Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-02-17
The Father of the Country Was the First
Professional Engineer to Enter the
White House-His Career as a Sur
veyor and Military Engineer.
His First Oath Taken at
Culpeper, Virginia.

a profitable one as well as gaining the
continued patronage of Lord Fairfax,
with whom young Washington lived
for time, sharing the office at
Greenway Court which is still standing.
Washington's first inauguration into
public Office occurred in Culpeper, Va,
for in the record Of the County Court
IS the following entry dated July 20.
1850:
George Washington, Gentlemen,
produced a commission from the
President and Master of William
and Mary College, appointing him
to be Surveyor Of this County, which
was read, and thereupon he took
the usual oaths to his MajeSty's
person and government, and took
and subscribed to the abjuration
oath and test. and then took the
oath of Surveyor.
The last of these numerous oaths as
required in Virginia is given in Hen
ings Statutes at Large in an act passed
at Williamsburg in october, 1748, which
tells that every person thereafter to
be appointed surveyor SHALL, in the
court of the county whereby he is, or
shall be appointed. SHALL THERE
make oath, and swear that he will truly
and faithfully, to the best Of his knowl-
edge and power, discharge and execute
trust, Office and employment
At a. time when the settlement of
land claims was of such paramount i'm
portance, many laws were laid down for
the government of the surveyor and
his assistants, even the chain bearers
being sworn ito measure justly and ex-
actly, to the best of their knowledge,
and to give a true account thereof"
Excellent motto for either chainmen or
Presidents
In l750 Culpeper had but lately been
separated from Orange County and no
courthouse had been built. The town
was laid out on land belonging to Rob-
ert Coleman, and as the second court is
known to have been held in his house
in June, it is probable that the July
court when George Washington, Gen.
held in the same place. The building
has long since disappeared.
THROUGHOUT his work as surveyor
! Washington faithfully discharged
his duties according to the oath he had
| taken, for his surveys have stood I'M
questioned. Edward Everett used to tell
| the story of an Ohio lawyer who de-
clined to act as legal adviser in GER
| tain land case respecting claims in the
| Virginia military district in Ohio, say
| ing that such cases were so beset with
! litigation he had succeeded in only one
| instance and that was a location and
survey made by Gen. Washington be-
/ fore the Revolution. "And 1 am not
acquainted" he added, with any sur
| veys except those made by him, but
what have been litigated."
| In the few years Immediately follow
! ing the receipt of his commission we
find the full-hedged surveyor laying off
f; more tracts in the Shenandoah draw
| ing plans for the new town of Alex
andria, and taking more and more in
terest in the development Of roads
/ leading to the farther West along the
/ Ohio Meanwhile, he had received his
second commission from Williamsburg,
this time as adjutant general of militia
! in a Virginia military district, and his
work as military engineer was about
to begin. These were the days of the
first disputes with the French over the
! frontier, and all campaigns required
plenty of engineering in the construc-
ton of roads through the forests and
the building of bridges and fortifica-
| tons.
| Washington was ordered to the from
tier in 1854, and the road which his ad-
vance guard hewed out west of Cumber-
land is still called "Washington'S road.
At Great Meadows. near the forks OF
the Ohio, he built his first fort, naming
1t Fort Necessity because of the famine
and perils which attended its construc-
ton. Irving describes 1t as of fair size
protected by trenches and palisades and
standing on the bank of a small stream
Although Washington was obliged to
turn this fort over to the French on
an unfortunate July 4th. the intrench-
ments lasted until long after he pur-
chased the land upon which they still
appeared in 1859.
Two years after the building OF For
Necessity, the Virginia Assembly yotee