George Washington - Our Lost Founding Archives

African-Americans, American Revolution, Black Americans, Founding Fathers, George Washington, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Poetical, prodigious Phillis Wheatley : Her excellence, His Excellency

On this day in, 1773, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral by Phillis Wheatley is published in London, England. The twenty-year-old prodigy’s collection was the first volume of poetry by an African-American to be published.

Angelic Train

First, one of those published poems was “On Being Brought From Africa to America.”

‘Twas mercy brought me from my Pagan land
Taught my benighted soul to understand
That there’s a God, that there’s a Savior too:
Once I redemption neither sought nor knew.
Some view our sable race with scornful eye,
“Their colour is a diabolic die.”
Remember, Christians, Negroes, black as Cain,
May be refin’d, and join th’ angelic train.

What follows is a letter and poem Phillis Wheatley wrote to “His Excellency General Washington” in 1775:

“SIR,

I Have taken the freedom to address your Excellency in the enclosed poem, and entreat
your acceptance, though I am not insensible of its inaccuracies. Your being appointed
by the Grand Continental Congress to be Generalissimo of the armies of North America,
together with the fame of your virtues, excite sensations not easy to suppress. Your
generosity, therefore, I presume, will pardon the attempt. Wishing your Excellency all
possible success in the great cause you are so generously engaged in, I am,

Your Excellency’s Most obedient humble servant,

PHILLIS WHEATLEY

PROVIDENCE, Oct. 26, 1775.
His Excellency General WASHINGTON

Celestial choir! enthron’d in realms of light,
Columbia’s scenes of glorious toils I write.
While freedom’s cause her anxious breast alarms,
She flashes dreadful in refulgent arms.
See mother earth her offspring’s fate bemoan,
And nations gaze at scenes before unknown!
See the bright beams of heaven’s revolving light
Involved in sorrows and the veil of night!

The goddess comes, she moves divinely fair,
Olive and laurel bind Her golden hair:
Wherever shines this native of the skies
Unnumber’d charms and recent graces rise.

Muse! bow propitious while my pen relates
How pour her armies through a thousand gates:
As when Eolus heaven’s fair face deforms,
Enwrapp’d in tempest and a night of storms;
Astonish’d ocean feels the wild uproar,
The refluent surges beat the sounding shore;
Or think as leaves in Autumn’s golden reign,
Such, and so many, moves the warrior’s train.
In bright array they seek the work of war,
Where high unfurl’d the ensign waves in air.
Shall I to Washington their praise recite?
Enough thou know’st them in the fields of fight.
Thee, first in peace and honors,—we demand
The grace and glory of thy martial band.
Fam’d for thy valour, for thy virtues more,
Hear every tongue thy guardian aid implore!

One century scarce perform’d its destined round,
When Gallic powers Columbia’s fury found;
And so may you, whoever dares disgrace
The land of freedom’s heaven-defended race!
Fix’d are the eyes of nations on the scales,
For in their hopes Columbia’s arm prevails.
Anon Britannia droops the pensive head,
While round increase the rising hills of dead.
Ah! cruel blindness to Columbia’s state!
Lament thy thirst of boundless power too late.

Proceed, great chief, with virtue on thy side,
Thy ev’ry action let the goddess guide.
A crown, a mansion, and a throne that shine,
With gold unfading, WASHINGTON! be thine.”

* * * *

Give the World

General Washington replied with this letter on February 28th 1776, reciprocating her “obedient humble servant” closing:

“Mrs Phillis,
Your favour of the 26th of October did not reach my hands ’till the middle of December. Time enough, you will say, to have given an answer ere this. Granted. But a variety of important occurrences, continually interposing to distract the mind and withdraw the attention, I hope will apologize for the delay, and plead my excuse for the seeming, but not real, neglect.

I thank you most sincerely for your polite notice of me, in the elegant Lines you enclosed; and however undeserving I may be of such encomium and panegyrick, the style and manner exhibit a striking proof of your great poetical Talents. In honour of which, and as a tribute justly due to you, I would have published the Poem, had I not been apprehensive, that, while I only meant to give the World this new instance of your genius, I might have incurred the imputation of Vanity. This, and nothing else, determined me not to give it place in the public Prints.

If you should ever come to Cambridge, or near Head Quarters, I shall be happy to see a person so favourd by the Muses, and to whom nature has been so liberal and beneficent in her dispensations. I am, with great Respect, Your obedt humble servant,

G. Washington”

Finally, below is a photo of the Phillis Wheatley statue at the Boston Women’s Memorial, which also includes statues of Abigail Adams and Lucy Stone.

September 1, 2020/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

American Revolution, Founding Fathers, George Washington, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

The Continental Army, the Articles of War, and Divine Service

On this day in 1775, following a debate lasting several days, the Continental Congress drafts the Articles of War. The Articles explained that an “armed force be raised… for the express purpose of securing and defending these Colonies” from the “unconstitutional and oppressive acts of the British.”

The sixty-nine Articles outlined the Rules and Regulations for governing the conduct of the Continental Army. The first Article stated that “every officer… and every soldier who shall serve in the Continental Army, shall… subscribe these rules and regulations.”

Diligent and Divine

So, here’s Article II, essentially the first rule to which to subscribe:

Art. II. It is earnestly recommended to all officers and soldiers, diligently to attend Divine Service; and all officers and soldiers who shall behave indecently or irreverently at any place of Divine Worship, shall, if commissioned officers, be brought before a court-martial, there to be publicly and severely reprimanded by the President;

So, the first rule for the Continental Army was basically to go to church.

A few weeks prior, George Washington was unanimously selected by the second Continental Congress as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army. The role of faith in the service and formation of Our country was not lost on Washington. This is evidenced by the quote from his first Inaugural Address that inspired Our t-shirt design:

“No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the People of the United States.”

The first Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army

June 30, 2020/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

Abraham Lincoln, Civil War, George Washington, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

National Day of Prayer : “upon my knees”

Following the Union Army’s devastating loss at the Second Battle of Bull Run in August 1862, the Civil War Dispatches of Noah Brooks record Abraham Lincoln saying the following about prayer:

“I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom and that of all about me seemed insufficient for that day.”

General George Washington’s legendary Prayer at Valley Forge is depicted in Arnold Friberg’s well-known painting below.

Prayer is vital and encouraged by great Americans throughout our history, both in victory and in defeat.

So, our prayer is that we would continue to offer our prayers and supplications to the Great Governor, the Almighty Author. Let “We the People” acknowledge His hand in guiding our country, as we observe our National Day of Prayer.

Our History, Our Heritage

“The National Day of Prayer is a vital part of our heritage. Since the first call to prayer in 1775, when the Continental Congress asked the colonies to pray for wisdom in forming a nation, the call to prayer has continued through our history, including President Lincoln’s proclamation of a day of “humiliation, fasting, and prayer” in 1863. In 1952, a joint resolution by Congress, signed by President Truman, declared an annual national day of prayer. In 1988, the law was amended and signed by President Reagan, permanently setting the day as the first Thursday of every May. Each year, the president signs a proclamation, encouraging all Americans to pray on this day. Last year, all 50 state governors plus the governors of several U.S. territories signed similar proclamations.”

Unfurl the history of the National Day of Prayer on the National Day of Prayer task force website:

http://www.nationaldayofprayer.org/about

May 7, 2020/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

George Washington Invisible hand shirt zoom

George Washington, Presidents, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

February 22: George Washington’s Birthday

On this day in 1732, George Washington, the first President of the United States, is born in Westmoreland County, Virginia. Washington’s Birthday is now generally known as Presidents Day. In fact, it was the first federal holiday to honor an American president, and was originally established in 1885.

Presidents Day was celebrated on Washington’s actual birthday until January 1, 1971. Then, the Uniform Monday Holiday Act shifted it to the third Monday in February.

As a result, it can occur the 15th through the 21st inclusive, but not on Washington’s actual birthday.

Even so, it is still officially called “Washington’s Birthday” by the federal government and is although an occasion to remember all presidents.

As Our first President, and the “Father of Our Country,” Washington set many precedents for those who would follow him.

“A nation” and its “People”

Something we all would do well to remember is something Washington said in his first inaugural address:
“[T]he propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained…”

Also from that address, is the quote that inspired Our George Washington “Invisible Hand” t-shirt:
“No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the People of the United States.”

February 22, 2020/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

George Washington, Presidents, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

The Washington Monument is Dedicated

On this day in 1885, the Washington Monument is formally dedicated. It was, of course, built for military and political hero, America’s first president George Washington.

Appropriately, the cornerstone was laid on July 4, 1848, and construction halted during the Civil War.

Then, on December 6th, 1884, a nine-inch pyramid of cast aluminum is placed atop the Washington Monument, and thus completed construction. That aluminum pyramid was the largest piece of aluminum in the world at the time it was cast.

Laus Deo

All four faces of the aluminum apex bear inscriptions in Snell Roundhand. Among them, on the east side, facing the rising sun is “Laus Deo,” which is Latin for Praise be to God. Although weather and and ill-placed lightning rod base have corroded the letters beyond legibility, the significance of the phrase endures.

Finally, in 1888 the monument opened to the public. This marble obelisk, at 555′ 5 1/8″ was the tallest structure in the world when completed. It remains today, by law, the tallest building in Washington, D.C.

A fitting monument indeed for the Father of Our Country.

February 21, 2020/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

John Adams White House blessing Presidents' Day

Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Presidents, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

A Presidents’ Day Primer from Our Lost Founding

George Washington’s birthday on February 22nd is now generally known as Presidents’ Day. In fact, it was the first federal holiday to honor an American president, and was originally established in 1885.

Presidents Day was celebrated on Washington’s actual birthday until January 1, 1971. Then, the Uniform Monday Holiday Act shifted it to the third Monday in February.

As a result, it can occur the 15th through the 21st inclusive, but not on Washington’s actual birthday.

Even so, the federal government still officially recognizes Presidents’ Day as “Washington’s Birthday,” though it is certainly an occasion to remember all U.S. presidents.

“Heaven” and “this House”

John Adams, our second president, and the first to inhabit the President’s House (known as the White House since 1901), wrote this in a letter to his beloved wife Abigail, as seen below carved in to the stone fireplace of the White House State Dining Room:

“I pray Heaven to bestow the best of Blessings on this House and on all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise Men ever rule under this roof.”

We would do well to do the same.

February 17, 2020/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

Founding Fathers, George Washington, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Supreme Court : First Meeting, First Chief Justice

On this day in 1790, the Supreme Court of the United States meets for the first time. John Jay, appointed by George Washington, was the first Chief Justice. Jay was a Patriot, a Founding Father, a statesman, and a diplomat. As such, he was one of the signers of the Treaty of Paris.

He wrote this, in part to his eldest son, Peter, in 1784:
The Bible is the best of all books, for it is the word of God and teaches us the way to be happy in this world and in the next. Continue therefore to read it and to regulate your life by its precepts.

Additionally, Jay also served as President of the Continental Congress and the Governor of New York. In fact, he was the only Founding Father that was also a native New Yorker.

Finally, on June 29, 1826, about three years before his death, he wrote this to the Committee of the Corporation of the City of New York:

“I recommend a general and public return of praise and thanksgiving to Him from whose goodness these blessings descend. The most effectual means of securing the continuance of our civil and religious liberties is always to remember with reverence and gratitude the source from which they flow.”

February 1, 2020/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

Richard Montgomery First National Memorial

American Revolution, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Richard Montgomery and the First National Memorial

On this day in 1776, the Continental Congress authorizes the first national memorial of the Revolutionary War, in honor of Brigadier General Richard Montgomery. He was killed during in Quebec on December 31, 1775, where he was initially interred.

The monument, as seen below, is the first ever commissioned by the United States. Benjamin Franklin hired French sculptor Jean Jacques Caffieri to design and build the Montgomery memorial. Eventually, in 1787, it was installed in the front of St. Paul’s Chapel in Manhattan, where it remains today. Then, Montgomery’s remains were moved to St. Paul’s in 1818.

Interestingly, St. Paul’s was George Washington’s church during his time in New York as the United States’ first president in 1789.

The first memorial and the first president

So, the first memorial in the history of the United States was given a prominent place in a culturally and architecturally significant gathering place in New York City. Also, it’s where Our first president went to church.

January 25, 2020/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

Emanuel Leutze George Washington Crossing the Delaware

American Revolution, George Washington, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Crossing the Delaware: Emanuel and Immanuel

On December 26, 1776, General George Washington and 2,400 soldiers successfully cross the icy Delaware River just before dawn.

Perhaps unrealistic, they appear rather heroic as depicted by Emanuel Leutze in his famous 1851 painting of Washington Crossing the Delaware. Even so, the actual circumstances surrounding the iconic crossing further enhance their heroism.

Unfavorable Conditions

Christmas night, Washington’s army began preparations for a ‘surprise attack’ on the Hessian troops at their Trenton, New Jersey camp. His plan called for three separate divisions embarking on three different crossings of the river. The cold rain that accompanied them on their march to the launch points became a blustery snowstorm. As a result, only Washington’s division made it across. Worse yet, they were three hours behind schedule, endangering the entire mission.

Additionally, spies and deserters passed along advance warning to the Hessians, mitigating the crucial element of surprise. Thankfully, a Christmastime attack in a winter storm seemed unlikely.

Despite all of this, Washington remained “determined to push on at all Events.”
The pursuant victory provided a much needed morale boost for the soldiers and colonists alike.

Favorable Interpositions

Events such as these are indicative of the “signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his Providence which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war,” as President Washington wrote in his 1789 Thanksgiving Proclamation.

Clearly, he believed God was with them.

This belief is also evident in the following quote from his Inaugural Address, which inspired Our shirt, found HERE:
“No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the People of the United States.”

December 25, 2019/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

American Revolution, George Washington, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Valley Forge : Through the Valley… Forged.

On this day in 1777, commander of the Continental Army George Washington leads 11,000 soldiers into Valley Forge, Pennsylvania for their winter encampment.

Though named for an iron forge on Valley Creek in Whitemarsh, the name Valley Forge is symbolically significant.

Valley

Washington and his army were most certainly at a low point. They had lost the battles of Brandywine, Germantown, and Philadelphia that year. His army was tired, cold, and they lacked proper equipment, nourishment, and training.

More than 2,500 of those soldiers would be dead before spring.

Washington himself faced criticism ranging from incompetence to dictatorial ambitions from both congress and his subordinate generals.

Forge

On June 19, the Continental Army marched out of Valley Forge disciplined, organized, better equipped, and exhibiting esprit de corps. Nine days later they forced a British retreat at the Battle of Monmouth. We know the rest.

Through all this, we have the legend of “The Prayer at Valley Forge,” which is also the name of the famous painting by Arnold Friberg that inspired the silhouette of Our “George Washington… Invisible Hand” t-shirt, HERE in Our shop.

Though impossible to prove or disprove, and although we will not, in our earthly lives, hear the words of Washington’s presumed prayer, we do have other words from Washington that suggest he would “fervently beseech… blessings” of “the great Ruler of nations.”

First, here is just ONE of his Proclamations for “a day of public thanksgiving and prayer.”

Next, the quote from his Inaugural Address that inspired Our shirt:
“No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the People of the United States.”

Finally, a portion of his Resignation Speech given on December 23, 1783, peaked by “gratitude for the interposition of Providence“:

“I consider it an indispensable duty to close this last solemn act of my Official life, by commending the Interests of our dearest Country to the protection of Almighty God, and those who have the superintendence of them, to his holy keeping.”

As we know, that would not be the end of his “Official life.”

December 19, 2019/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

Abraham Lincoln, American Icons, Founding Fathers, George Washington, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding, Thomas Jefferson

Sculpting Starts on Mount Rushmore

On this day in 1927, the work of carving and sculpting the Mount Rushmore National Memorial begins. The project was declared complete on October 31, 1941.

The iconic granite sculpture, attracts millions annually to the Black Hills of South Dakota.

According to sculptor Gutzon Borglum, “The purpose of the memorial is to communicate the founding, expansion, preservation, and unification of the United States with colossal statues of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt.”

With that stated purpose in mind, what follows is a ‘Mount Rushmore’ of quotes from the aforementioned presidents. Two of these quotes adorn Our Lost Founding shirts:

George Washington
“No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the People of the United States.”

Thomas Jefferson
“I shall need, too, the favor of that Being in whose hands we are, who led our forefathers, as Israel of old, from their native land and planted them in a country flowing with all the necessities and comforts of life, who has covered our infancy with His Providence and our riper years with His wisdom and power… ”

Abraham Lincoln
“In regard to this Great book, I have but to say, it is the best gift God has given to man. All the good the Savior gave to the world was communicated through this book. But for it we could not know right from wrong. All things most desirable for man’s welfare, here and hereafter, are to be found portrayed in it.”

Theodore Roosevelt
“Every thinking man, when he thinks, realizes that the teachings of the Bible are so interwoven and entwined with our whole civic and social life that it would be literally impossible for us to figure ourselves what life would be if these standards were removed.”

Finally, here is your humble Our Lost Founding Founder at our National Memorial:

Me at Mount Rushmore, Summer 2019

October 4, 2019/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding