35 Miles to Thomas Barwicks on
Potomack[19] where we found y. River so excessively high by Reason
of y. Great Rains that had fallen up about y. Allegany Mountains
as they told us which was then bringing down y. melted Snow & that
it would not be fordable for severall Days it was then above Six
foot Higher than usual & was rising we agreed to stay till Monday
we this day call'd to see y. Fam'd Warm Springs[20] we camped out
in y. field this Night Nothing Remarkable happen'd till sonday y.
20^{th}
[Footnote 19: Cohongoruton--the Indian name by which the Potomac
river was known to the Six Nations and other tribes of Indians.
From its head-waters, to Point Lookout in the Chesapeake bay, this
stream is the dividing line between Maryland and Virginia.]
[Footnote 20: The "Warm Springs," now known as "Bath" or "Berkeley
Springs," were already famed, as Washington notes, in 1747. They
were deservedly popular for many years, but their remoteness
and the difficulty of access to them, with the competition of
other resorts more easily reached, prevented their receiving the
attention which the value of their waters merited. A settlement
sprang up about the springs at an early date, which finally
became a prosperous village under the name of Bath, and was made
the county seat when, in 1820, the county of Morgan was formed.
Washington bought lots here, built a cottage and stables, and
passed summers here with his family. His half-brother, Lawrence,
spent nearly a year at the springs for the benefit of his health
before going to England and later to Barbadoes. The property-right
in the springs is in the state of Virginia, and is held for the
benefit of the public.]
Sonday 20^{th} finding y. River not much abated we in y. Evening
Swam our horses over & carried them to Charles Polks in Maryland
for Pasturage till y. next Morning.
Monday 21^{st} We went over in a Canoe & Travell'd up Maryland side
all y. Day in a Continued Rain to Coll^o Cresaps[21] right against
y. Mouth of y. South Branch[22] about 40 Miles from Polks I believe
y. worst Road that ever was trod by Man or Beast.
[Footnote 21: Cresap, Col. Thomas, the founder of the family in
America, was born in Skipton, Yorkshire, England, and at the age
of about fifteen came to America. Some five years later he resided
at Havre-de-Grace, Md., where he married a Miss Johnson. Removing
thence to Wright's Ferry, opposite the town of Columbia, where
he obtained a Maryland title to a 500 acre tract of land called
"Peach Bottom," and built himself a small stone house. The land,
however, was on disputed territory, and claimants under the laws
of Pennsylvania finally dispossessed him. His next move was to a
locality in what is now Washington county, Md., where he located
and settled upon a tract of 1,400 acres on the Antietam creek,
called "Long Meadows," and began trading with the Indians. After
collecting a large lot of furs and skins he shipped them to England
but was financially ruined through the capture of the vessel by
the French. Unable to repay money he had borrowed from Mr. Dulany,
of Maryland, he gave up to him his land, and moved farther west,
built a cabin a few miles above the junction of the north and
south branches of the Potomac, on the Maryland side, at a place
which became known as "Old Town," but which he called Skipton, the
name of his Yorkshire birthplace. This frontier spot became his
permanent residence, where he eventually owned a large body of land
on both sides of the Potomac. From his familiarity with the Indians
and their habits and character, he was enabled to carry on with
great advantage his trade with them and in time became the most
important frontiersman of his day in Maryland. He took part with
the Washingtons, Lee, Mason and others in the formation and early
operations of "The Ohio Company," and in all matters of dealing
with the Indians and prospecting for wild lands was the Company's
chief dependence. With the aid of Namacolin, a noted Indian hunter,
he laid out the first road over the Alleghany mountains to the
head-waters of the Ohio. Gen. Braddock's expedition, and later
the National road, followed nearly the same route. The attention
attracted to the Ohio region through this Company's explorations,
made it increasingly important to both England and France to
possess and control the lands beyond the Ohio. This vigilance
precipitated the war that drove out the French and secured to
England and America the vast dominion known as the Northwest.
Col. Cresap's literary acquirements were small, but he had a
vigorous mind, strong common sense, and was not deficient in
practical self-education. He was one of the surveyors of Prince
George's county which, at that period, embraced all the western
part of Maryland. January 1, 1745, he surveyed for Gov. Thomas
Bladen "Walnut Bottom" just below the mouth of Wills creek. He
frequently represented his county in the Legislature and being
noted for his clear understanding, sound judgment, firmness and
courage, was esteemed one of the best legislators his county ever
had. He was of medium stature, firmly set, of sound constitution,
and lived to the uncommon age of 105 or 106. He was twice
married, the second time at the age of 80; by his first wife he
had five children; three sons, Daniel, Thomas and Michael, and two
daughters, Sarah and Elizabeth. Captain Michael Cresap was the
person upon whom Thomas Jefferson fixed the stigma of the murder of
the relatives of Logan. Jefferson having transmitted the pathetic
speech of the Indian chief to the Abbe Raynal as an evidence of the
original power of oratory of the aboriginal American, it is claimed
more in a spirit of literary conceit than of conviction; however
he failed during his life to correct the injustice done Cresap,
although he was repeatedly furnished with the evidence exculpating
Cresap and fixing the barbarous act on one Great-house. At his
home, Col. Cresap dispensed, for his time and means, a generous
hospitality to all callers, in a region where, as yet, no public
houses were to be found. He kept a big kettle ready suspended to
place a fire under, near a spring for the use of the Indians who
often passed his place, and for this reason they designated him
the "Big Spoon." Lord Baltimore employed him to run a survey of
the western line of Maryland, and to ascertain which of the two
branches of the Potomac was the largest. His autograph map of this
survey is still preserved in the archives of the state of Maryland.]
[Footnote 22: The South Branch of the Potomac, of which the Indian
name was Wappotomaka, rises in Pendleton county, West Virginia,
among the spurs of the Alleghany and North mountains, and meets
the North Branch about 20 miles below Cumberland, Md. The latter
branch has been accepted as the dividing line between Maryland
and Virginia, although now known to be neither as long nor as
large as the South Branch. A line drawn due north from the extreme
head-waters of the South Branch would run ten miles to the west of
a parallel line from the head springs of the North Branch, thus
proving the loss by Maryland of this strip of territory, as well
as the region between the two branches, had the South Branch been
taken instead of the North Branch as the main river referred to
in the Royal Charter, and made the line separating the contiguous
colonies. The valley through which the South Branch flows is broad
and its lands very fertile, causing them to be much sought after
for farms by the hardy pioneers in the early days before the
Revolution. It was then familiarly known as the "upper tract" of
Virginia.]
Tuesday 22^d Continued Rain and y. Freshes kept us at Cresaps.
Wednesday 23^d Rain'd till about two oClock & Clear'd when we were
agreeably surpris'd at y. sight of thirty odd Indians coming from
War with only one Scalp[23] We had some Liquor with us of which we
gave them Part it elevating there Spirits put them in y. Humour of
Dauncing of whom we had a War Daunce[24] there manner of Dauncing
is as follows Viz They clear a Large Circle & make a Great Fire in
y. middle then seats themselves around it y. Speaker makes a grand
Speech telling them in what Manner they are to Daunce after he has
finish'd y. best Dauncer Jumps up as one awaked out of a Sleep &
Runs & Jumps about y. Ring in a most comicle Manner he is followed
by y. Rest then begins there Musicians to Play y^e Musick is a Pot
half of Water with a Deerskin Streched over it as tight as it can &
a goard with with some Shott in it to Rattle & a Piece of an horses
Tail tied to it to make it look fine y. one keeps Rattling and y.
other Drumming all y. while y. others is Dauncing
[Footnote 23: Scalp--a term applied to the tissues covering the
human head, and embracing all the hairy integuments and flattened
muscles from the back of the skull to the brow above the eyes.
Taking the scalp of an enemy, living or dead, has been held from
remote times as a special sign of victory and token of triumph.
The North American Indians, particularly during the early colonial
wars, took the scalps of their enemies, preserving and exhibiting
them with savage pride and occasionally wearing them as decorations
and trophies. The assembly of Virginia, in 1755, established a
reward of £10 for every scalp of a male Indian above the age of
twelve (Hening's Statutes, vol. VI, p. 551). In 1757 this sum was
raised to £15, and £30 more for every scalp taken within the next
two years (Hening, VII, p. 122). Maryland and Pennsylvania also
offered rewards for Indian scalps.]
[Footnote 24: The war dance of the Indians probably had a
significance to their minds not understood by civilized man, and
was not to them the meaningless custom it seems to us. It has
frequently been described and painted by eye-witnesses. In 1857
Virtue, Emmins & Co. copyrighted a very effective engraving of a
war dance in the forest, arranged from Washington's description of
it in this journal.]
Fryday 25^{th} 1748 Nothing Remarkable on thursday but only being
with y. Indians all day so shall slip it this day left Cresaps &
went up to y. mouth of Patersons Creek[25] & there swam our Horses
over got over ourselves in a Canoe & traveld up y. following Part
of y. Day to Abram Johnstones 15 Miles from y^e Mouth where we
camped.
[Footnote 25: Paterson Creek rises in Hampshire county, West
Virginia, and empties into the Potomac about twelve miles below
Cumberland, Md. On the old maps of Evans, Hutchins and Lewis,
the name is given as _Pattison_. There are large tracts of good,
arable land along the valley and bottoms adjacent to this stream.
They began to attract settlements a little before the time Fort
Cumberland was built. Fort Ashby was also erected to protect
settlers along this stream.]
Saterday 26 Travelld up y^e Creek to Solomon Hedges Esqr one of his
Majestys Justices of y^e Peace for y^e County of Frederick where we
camped when we came to Supper there was neither a Cloth upon y^e
Table nor a Knife to eat with but as good luck would have it we had
Knives of own.[26]
[Footnote 26: Knife and fork at table.--Polished nations have
usages which, at first view, appear natural or common to all
mankind. This, however, is not the fact. That there was a period
in the history of our race when the knife and fork were unknown to
the furnishings of the table, cannot well be doubted; and there
was even a time when the table itself was not deemed an essential.
At the present day the idea of eating a meal at table without the
accompaniment of a knife and fork would excite disgust; their
absence, however, in a remote Virginia mountain cabin in 1747-8
as here recorded, simply shows that they had not been provided
nor deemed essential to the life of a hunter, not an ignorance
of their use, as the two-pronged, iron, table fork was in common
use at that period throughout the settlements in all the American
colonies. It is nevertheless true that the knife and fork now
deemed so necessary at table, are a much more modern convenience
than is generally supposed. The king of Hungary, Coevinus, toward
the close of the fifteenth century, as related by Galeotus
Martius, ate his meat with his fingers as did all the guests at
table. In Italy, the fork was, to a limited extent, in use at this
time among the nobility. In France, at the end of the sixteenth
century, forks were comparatively new at court. The use of the
table fork is referred to in "_Washington's Rules of Civility and
Decent Behaviour_," and in Hawkins' Youths' Companion, the source
of these rules printed about 1650. The knife is perhaps one of
the most ancient of instruments, it was made of different metals
and in a great variety of forms. The table knife was, however,
contemporary with the fork. According to Chamberlin it was first
made in England, in 1563. The use of the fork at table spread to
Europe from Venice, in Italy. In 1608 it was brought to England
by Thomas Coryate who, while traveling, observed its use in Italy
and continued it himself on his return to England. (See his work
entitled "Crudities.") It is rather disappointing that neither
the Greeks nor Romans have even a name for the table fork. The
flesh fork, called _creagra_, with a long handle, for cooks to
take meat out of a boiling pot, was known and used by the Hebrews
and the Greeks. But had the table fork been used by the latter or
by the Romans, some specimens would have been found among those
extensive ruins which have been so carefully explored by modern
investigators. It is known that some articles have been found, the
use of which conjecture assigns to the table, but they are not
forks and the surmise is not generally credited. The Chinese, who
claim to have led the rest of the world in most of the economic
inventions, seem to have overlooked the table fork and do not even
now use it in cutting or conveying food to the mouth but employ in
its stead the "chop sticks" which, it must be said in their praise,
they use with skill and dexterity. It should be stated that large
bronze forks were used by the Egyptians in presenting offerings to
the gods. It is unpleasant to represent the tables of our ancestors
of a few centuries back as without forks, yet this certainly was
the fact. The silver table fork, which also had its evolution from
two to four prongs, was first manufactured in 1662 by Heylin.
The small knife, formerly worn by gentlemen at their girdles,
was used by them, not only as a weapon of defense, but also as
an article of convenience in cutting their meat. However, the
ancient custom of serving food at table was to have a servant cut
meats and other food into small morsels before distributing it to
guests. The wealthy employed a person whose special duty it was to
carve the meats into proper and convenient pieces and his was the
only knife in the dining hall. When the fork was first introduced
into England, its employment was ridiculed as an effeminate
practice, as may be seen in the plays of Beaumont and Fletcher,
and others where the persons using it are referred to as "your
fork-carving-traveler."]
Sunday 27^{th} Travell'd over to y. South Branch attended with y.
Esqr to Henry Vanmetriss[27] in order to go about Intended Work of
Lots[28]
[Footnote 27: Henry Van Metre or Meter.--There was a numerous
family of the Van Meters in Virginia and they were among the
earliest settlers in the valley of the Shenandoah, on the South
Branch and along the upper Potomac. Kercheval, in his History of
the Valley of Virginia, says this family came from New York and New
Jersey. It is evident that they were people of energy and thrift,
judges of good land. At a period antedating the settlements in
the valley, it is stated by this historian that a John Van Meter,
a sort of wandering Indian trader, of New York, accompanied the
Delaware Indians in a war party against the Catawbas; but the
Catawbas anticipating the attack, surprised and defeated the
Delawares in a battle fought near where the present court-house
of Pendleton stands. John Van Meter escaped and returned to New
York, but he was so impressed with the beauty and fertility of the
lands on the South Branch bottom in Hardy county, that he advised
his sons to secure lands and locate there. Of these sons, Isaac
became a man of note and frequently represented Hardy county in the
House of Delegates of Virginia. He was a member of the Virginia
Convention of 1788 which ratified the Federal Constitution. In
1730, it is a matter of history that John and Isaac Van Metre,
brothers, obtained from Gov. Gooch, of Virginia, a warrant for
40,000 acres of land to be located west of the mountains. This
warrant, or a part of it, they sold to Joist Hite. A number of
tracts on the original warrant were surveyed in the vicinity of
Shepherdstown. The name of Van Meter is still frequently met with
throughout West Virginia and has its monument in a stream forming
the north-western boundary line of Jefferson county and emptying
into the Potomac, and named on the maps of Virginia Van Meter's
Marsh. A controversy as to the validity of the Van Metre patent
was raised in 1738 by Lord Fairfax and taken into the courts for
adjudication. Lord Fairfax contending that his grants covered the
whole of the western end of the northern neck, while the holders
claimed that the governor, under authority from the crown, had
disposing power. This conflict as to title was a source of much
litigation, and was not finally settled until after the Revolution,
when all the parties to the original suits were dead.]
[Footnote 28: Lots.--This term, as used by surveyors, indicates
portions, tracts, divisions and subdivisions of land. Each survey,
lot or division when plotted is usually indicated by some name or
device, as a number, a letter, or a symbol. So that each can then
be described and referred to in a deed or an advertisement, and its
location and boundaries be accurately and systematically defined
and described in a book of land records.]
Monday 28^{th}: Travell'd up y Branch about 30 Miles to M^r James
Rutlidges[29] Horse Jockey & about 70 Miles from y^e Mouth
[Footnote 29: James Rutledge.--Kercheval, in his History of the
Valley of Virginia, says that prominent among the earliest
settlers on the South Branch, before the arrival of the Van Meters,
were the Howards, Coburns, Walkers and Rutledges.]
Tuesday 29^{th} This Morning went out & Survey'd five Hundred Acres
of Land & went down to one Michael Stumps on y^e S^o Fork of y^e
Branch on our way Shot two Wild Turkies[30]
[Footnote 30: The wild turkey.--This is the largest and finest of
our game birds and, although native to North America, it bears a
foreign name from the following circumstances. Specimens of the
living bird, as well as its eggs, were sent by the early Jesuit
missionaries to the old world on Spanish and Portuguese ships,
entering Europe through Portugal. It was as yet unnamed, and was
at first referred to by writers of that period merely as the
"Jesuit bird." As it became known, the demand for the stranger was
supplied chiefly from Turkey where, for some reason, it thrived
exceedingly well, and in time it came to be familiarly spoken of
as "the turkey." Gradually becoming tame, and proving to be quite
prolific, it was recognized as a great addition to the luxuries of
the table. Speedily becoming a favorite in every country to which
it was taken, the great forests and game preserves throughout
Europe were gradually stocked with it and it was also raised as
a domestic fowl. To-day the American turkey, derived as stated,
is found wild in all the great forests of the old world, while
the domesticated bird is abundantly raised everywhere in Europe
for the markets. In ancient times, we are told, the choicest game
fowls brought to a feast were pheasants and peacocks. Emigrants
to America brought over with them the domesticated bird to its
native land, but under a borrowed name. Washington, in his journal,
April 7, 1748, records the fact that one of his men that day had
killed a wild turkey weighing 20 pounds. The domesticated bird,
when permitted to attain the age of two or three years, and being
well fed during the winter months, often reaches the weight of 30
pounds or more. As marking in a degree the devastation of the late
war and the enforced abandonment of plantations in the section of
Virginia adjacent to the city of Washington, it is a fact worthy
of record, that in 1876 the newspapers chronicled the news that
the thickets and pine forests which were grown up since the armies
left were tenanted by wild deer and turkeys; foxes, etc. And to
this day, December 25, 1890, wild turkeys are brought to the
Washington market killed in Fairfax county, Va., within ten miles
of Washington city.--_Gentlemen's Magazine._]
March 29^{th}: 1748 Survey'd for M^r James Rutlidge y^e following
a piece of Land Beginning at 3 W. O. in y^e Mannor Line[31] by a
Path leading to y. Clay Lick[32] & Extending thence N^o 44° W^t 164
po. to a White Oak by a Drain at y^e foot of a Mountain thence N^o
46° E^t 487 po. to 2 White Oaks near a Branch call'd Clay Lick Run
thence S^o 44° E^t 164 po. to 2 W: O: & a Hickory in y^e Mannor
line Finally along y^e Mannor line Reversed S^o 46° W^t 487 po to
y. Beginning
HENRY ASHBY } _Chainmen_
RICHARD TAYLOR }
W^M DUNCAN _Marker_
[Footnote 31: Manor line.--In colonial times there were a number of
manors, or great landed estates, granted under the then existing
laws of England, to persons of note and quality in Virginia and
in some of the other provinces. Holders of such estates enjoyed
special rights and privileges. Manors were formerly called baronies
and entitled the rightful possessor to lordships, and such lord
or baron was empowered to hold domestic courts for redressing
misdemeanors, nuisances and settling disputes among tenants. Among
the manors of limited privileges in Virginia may be enumerated the
"manor of Greenway Court," with a domain of 10,000 acres. The great
"manor of Leeds," which has figured so extensively in the courts of
Virginia, contained 150,000 acres within the counties of Culpeper,
Fauquier and Frederick. The "South Branch manor," in Hardy county,
embraced 55,000 acres; "Paterson Creek manor," in Hampshire county,
9,000 acres; and "Goony Run manor," adjoining that of Leeds and
lying chiefly in Shenandoah county, 13,000 acres. "Beverley's
manor," for the most part in Augusta county, consisted of 118,411
acres, and "Fairfax manor," in Hampshire, of 10,000 acres. There
were still other manors in different parts of the state. In New
York under the Dutch government the baron or proprietor of the
manor lands was called the patroon.]
[Footnote 32: Clay lick.--Names of places or streams with the word
_lick_ either prefixed or affixed to them, such as "Salt lick,"
"Blue lick," "Grass lick," "Licking creek," etc., were usually
given in consequence of the presence of some saline matter in
the springs, streams or soil which attracted the wild animals
and caused them to lick for the salt. Hunters in new settlements
often built what they called _blinds_ near these licks in which to
conceal themselves, and waited there for the game to come, as they
were pretty sure to do, almost daily, and at times in considerable
numbers, when they could be readily killed.]
Wednesday 30^{th} This Morning began our Intended Business of
Laying of Lots we began at y^e Boundary Line of y^e Northern 10
Miles above Stumps & run of two Lots & returnd to Stumps
The Courses & Distances of y^e Several Lots lay'd of on y^e S^o
Fork of Wappacomo[33] Began March 30^{th}. 1748
[Footnote 33: "Wappacomo," also spelled "Wappatomaka," was the
Indian name for the South Branch of the Potomac. This stream
courses through a fine valley from its head-springs in Pendleton
county, and has many considerable branches rising among the spurs
of the Alleghany mountains on the one side and the North or
Cacapehon (Capon) mountain on the other, the latter separating
it from the valley of Virginia on the east. The great or most
noted fork of the South Branch is at Morefield in Hardy county.
Washington surveyed much of the land in that section. The young
farmers seeking good lands had come in taken up considerable tracts
and built improvements before surveys were made or any effort to
prove rights from either Lord Fairfax or the governor of Virginia.]
Lot y^e 1^{st} Peter Reeds Begins at a Box Oak & Hickory F in y.
Boundary line about 20 po. above a Large Spring on y^e West side
y^e Fork in a Hollow of y^e Mountains and extending thence N^o 65°
E^t 320 Po. to a White O: and Hickory on y^e Mountain side thence
S^o 60° E^t 300 Po: Crossing y^e Fork at 106 P: to 2 Spanish Oaks
and W: O on y^e Top of a Hill thence S^o 65 W^t 96 to a White Oak
on y^e Top of a Hill thence S^o 45 W^t 114 po. to a W: O on a Run
thence S^o 13 W^t 148 to a Pine thence S 45° W^t 28 po. to 2 R ==
O: bushes in y^e Boundary line thence along y. same to y^e Beginning
Lot the 2^d Begins at a W: O & Hickory on a Mountain side Corner to
Lot y^e 1^{st} extending y^e Line S^o 60° E^t 300 po. to 2 Spanish
Oaks and W: O on a Hill thence N^o 30′ E^t 214 po to 2 W: O near a
Branch thence N^o 60° W^t 244 po to y. S^o Fork 300 po. to a Ledge
of Rocks on a Mountain side thence S^o 30 W^t 214 to y^e Beginning.
Thursday 31^{st} Early this Morning one of our Men went out with
y^e Gun & soon Returnd with two Wild Turkies we then went to our
Business run of three Lots & returnd to our Camping place at Stumps