Candle stand used by George Washington while writing the Farewell Address, 1796
name: label: associated person; user
content: Washington, George
label: associated person
content: Lewis, Lawrence
label: associated person
content: Lewis, Nelly Custis
notes: label: Description
content: Farewell Address was Washington's final advice to his countrymen. He urged all Americans to support the newly formed nation and put aside regional or party divisions. "Your Union ought to be considered as a main prop of your liberty, the love of the one ought to endear to you the preservation of the other."
label: Description
content: Since 1896, the United States Senate has marked Washington's birthday by having a member read the Farewell Address aloud in a legislative session.
label: Description
content: According to family tradition, President Washington worked on his Farewell Address by the light of this brass candle stand. The reflector magnifies the light of the candles in adjustable candlesticks. The back of the reflector is lined with green silk. The candle stand and other relics of George and Martha Washington were sold to the United States government in 1878 by the Lewis family (descendants of George Washington's nephew, Lawrence Lewis, and Martha Washington's granddaughter, Nelly Custis Lewis). The relics were housed in the Patent Office until 1883, when they were transferred to the Smithsonian Institution.
topic: label: used
content: Presidents
label: related event
content: George Washington's Farewell Address
setName: label: See more items in
content: Political History: Political History, Presidential History Collection
label: See more items in
content: Government, Politics, and Reform
label: See more items in
content: Domestic Furnishings
label: Exhibition
content: American Presidency
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
publisher: label: Related Publication
content: Washington's farewell address to the people of the United States
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: PL.1185
label: accession number
content: 13152
label: catalog number
content: 1185
objectType: label: Object Name
content: candle stand
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: green (back of reflector color)
label: Physical Description
content: brass (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: silk (reflector material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 22 in x 11 1/2 in; 55.88 cm x 29.21 cm
label: Measurements
content: base: 5 11/16 in; 14.44625 cm