Words of Wisdom from SharLeigh
THE FATHER OF OUR COUNTRY
George Washington is known as the “Father of our Country” and his birthday is honored in the month of February. Washington started out as a surveyor, and by the age of 20 he was made a Major in the militia. Because Washington was a surveyor with excellent knowledge of the terrain, in 1753 he was sent to assess the French military strength and intentions in the Ohio country. A year later, two strong colonial powers were at war – England and France – in the French and Indian War, as each country fought to control the North American continent. Colonel Washington fought in the war. After the war, Washington resigned from active military service and became a planter and politician. His plantation was called Mount Vernon. It was a genteel life until war reared its ugly head again when the Revolutionary War began in 1775. The Continental Congress created the Continental Army and the following day Washington was elected as Commander-in-chief. It was a long, hard road to independence. Not until the Battle of Yorktown in 1781 was the fighting to end with the surrender of the British army to the rag-tag Continental Army. In 1783, when the Treaty of Paris finally signified the independence of the United States, Washington again resigned his military service and retired to Mount Vernon until his country called on him to become the first President of these United States. He was elected to two terms (1789-1797). Afterwards, he again retired to Mount Vernon as a gentleman farmer. But once more, in 1798, President John Adams appointed Washington as Lieutenant General of the United States Army (the highest of ranks at that time). He died the following year and was buried at Mount Vernon. George Washington was truly a man dedicated to the service of his country! Today, his beautiful estate (photo), which sits on a hill overlooking the Potomac River 15 miles south of Washington D.C., is open daily to visitors and worth the stop when in the area.