Show washington utter letter shows his interest in Ms his genealogy writing to his ne nephew aliew he reveals reveal knowledge of Fam family ilys founder in america A letter hearing bearing tho the signature of george washl washington agton addressed to his bis nephew william augustine washington Is in the possession ot of barnet 3 beyer of new york it Is dated october 3 1788 1798 and Is said to be ba the only letter extant in which george washington makes any inquiries to his own ancestry or gives his big personal views on the subject and it la Is therefore considered to be a unique document written in his fine call graphy on paper softly mellowed by age it Is a valuable historical document showing washington in yet another light this letter Is apparently not cot the first time washington made such inquiries into his family tree as may be judged by the opening sentence in in the rose roe garden at sulgrave manor the th sundial dates back to 1539 the time of lawrence washington wahington which he ha thanks his nephew for the old documents sent him regarding the subject which it may be assumed b ha 0 asked for the letter Is however so far as tt it Is at present known the only one dealing with this matter reference to ancestors ancestor it opens with other topics such as suggested alterations in a contract tor for the purchase of 1500 barrels of corn in which general lee also Is interested and it Is on the fourth page of the manuscript that he refers to his ancestors the following Is a tran script kropt 1 I thank you for the old documents you sent bent me respecting the family of our ancestors but I 1 am possessed of papers which prove beyond a doubt that of the two brothers who emigrated to this country in the tha year 1657 during oe he troubles of that day that john washington front froe whom we are descended was the eldest the pedigree from him I 1 have and I 1 be beve very correct but the descendants of lawrence in a regular course I 1 have not been able to trace all those of our name in and about Cho are from the latter john was the grandfather of my father and uncle and great grandfather to warner and me he left two sons lawrence 8 john the former who was the eldest was the father of my father fataei uncle aunt willas mrs hayward ayward II must buet have been a daughter of the first lawrence A thence became the cousin a of f the second lawrence john we we all 1 I 1 I 1 write 1 in best wishes tor for your family and I 1 am your sincere friend and affectionate uncle george washington washington coat of arms there thera have hava been many endeavors made to trace english ancestry and the name recurs in various parts of the country A heraldic visitation of the county of north ampton was wa made in ili the latter of the sixteenth century which gives the genealogical table of the wash of sulgrave it Is interesting to note that the coat of arms of the family though differing in the different branches of lt it yet contains in most ot of them the heraldic emblems ot 01 stars and bare bara below them it la Is universal belief ot of course that the washington coat of arms is the basis and inspiration of the national flag of the stars and stripes no record of lawrence the ancestor to which washington refers Is john washington who came to virginia in 1657 and was the great grandfather th of george while he be was himself the son of rev lawrence washington the rector of john was forced to leave home on account of poverty and in lag his twenty rioth year appeared in virginia of the tha lawrence to whom washington also refers there reems no record this letter of W teems seems it does not though to jill fill up a gap about his ancestry first light throw any himself it to Is george W washington ashington who stands 9 out ut aa 40 an illustrious figure irom from a EMU of ra rather er or ordinary nary an aal undistinguished people it Is rather a modern fashion to leery decry the heroes ot of another age and a certain enjoyment Is manifested in finding that any accepted idol has feet of clay also has hla his detractors ke other great men and it Is said that the cannot tell a lle lie and other rather ridiculous tables fables have been traced to a brazen piece of fiction of a learned gentleman historic document from the same source george 0 washington washingto by W EL woodward we learn the washington letters were unfortunately collected by an enthusiast who suppressed some and ed edited iter others greatly detracting from their interest and value an original letter ot of this kind therefore giving spa cial details of interest in his big own genealogy becomes a historic and valuable document these old fragile scraps of paper are in some cases almost Dr priceless for in latter years collectors have been willing to pay almost tiny any price tor for them of such delicacy are some that they are kept behind glass glasa or in leather folders and are as heavily insured as the most rare of precious stones now how some of the most secret and private documents ever fall into strange gO hands bands at all remains a mystery some are of course stolen others are appropriated by servants or secretaries and in time tall fall into the collect collectors oes bands and under the hammer where their precious secrets no longer perhaps of vital importance to a world that has changed become public and much discussed property |