George Washington Parke Custis: A Rarefied Life in America's First Family

George Washington Parke Custis (1781-1857) was raised at Mount Vernon by George and Martha Washington. Young "Wash" appears in Savage's 1789 painting of the first presidential family, his small hand placed symbolically on a globe. He would later make his mark on the national landscape by building Arlington House on the Potomac. A poor student, he emerged as an agricultural reformer and sought-after Federalist orator. He championed the plights of Irish Americans and war veterans. An important memoirist, he wrote well-received theatrical works and produced paintings rich in historical detail. Inheriting much of the vast Custis fortune, he also became the enslaver of more than 200 people. The slow march toward their emancipation became the central struggle of his life, particularly after his daughter's 1831 marriage to Robert E. Lee. This first full-length biography of Custis offers a 21st century reappraisal of life that dramatically bridged the American Revolution and the Civil War.

Author: Charles S. Clark
Publisher: McFarland & Company
Published: 08/27/2021
Pages: 237
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.65lbs
Size: 8.70h x 5.90w x 0.70d
ISBN13: 9781476686622
ISBN10: 1476686629
BISAC Categories:
- History | United States | Revolutionary Period (1775-1800)
- History | United States | 19th Century
- Biography & Autobiography | General

About the Author
Charles S. Clark spent 40 years as a Washington journalist and writer of history in Arlington and Alexandria, Virginia. Now retired, he does public speaking and continues to write the weekly "Our Man in Arlington" column for the Falls Church News-Press.