Collection Summary
Henry Woodhouse
Collection Relating to George Washington
1656-1930
(bulk 1825-1887)
1656-1930
(bulk 1825-1887)
MSS57133
Woodhouse, Henry,
1884-
4,500
items
7 containers plus 1 oversize
2.8 linear feet
English
Collection material in
English
Manuscript Division, Library of
Congress
Washington, D.C.
Editor and author.
Correspondence, deeds, wills, testaments, indentures, bonds, surveys, maps,
plats, financial and legal records, clippings, and other papers relating
principally to George Washington, the Washington family, and its
descendants.
Selected Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
People
Lee, Francis Lightfoot, 1734-1797.
Lee, Richard Henry, 1732-1794.
Washington family.
Washington, Augustine, approximately 1694-1743.
Washington, George Corbin, 1789-1854.
Washington, George, 1732-1799--Family.
Washington, George, 1732-1799.
Washington, H. A. (Henry Augustine), 1820-1858.
Washington, Lawrence, 1718-1752.
Washington, Robert James, 1841-
Washington, William Augustine, 1757-1810.
Woodhouse, Henry, 1884-
Subjects
Deeds.
Land grants.
Maps.
Surveys.
Wills.
Places
Virginia--History.
Wakefield (Westmoreland County, Va.)--History.
Occupations
Authors.
Editors.
Provenance
The collection of Henry Woodhouse, editor and author, was deposited
in the Library of Congress in 1932. Additional material was purchased in
1944.
Processing History
The Woodhouse Collection was arranged and described in 1976. The
finding aid was revised in 2011.
Copyright Status
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings in the Henry
Woodhouse Collection is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States
(Title 17, U.S.C.).
Access and Restrictions
The Henry Woodhouse Collection Relating to George Washington is open
to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room
prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is
needed to retrieve these items for research use.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the
following information: Container number, Henry Woodhouse Collection Relating to
George Washington, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Henry Woodhouse (1884- ), born in Turin, Italy, came to America in
1904. Woodhouse later became an author, a surveyor, a noted collector, and
owner of a large collection of Washingtoniana. He also became president of the
Aerial League of America, the Historic Celebrations Association, the
International Science Forum, and a member of the New York Commission for the
Celebration of the Two Hundredth Anniversary of the Birth of George
Washington.
For over a century, George Washington’s birthplace has been
ascribed to eight different locations. In an effort to clarify the matter,
Charles Moore, the chairman of the Fine Arts Commission, in 1928 recommended
that the George Washington Bicentennial Commission undertake “a preliminary
investigation to determine the exact location of the two houses built by the
Washingtons at Wakefield.” While this investigation was being considered,
Woodhouse made available several thousand Washington records, among them, the
Wakefield papers, which helped throw light on the location of Washington’s
birthplace. Some of the records were examined by members of the U.S.
Bicentennial Commission by scholars and by members of the Washington and
related families, and the records indicate that Washington’s birthplace was
located elsewhere than the place where the government had built a monument.
Scope and Content Note
The Woodhouse Collection Relating to George Washington, including the
Wakefield papers and papers relating to other Washington family members, spans
the years 1656-1930, with the bulk from 1825 to 1887. Compiled by Henry
Woodhouse, the collection consists of originals as well as typewritten
transcripts and photocopies of deeds, wills, testaments, indentures, bonds,
surveys, maps, plats, inventories, account statements, receipts, vouchers,
bills of sale, descriptive statements, certificates, land grants, memoranda,
clippings, legal papers, and some correspondence, primarily among family
members. In addition to the matter of Washington’s birthplace, the papers
shed light on the acquisition, the partitioning, and the management of various
lands by members of the Washington and related families. The papers also help
clarify the genealogical relationship between the Washingtons and related
families.
Included in the collection are two published works:
Wills of the American Ancestors of General George
Washington
(Boston, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1891, 19 pp.),
edited by Joseph M. Toner, and
Wills of Westmoreland Co., Va.
, 1654-1800 (Appeals Press, 1925, 229 pp.), by Augusta B. Fothergill.
Also in the collection are manuscript notes by Henry Woodhouse entitled
“Where Was George Washington Born?”
Prominent family members mentioned in the collection are Francis
Lightfoot Lee, Richard Henry Lee, Augustine Washington, father of George
Washington (1732-1799), George Washington (son of Lawrence Washington), George
Corbin Washington, Henry Washington (of Alexandria, Virginia), Henry Augustine
Washington, Lawrence Washington (1791-1785), Richard Washington, Robert James
Washington, and William Augustine Washington.
Arrangement of the Papers
The collection is organized chronologically and described according
to name of person, family, locality, topic, or type of material, with oversize
items at the end.
Container List
Container
Contents
1
Brooks and Hill patents, Bridges
Creek and Pope’s Creeks,
1656-1698
1656-1698
1
Charles II of England, William
Berkeley, land grant,
1662
[
See
Oversize
](con1charlesiiov)
1662
1
Wakefield Estate, George
Washington’s family,
1675-1833
1675-1833
1
Lisson tract papers, Lawrence
Washington,
1679-1695
1679-1695
1
Foxhall Estate and the barren
land,
1697-1907, undated
1697-1907, undated
1
Pope’s Creek Estate papers,
1700-1931, undated
1700-1931, undated
1
Blenheim Plantation, Bridges Creek,
Westmoreland Co., Va.,
1703-1887
1703-1887
1
Washington family records,
1719-1744, undated
1719-1744, undated
1
Wakefield Estate, dispute between
Augustine Washington (father of George Washington) and his third cousin, John
Washington,
1742-1796, undated
[
See also
Oversize
](con1wakefieldov)
1742-1796, undated
1
Bridges Creek Estate and other
lands of Augustine Washington,
1752-1765
1752-1765
1
Wakefield Estate papers relating to
George Washington,
1768-1844, undated
1768-1844, undated
1
Kanawha Land (Ohio) of George
Washington,
1773-1928, undated
1773-1928, undated
1
George Washington’s birthplace,
1784, undated
1784, undated
1
Richard Henry Lee and Francis
Lightfoot Lee, relationship to Washington,
1785-1807, undated
1785-1807, undated
2
Wakefield and other Washington
estates relating to Negro slavery,
1792-1848, undated
1792-1848, undated
2
Washington and Monroe families,
records,
1792-1929
1792-1929
2
Wakefield Estate papers relating to
education, church, and religion,
1795-1848
1795-1848
2
Muse Plantation, tract of land
between Bridges Creek and Pope’s Creek, Westmoreland Co., Va.,
1796-1897, undated
1796-1897, undated
2
William Augustine Washington
papers,
1797-1869, undated
1797-1869, undated
2
Wakefield and Duck Hall Estates
records,
1814-1846, undated
1814-1846, undated
2
Lawrence Washington (1791-1875)
papers
2
1825-1842
1825-1842
3
1843-1846
1843-1846
3
1846-1850
1846-1850
3
1851-1852
1851-1852
3
1853-1854
1853-1854
3
1855-1857
1855-1857
3
1858-1860
1858-1860
3
1861-1873
1861-1873
3
Undated
Undated
3
Lawrence Washington, the Richard
Bayne Estate papers,
1826-1941
1826-1941
4
Wakefield Estate records, Daniel
Payne’s ownership and Lawrence Washington’s management,
1827-1848
1827-1848
4
Wakefield lands tax report,
Lawrence Washington, trustee,
1827-1891, undated
1827-1891, undated
4
George Corbin Washington to John
Gray, the sale of Wakefield,
1831-1836
1831-1836
4
Bleak Hall records, Westmoreland
Co., Va.,
1832-1897
1832-1897
4
Henry Augustine Washington papers,
1843-1857, undated
1843-1857, undated
4
R.C. Washington, Laurel Grove and
Bleak Hall Estates,
1843-1857
1843-1857
4
Washington and Ashton families,
records,
1843-1859, undated
1843-1859, undated
4
Wakefield Estates, purchased by
John F. Wilson,
1845-1892
1845-1892
4
Lawrence Washington and family,
wills and other material,
1851-1857, undated
1851-1857, undated
4
George Washington (son of Lawrence
Washington),
1852-1868
1852-1868
4
Wakefield Estate records.
Washingtons who settled in Chicago, Ill.,
1853-1900
1853-1900
4
Richard Washington papers,
1855-1861
1855-1861
4
Washingtons who migrated to
Minnesota Territory,
1856-1868, undated
1856-1868, undated
4
Haywood Plantation, West of
Bridges Creek, Westmoreland Co., Va.,
1859-1887
1859-1887
5
Robert James Washington papers,
1860-1906
5
1860-1873
1860-1873
5
1874-1879
1874-1879
5
1880-1885
1880-1885
5
1886-1887
1886-1887
5
1888-1889
1888-1889
6
1890-1892
1890-1892
6
1893-1897
1893-1897
6
1898-1906
1898-1906
6
Undated
Undated
6
Henry Washington,
1869
1869
6
George Washington’s birthplace
site, purchase proposal,
1873
1873
6
Laurel Grove Estate, the
Washington Plantation west of Bridges Creek, Westmoreland Co., Va.,
1879
1879
6
Wakefield Estate, map and plat,
1879, 1926
1879, 1926
6
Blenheim land partition among
members of Lawrence Washington’s family,
1887
1887
6
George Washington’s birthplace,
description,
1891
1891
7
Wills of the American Ancestors of General George
Washingto
n (1891), edited by Joseph M. Toner
7
Virginia election laws, the
electoral board and registration laws,
1894
1894
7
Wills of Westmoreland Co., Va., 1654-1800
(1925), by Augusta B. Fothergill
7
“Lee Art Treasure Found at
Capital,” submitted to the
New York Times
,
1930, Apr. 30
1930, Apr. 30
7
Washington family vault at Bridges
Creek, records of inscriptions on tombs,
undated
undated
7
Indian Town and Bridges Creek,
Washington family ancestral burial grounds,
undated
undated
7
Henry Woodhouse’s notes entitled
“Where Was George Washington Born?”
undated
undated
OV 1
Oversize
OV 1
Charles II
of England, William Berkeley, land grant
OV 1
Wakefield Estate, dispute
Wakefield Estate, dispute
OV 1
Plat relating to the dispute
between Augustine Washington (father of George Washington) and his third
cousin, John Washington,
undated (Container 1)
undated (Container 1)