Evening star., 1951-02-19
on's River Farm Is Being BeIoted|y Suburbonzed

terS are his Bible and interesting
items Of the Washington story
studded his conversation.
There was the matter of George
WaShington's wealth. Mr.. Wall is
a product of the Wharton School
Of Finance at the University of
Pennsylvania. For years he has
been trying to translate it into
modern terms, through value of
crop, man hours and product. He
has given up. George Washing
ton was not an outstandingly
wealthy man, in his opinion. An
EngliShman who visited Wash
ington estimated that he had an
income equivalent to 1900 pounds
a year in England. That would
be comfortable but not big in
England of that day.
We passed the reconstructed
mill. That was important in
Washington's economy. He
shipped flour to the West Indies,
and it is thought to France. He
owned a succession of schooners
capable of the West Indian voy-
age. Dogue Creek. at the head of
which the mill was situated, could
take such vessels then. A row.
boat would be stuck today.
Distillery Was Failure.
The remains of Washington s
distillery are behind the mill.
Washington employed a Scot,
James Anderson, who had some
experience in distilling. The pro-
duct was whisky in barrels and
the market was the Potomac ter
ritory. The distillery was not
profitable. There was something
about the water available that
did not lend itself to the product.
Washington had his cooperage
establishment where barrels both
for the flour and the whisky were
made. What impresses Mr.. Well
was Washington's constant will
ingness to try something new to
make his farm operations profit
able. He gave up tobacco growing
early in the 1760s. That was the
one export crop Of most of the
Potomac farms but it was becom-
ing less profitable. He was one
Of the first to grow hemp.
The other thing that impresses
the superintendent is the little
time Washington was able to
spend at Mount Vernon after he
accepted the leadership of the
Continental Army in 1776. There
was period of almost six years
between the end of the Revolu-
tion and the presidency. Then
eight years in Philadelphia and
less than three years at Mount
Vernon before his death.
Mr.. Wall pointed to the large
square Quaker houses built in the
neighborhood of the mill in the
middle Of the 10Th century. Just
before the Mount Vernon Ladies
Association of the Union acquired
Mount Vernon In 1883, a group of
Quakers came down from New
Jersey purchased much Of the
land in the Gunston Cove and
Dogue Creek area and numbered
it for white oak. an item in de-
mand for ship building.
Ship Seized by Union.
At the start Of the Civil Wal
a steamer. the Thomas Collyer
was operating between Washing
ton and Mount Vernon. The
round trip fare was 81 and Is
cents went to the Ladies Asso-
citation.
1t was noticed that many per-
sons who boarded at Washing
ton did not take the return trip.
Apparently they were Southern
sympathizers or couriers to Rich
mond who disappeared into the
woods. The Federal Government
seized the ship and used it as a
ferry for Union troops between
Washington and Alexandria.
Mount Vernon was in no mans
land several times during the
Civil War, but Northern and
Southern troops, renegades and
deserters all respected it.
The Quakers had rough time
of it. Their Northern sympathies
were known. The Secessionists
said they would respect their pa
cifist principles. Some returned
to Philadelphia or New Jersey but
most of them stuck it out. And
as in all wars, many of the youths
among the Friends rejected pa
cifism.
In the family of Ezra Troth,
five sons left to join the fighting,
three to the Union side, two to
the Confederate forces.