4581[Diary entry: 2 July 1770] (Washington Papers)
July 2. Prosecuting my wheat Harvest which I began on Saturday last in the Neck.
4582[Diary entry: 5 July 1770] (Washington Papers)
5. Stately A Hound Bitch was lind by Jowler.
4583[Diary entry: 6 July 1770] (Washington Papers)
6. She was again lined by the same Dog. I killed and sold my English Bull to the Boston’s Crew at 20/. p. Ct. His 4 Quarters weighd 711 lbs. Nett. The Boston ’s purser paid GW £7 2s. in cash for the bull. GW had bought an English bull, probably this one, in Dec. 1765 for £3 ( General Ledger A General Ledger A, 1750–1772. Library of Congress, George Washington Papers, Series 5, Financial...
4584[Diary entry: 10 July 1770] (Washington Papers)
10. About Ten Oclock finished Cutting and Securing my Wheat in the Neck and about Eleven began the field at Muddy hole.
4585[Diary entry: 13 July 1770] (Washington Papers)
13. Finished cutting and Securing my Wheat at Muddy hole.
4586[Diary entry: 14 July 1770] (Washington Papers)
14. Began my Harvest at the Mill but did not quite finish the field on the other side by the New Mill.
4587[Diary entry: 17 July 1770] (Washington Papers)
17. Finished my Harvest at the Mill about 10 or 11 Oclock and began to cut the Wheat at Doeg Run Abt. 12 Oclock.
4588[Diary entry: 20 July 1770] (Washington Papers)
20. Compleated my Wheat Harvest altogether & exceeding bad I am apprehensive it will turn out—owing I am of opinion to the frequent Rains in the Month of June. The Heads containd but few grains—the Grain but little flower being for the most part perishd and Milldewed. The frequent Rains had by beating down the straw been the occasion of much loss in the Field both by shattering and unclean...
4589[Diary entry: 23 July 1770] (Washington Papers)
23. Began to Cut my Meadw. at the Mill.
4590[Diary entry: 31 July 1770] (Washington Papers)
31st. Finished Do. Also laid the 2d. Floor of my Mill.
4591[August 1770] (Washington Papers)
Augt. 1. Dined at my Mother’s. Went over to Fredericksburg afterwards & returnd in the Evening back again. 2. Met the Officers of the first Virga. Troops at Captn. Weedens where we dined & did not finish till abt. Sun set. Mrs. Washington & Patcy dind at Colo. Lewis’s where we lodgd. Meeting a day later than scheduled, the officers and representatives of officers who were present accepted...
4592[Diary entry: 1 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
Augt. 1. Dined at my Mother’s. Went over to Fredericksburg afterwards & returnd in the Evening back again.
4593[Diary entry: 2 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
2. Met the Officers of the first Virga. Troops at Captn. Weedens where we dined & did not finish till abt. Sun set. Mrs. Washington & Patcy dind at Colo. Lewis’s where we lodgd. Meeting a day later than scheduled, the officers and representatives of officers who were present accepted William Crawford as surveyor for the veterans’ bounty lands and resolved that GW should make a journey to the...
4594[Diary entry: 3 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
3. Dined at my Brother Charles’s—spent the Evening there & lodgd at Colo. Lew⟨is⟩. Charles Washington was now a leading citizen of Fredericksburg, being both a vestryman of St. George’s Parish and a Spotsylvania County justice. He owned at least 759 acres of land in the county outside Fredericksburg, and in Aug. 1761 he had bought lots numbered 87 and 88 in town for £80 from Warner Lewis of...
4595[Diary entry: 4 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
4. Dined at the Barbicue with a great deal of other Company and stayd there till Sunset.
4596[Diary entry: 5 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
5. Went to Church (in Fredg.) and dind with Colo. Lewis. St. George’s Church, built in 1732, had as its minister at this time James Marye, Jr. (1731–1780), who had succeeded his father as parish rector in 1767 ( meade [1] [William] Meade. Old Churches, Ministers and Families of Virginia . 2 vols. Philadelphia, 1857. , 68–69).
4597[Diary entry: 6 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
6. Dined with Mr. James Mercer. James Mercer (1735–1793), a younger brother of Lt. Col. George Mercer but no relation of Hugh Mercer, was a prominent Fredericksburg lawyer. Educated at the College of William and Mary, he served 1762–76 as a burgess from Hampshire County, where he owned land ( garnett [1] James Mercer Garnett. “James Mercer.” William and Mary Quarterly , 1st ser., 17 (1908–9):...
4598[Diary entry: 7 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
7. Dined at Colo. Lewis’s—Colo. Dangerfield & Lady & Miss Boucher comg. there to see us. colo. dangerfield & lady : possibly Col. William and Sarah Taliaferro Daingerfield, of Belvidera, just south of Fredericksburg. But more likely they are Col. William’s first cousin, also a Col. William (d. 1781), and his wife, Mary Willis Daingerfield, of Coventry in Spotsylvania County. It was this...
4599[Diary entry: 8 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
8. Dined at Colo. Lewis’s. GW apparently clubbed at Weedon’s again this evening and played cards, winning 5s. ( General Ledger A General Ledger A, 1750–1772. Library of Congress, George Washington Papers, Series 5, Financial Papers. , folio 320).
4600[Diary entry: 9 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
9. Breakfasted at my Mothers—dined at Dumfries & came home by Night.
4601[Diary entry: 10 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
10. Rid to Muddy hole—Doeg Run and the Mill.
4602[Diary entry: 11 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
11. Rid into the Neck.
4603[Diary entry: 12 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
12. Rid to Belvoir after Dinner to see Sir Thos. Adams who was sick there. Adams’s frigate, the Boston , returned to Hampton Roads without him, while he tried to recover his health at Belvoir. He rejoined the vessel in early September and sailed her soon afterwards to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he died in October ( Va. Gaz. , P&D, 6 Sept. and 18 Oct. 1770, and R, 1 Nov. 1770).
4604[Diary entry: 13 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
13. Rid to Muddy hole Doeg Run and the Mill.
4605[Diary entry: 14 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
14. At home all day writing Invoices and Letters. GW was again preparing invoices to be sent to Robert Cary & Co. in London. In his covering letter dated 20 Aug. 1770, he complained about the cost and quality of goods he had received from the company and about the prices paid for tobacco from the Custis plantations. He also noted that some of the items on his enclosed invoices were currently...
4606[Diary entry: 15 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
15. Rid to the Mill—by the Ferry and returnd to Dinner. Miss Betty Dalton came here.
4607[Diary entry: 16 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
16. Rid to the Mill and to the Ditchers.
4608[Diary entry: 17 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
17. At home all day.
4609[Diary entry: 18 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
18. Rid to the Mill—Ditchers—Doeg run and Muddy hole.
4610[Diary entry: 19 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
19. Went to Pohick Church. Calld in our way at Belvoir to take leave of Sir Thos. Returnd to Dinner.
4611[Diary entry: 20 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
20. Went up to Alexandria to Court. Returnd in the Evening with Jacky Custis & Mr. Magowan. The August court was in session 20–23 Aug. (Fairfax County Order Book for 1770–72, 49–77, Vi Microfilm). Jacky came from Annapolis to attend dancing lessons that Christian was to give during the next few days at a neighbor’s house. On his way home he had visited Magowan on the West River, and his former...
4612[Diary entry: 21 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
21. Went up to Court again and returnd in the Afternoon. Found Mr. Beal here along with Mr. Magowan. Many members of the Beall family were living at this time in Prince George’s and Frederick counties, Md. ( brumbaugh Gaius Marcus Brumbaugh. Maryland Records: Colonial, Revolutionary, County and Church, from Original Sources . 2 vols. 1915 and 1928. Reprint. Baltimore, 1975. , 1–89, 177–257)....
4613[Diary entry: 22 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
22. Mr. Beal went away after Breakfast. I continued at home all day.
4614[Diary entry: 23 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
23. I went up to Alexandria calling by Mr. Jno. Wests going & coming. Returnd again at Night—with Mr. B. Fairfax. GW was again going to court, arriving there near the end of this day’s proceedings (Fairfax County Order Book for 1770–72, 76, Vi Microfilm).
4615[Diary entry: 24 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
24. Went out a huntg. with Mr. Fairfax. Killd a young fox without running him and returnd to Dinner. Doctr. Rumney dind here & lodged.
4616[Diary entry: 25 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
25. Mr. Fairfax—Doctr. Rumney—Mr. Magowan and Jacky Custis all went away after Breakfast. I rid into the Neck and to Muddy hole. Jacky was returning to school in Annapolis.
4617[Diary entry: 26 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
26. At home all day alone.
4618[Diary entry: 27 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
27. Went by my Mill & Doeg Run to Colchesters—there to settle a dispute betwen. Doctr. Ross & Company & Mr. Semple. In Feb. 1763 Dr. David Ross of Bladensburg, Md., became a partner with Richard Henderson of Bladensburg and Samuel Beall, Jr., and Joseph Chapline (d. 1769), both of Frederick County, Md., in a company that built and operated the Antietam (or Frederick) ironworks on the Potomac...
4619[Diary entry: 28 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
28. At Colchester all day—upon the same business.
4620[Diary entry: 29 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
29. Still at Colchester upon this Affair Colo. Lewis My Sister & Brothr. Chas. passd this in their way to Mount Vernon. On this date GW paid Dr. Ross £38 1s. 9½d. Maryland currency for about 3,000 pounds of iron ( General Ledger A General Ledger A, 1750–1772. Library of Congress, George Washington Papers, Series 5, Financial Papers. , folio 320).
4621[Diary entry: 30 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
30. Still at Colchester upon the business before mentioned.
4622[Diary entry: 31 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
31. At the same place and on the same business.
4623Acct. of the Weather in August [1770] (Washington Papers)
Augt. 1. Clear with the Wind very fresh from the So. West but very warm notwithstanding. 2. Again very warm with a brisk westwardly breeze. 3. More moderate—the Wind being Northwardly—cloudy with some thunder but no Rain. 4. Warm again but no appearance of Rain tho the wind was favourable for it. 5. Very warm but clear and little wind—that southwardly. 6. Clear and Warm—with but little . 7....
4624[Diary entry: 1 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
Augt. 1. Clear with the Wind very fresh from the So. West but very warm notwithstanding.
4625[Diary entry: 2 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
2. Again very warm with a brisk westwardly breeze.
4626[Diary entry: 3 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
3. More moderate—the Wind being Northwardly—cloudy with some thunder but no Rain.
4627[Diary entry: 4 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
4. Warm again but no appearance of Rain tho the wind was favourable for it.
4628[Diary entry: 5 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
5. Very warm but clear and little wind—that southwardly.
4629[Diary entry: 6 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
6. Clear and Warm—with but little .
4630[Diary entry: 7 August 1770] (Washington Papers)
7. Clear in the Morning but very cloudy and like for Rain afterwards—tho little or none fell. Wind Eastwardly.