Evening star., 1939-02-19
By John CIaeen Proctor.

Washington's birthday is one of
the few holidays celebrated by all
States of the Union and the Terri
tories. and in no place is there a
greater reverence shown the Father
of His Country upon this occasion
than at the Nations Capital. This
year, however the Society OF Vir-
ginia of the District of Columbia
is going to celebrate the First Pres
idents birthday, on Thursday eve
ming, February %, the day following
the one usually observed, and it is
going to be of unique character
and one of the outstanding events
of the year.
For this purpose the society has
secured the main ballroom of the
Willard Hotel, and the event will
take the form of Colonial ball and
reception in honor of the Governor
of Virginia and the Virginia dele
cation in Congress. The anniver-
sary of the wedding of George
Washington and the Widow Custis,
which took place 180 years ago, will
all the Southern pomp, ceremony
and splendor of the period of this
historic marriage. A brilliant caval-
cade will be part of this feature.
OF course, the white House."
home of the bride in New Kent
County, Va, will be the setting for
the wedding ceremony, though this
may renew controversy which may
never be satisfactorily settled, as to
whether the parties were married
at the White House" in Virginia, or
nearby in St. Peters Church on
the road from Fredericksburg to
Williamsburg, But, naturally, since
the society itself is agreed upon
the White House" the ceremony
will be depicted here.
Different Versions.
Many of the foremost historians
OF the country, past and present,
express themselves differently when
writing of this notable wedding, and
some do not mention it at all
George Washington Parke Custis,
who was reared by his foster father,
Gen. Washington, and his own
grandmother, Martha Washington,
in writing of this distinguished Vir-
ginian and great American, and
this particular incident in his life,
says that "the marriage took place
about 1760 at the White House in
the County of New Kent"
George Washington Parke Custis
was quite student, and stood
alone" it is said, in his relations
to the Father of His Country, ever
affection. to illustrate his character,
and from the rich stores of his
never-failing memory to bring for
ward our .nnual tribute to his i'm
mortal worth. But let us trace the
life of this ward of George Wash
ington and see, if we will, if in
our judgment he was in a position
to know when his paternal grand
parents entered into the holy bonds
of wedlock.
When George Washington married
Martha Custis in 1859 (and Mr.. Gus
- came close to it when he said
176O, she had two children,
daughter, Martha, and son, John.
He became deeply attached to these
children and was almost heartbroken
when the girl died, in 1773.
The hopes of both Washington
and his wife were then centered on
John. But the youths ideas were
not always those of his elders, and
he had will of his own which not
even Washington could control.
He fell in love with a girl across
the river, Eleanor Calvert, daughter
of Benedict Calvert of Mount Airy,
Md, and a lineal descendant of
Lord Baltimore Both of them,
Washington thought, were too
young to marry.
Met Disappointment.
They finally were married at the
home of the brides parents. WASH
ington, the records show. attended
the wedding Martha Washington
felt so bad about it that she would
not attend. She had hope that her
son would study for one of the
learned professions, but her hopes
were blasted.
Shortly afterward the couple
came to Mount Vernon to live, and
after two years Washington pur-
chased for them from Gerald Alex
ander, one of the founders of Alex
andria, the beautiful river estate
of Abingdon.
Shortly after the surrender at
Yorktown, John Parke Gusts died
Of swamp fever, his death occur