Washington's Land
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N 38° 23.332 W 081° 49.578
17S E 427837 N 4249285
A marker noting the land boundaries of a land patent issued to President George Washington. Located on the southern boundary of his estate the marker is found on the bank of the Kanawha River.
Waymark Code: WMH64V
Location: West Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 05/29/2013
Views: 9
This double sided marker presents the same text on both sides
The text of the marker reads:
"Washington's Land - George Washington's "Cole" River Tract of 2,000 acres was surveyed by John Floyd in 1774 and patented April 12, 1774. Bounded by the Coal and Kanawha Rivers, "5 miles and 88 poles"' it embraced the side of St. Albans."
The marker is found on US 60 West (MacCorkle Avenue) in St. Albans Roadside Park, 0.4 miles east of St. Albans Bridge
The land where the city of St. Albans now stands was once owned by George Washington (2,000 acres) and purchased by him from Lt. Charles Thurston for his service in the French and Indian War. William Crawford surveyed it in 1774. Washington’s “Cole River” property was willed to his niece Elizabeth Spotswood, daughter of Augustine Washington. Morris Hudson bought 400 acres of the eastern part of the property from her in 1810 and became the first settler in present St. Albans. His nephew, Samuel Washington, also owned land nearby (Dunbar) and resided in Coalsmouth and is buried there at Bangor Cemetery.
Washington's land grant was issued as part of a proclamation of 1754 made by Virginias lieutenant governor Robert Dinwiddie which awarded land-bounty warrants to the officers and soldiers who had volunteered to serve in the expedition to the Monongahela River that concluded with the Battle of the Great Meadows. Proclamation 1754 provided for 200,000 acres of land to be used to fulfill the land grants for the soldiers.
In the fall of 1770, Washington traveled to the Ohio to scout out boundary lands for the veterans of the Virginia Regiment. On November 1st he wrote in his diary "we set off with our Canoe up the River to discover what kind of lands lay upon the Kanhawa. The land on both sides of the river just at the mouth is very fine; but on the East side when you get towards the Hills (which I judge to be about 6 or 700 yards from the river) it appears to be wet & better adapted for meadow than tillage." His party spent several day exploring the land bordering the Kanawha, hunting and marking boundary trees along the river. He wrote: "This Country abounds in Buffalo & wild game of all kinds as also in all kinds of wild fowl, there being in the bottoms a great many small grassy ponds or lakes which are full of swans, geese, & ducks of different kinds."
Other Sources Used Are:
(
visit link)
The book: "George Washington: a biographical companion" by: Frank E Grizzard.