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201

George Washington

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Autographs Start Price:NA Estimated At:20,000.00 - 30,000.00 USD
George Washington

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Auction Date:2012 Dec 12 @ 18:00 (UTC-05:00 : EST/CDT)
Location:5 Rt 101A Suite 5, Amherst, New Hampshire, 03031, United States
ALS - Autograph Letter Signed
ANS - Autograph Note Signed
AQS - Autograph Quotation Signed
AMQS - Autograph Musical Quotation Signed
DS - Document Signed
FDC - First Day Cover
Inscribed - “Personalized”
ISP - Inscribed Signed Photograph
LS - Letter Signed
SP - Signed Photograph
TLS - Typed Letter Signed
Manuscript DS, signed “Go: Washington,” one page, 8 x 3, August 1, 1785. Financial document reads, in part: “£6:0:0…This was deducted by the Treasurer of Virg from the State Dividend of £500…Geo: Town 1st Aug 1785. The above acct allowed.” Signed at the conclusion by Washington, and also signed by George Gilpin, John Fitzgerald, and two others. In very good condition, with intersecting folds, with one vertical fold through a single letter of signature, scattered toning and soiling, and two rough edges.

After the Revolutionary War ended, Washington retired to Mount Vernon briefly before making an exploratory trip to the western frontier in 1784 to investigate the possibility of inland navigation. Together with surveyor George Gilpin, Colonel John Fitzgerald, Virginia governor Lee, and Maryland governor Johnston, they organized the Potowmack Navigation Company with the mission of connecting the East Coast with the Northwest. Washington was named president and the other four became directors.

On August 1, 1785, the fledgling business held its annual board meeting in Georgetown. After reviewing the accounts and approving the books, the board instructed the treasurer to pay the bills and set up a £50 contingency fund in Virginia currency with the project's principal manager, John Rumsey. The primary concern of the officers was the disbursement of monies and they established a simple, but rigid system of accountability. After the meeting adjourned, the board traveled to Shenandoah Falls to examine the obstacles the falls presented and concluded that no lock was needed, merely a clearance of rocks. Two days later, Washington wrote Rumsey to proceed with the project to make improvements along the Potomac. After building five skirting canals around various falls, the immense undertaking failed due to floods, an uncertain economy, and lack of financial backing. Despite missing its lofty goal, the company's crowning achievement was the construction of the Potowmack Canal, a major engineering feat and one that extended shipping past Great Falls through the previously unnavigable Mather Gorge.
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