The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1879-11-17
wAsHINGTON,s EARLY HOME.
of the House i'm Which
the Father of His Country Wa

| t"O HotAeE VI nis OVuhtHy VIVA
Born.
Fifty-four miles southeast of Washing
ton, as the crow flies, fifty-one northeast
of Richmond. is Pope's Creek, in the
County of Westmoreland, where Wash
ington was born. Two hundred and for
ty-seven years ago the traveller from Eu-
rope, as his ship, worn by months of
storms, sailed up the broad Potomac,
which is here four and one-half miles
wide, might have seen a low, one-story,
gambrel-roofed house on the shore of
creek ON his right The house was a
large and magnificent one for those days,
and was surrounded by offices and negro
cabins.
While the traveller was watching this
scene on the shore the ship was sailing
up the creek, and, anchoring in front of
the house, sent its owner tie much-needed
clothing and other articles of wear, and
the last news from London. The sight
that struck the travellers eye was novel
and pleasing. The house was only half
a mile from the river, and across the
river the shores of Maryland were to be
seen, and a clear sweep of the river down
to where it poured into the Chesapeake
Bay. Down by the mouth of the creek
the soil was rich and mouldy, and the
rice and Indian corn fourished; near at
hand the soil was sandy and covered
with huckleberries, cranberries and chin
capin bushes.
Behind, on the lowlands, a clump of
live oaks, cedars, and expresses gave a
partial air of gloomy quiet to the place.
Higher up in the background, on the
ridges between the creeks, grew the
forests primeval of ash, oak, beech and
hickory. In summer the clearing around
the house was brilliant with the colors of
the May apple, the yellow jasmine, the
acacia, and red-fowering chestnut. At
the left of the house were the hazel
bushes, where grew the peas beans and
vetches, for fodder and food. In the
kitchen garden were the maycock, mara
cock, and the sonorously y-named tangan-
ockonominge.
Among the few flowers carefully tend
ed under the windows the cardinal and
moccasiu flowers were for the first time
cultivated. Over the sides of the house
the wax myrtle crept, from whose berries
the green-tinted, pleasant-scented candles
for winters use were made. The wild
turkey, quail and partridge crept around
the outskirts of the wood and the monot-
onous grooming of the negroes at work
was varied by the song of the turtle-dove,
the red bird, mocking bird and Baltimore
oriole as they flashed through the branch
es of the trees, and down the river the
shrill cries of curlew, crane and heron
were heard. To-day there are no ne
groes, no forest, no house, and the site is
only marked by rude stone laid there
by George Washington Parke Custis.
At the time of Washington g birth
Westmoreland County, considered in it's
natural and Typographical aspect and
it's aptitude for commerce and cultiva-
ton, was one of the finest in the world.
At that time Boston, the largest place in
New England, where the population was
most compact, had but forty thousand
inhabitants. Richmond was not laid out,
and Norfolk was not incorporated Hills
ran through the country northeast and
southwest, with spurs toward the river.
The surface of the land was divided into
hills fiat and low. The front on the Po-
tomac was indented with many inlets and
creeks. Of these the more important
were the Yocomico, Nominy, Pope's
Bridge, Mattox, Monroe and Resier's All
these were navgable for few miles, and
on their banks were the chief settlements
of the early planters
The earliest mention of Westmoreland
County was in July, 1853, when it was
said to contain the land from the Mach
oactoke River, where Mr.. Cole lived, and
up the great River Pawtomak above the
Nescostin's town, aud was to be taken
out of Northumberland County, which,
in 1913, comprised the whole neck of
land, known as the "north neck" lying
between the Potomac and Rappahan-
mock rivers. Since then the County has
been shorn of its fair proportions and
now comprises tract of land only thirty
miles long by eight or ten wide, lying
wholly on the Potomac in the extreme
northeastern part of the State. There
were and are no townshipsin the Coun-
ty or State, as was the case in New Eng
land. when the people Aocked together
This was owing to the fact that the
early inhabitants settled ON the banks
of the creeks in families, and the trading
vessels brought them everything needed
outside of their own resources. The po
litical divisions were counties and par
ishes and vice versa. In Washington's
: time there were only two parishes il
Westmoreland County, and one of these
spread over part of another. To thi'
county in 1857 came John Washington
the great grandfather of George, ano
settled on Bridges Creek, which was {
short distance from Pope's. Long aftel
the partial settlement Of Virginia in tht
Jamestown District, Westmorelant
County was bowling wilderness.
The Presby terian "Quohes" fought thu
fight of earnest saith and hope in thu
: west, while the ' ,tocratic "Tuekahoes'
in the east contented themselves ovel
their strong waters and chncapins, witt
fighting again their battles with th'
} Wiecorconomicos; the Roundheads anc