George William Fairfax correspondence and surveys
Overview
George William Fairfax correspondence, including with George Washington, with surveys of Virginia land.
Dates
- Creation: circa 1740-1830
Creator
- Washington, George, 1732-1799. (addressee., Person)
Condition Description
In very good condition, but several sheets with worn creases.
Conditions Governing Access
Open for research.
This collection is shelved offsite at the Harvard Depository. Retrieval requires advance notice. Readers should check with Houghton Public Services staff to determine what material is offsite and retrieval policies and times.
Extent
2.4 linear feet (3 boxes)Contains letters primarily from George William Fairfax, including G.W. Fairfax to George Washington, as well as some letters from William Fairfax and some letters from various authors to G.W. Fairfax and others, as well as three survey drawings (two included in letters). Included amongst these are 24 letters of surveying orders, eight from William Fairfax and the remaining 16 from George William Fairfax. Recipients of the letters from William Fairfax include: George Hume, Philip Clayton, George Byrne, James Genn, and John Baylis. Receipients of the letters from George William Fairfax include: George Washington, George Byrne, and John Baylis.
These papers relate to the career of George Washington, including early surveying jobs, as well as to his French, Indian, and Revolutionary War services. The collection also concerns land holdings and dealings in colonial Virginia. The papers derive from the Fairfax family of Virginia, including the agent for the proprietor, William Fairfax, and his son George William Fairfax.
Biographical / Historical
George William Fairfax was a planter in colonial Virginia who represented then-vast Frederick County and later Fairfax County in the House of Burgesses before the American Revolutionary War, by which time he had returned to England (where he was a Loyalist). (Source: Wikipedia contributors, "George William Fairfax," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=George_William_Fairfax&oldid=1049456872 (accessed May 15, 2022).
George William Fairfax’s father, Colonel William Fairfax, was a first cousin of Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron. Lord Fairfax was the only resident peer in America. In 1748, he met George Washington, then 16 years old, and, impressed with his talents, employed Washington to survey his lands west of the Blue Ridge in Virginia, a total of 5,282,000 acres.
At Lord Fairfax's request, George William’s father was reassigned to the American colony of Virginia as a customs agent. William Fairfax worked as a land agent for his cousin Lord Fairfax in the Northern Neck of Virginia .After the Fairfax family moved to Virginia, George William became friends with George Washington. The families were close; in 1743, George William's older sister, Anne, married the older half-brother of George Washington, Lawrence. Together, Fairfax and Washington, helped survey the Virginia lands of his cousin, Lord Thomas Fairfax, which gave Washington an introduction into Virginia society.
In 1748, George William Fairfax married Sally Cary, also a close friend of her neighbor, George Washington. George and Sally did not have children. In 1757, George William Fairfax inherited the Belvoir plantation and in 1752 his cousin, Lord Fairfax, moved to the Shenandoah Valley. At Belvoir, George William mentored George Washington until the latter's marriage to Martha Dandridge Custis in 1759. George William and his wife Sally Fairfax returned to England in 1773 without plans to return to Virginia. (Source: appraiser's description)
Arrangement
The finding aid is arranged in five series: Letters from George William Fairfax; Letters to George William Fairfax; Other letters; and Other documents; documents arranged chronologically thereunder; an accrual with letters from William Fairfax and George William Fairfax.
Custodial History
These materials were previously in the hands of the Fairfax family.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
2022M-71. Gift of Avanish Bhavsar, 2021 December 3. 2023M-72. Gift of Avanish and Lucinda Bhavsar, 2022 November 8. 2024M-64. Gift of Avanish and Lucinda Bhavsar, 2024 February.
Processing Information
This collection was processed to a basic level with minimal rehousing, organization, and preservation by Melanie Wisner, 2022. Additional detailed processing by Michael Austin, 2022-2023. The accrual was processed to a basic level with minimal rehousing, organization, and preservation by Betts Coup, 2024.
Creator
- Washington, George, 1732-1799. (addressee., Person)
- Fairfax, George William, 1724-1787 (Person)
- Fairfax, Sally Cary, 1730-1811 (addressee., Person)
- Title
- Fairfax, George William, 1724-1787. George William Fairfax correspondence and surveys, circa 1740-1830 (MS Am 3389): Guide
- Status
- completed
- Author
- Houghton Library, Harvard University
- Date
- 2022 March 9
- Description rules
- dacs
- Language of description
- eng
- EAD ID
- hou03448
Repository Details
Part of the Houghton Library Repository
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