• CASE 1—GETTING TO KNOW THE MAN BEHIND THE IMAGE

• CASE 2—VIRGINIA ENVIRONMENT,PART I

• CASE 3—VIRGINIA ENVIRONMENT, PART II

• CASE 4—THE NORTHERN NECK

• CASE 5—FAMILY BACKGROUND, PART I

• CASE 6—FAMILY BACKGROUND, PART II

• CASE 7—THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR, PART I

• CASE 8—THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR, PART II

• CASE 9—PLANTER, POLITICIAN, AND PATRIOT

• CASE 10—THE MAN, PART I

• CASE 11—THE MAN, PART II

• CASE 12—THE MAN, PART III

• CASE 13—THE MAN, PART IV

• CASE 14—THE MAN, PART V

• CASE 15—DEATH AND APOTHEOSIS

• CASE 16—PRESERVING THE MEMORY

• CLEMENTS LIBRARY

George Washington: getting to know the man behind the image

This website is a record of the exhibit, as it appeared in the display cases of the William L. Clements Library. Each page features an image of a single display case and its contents, with details of the artifacts and the accompanying text below. Please click on the images to view enlargements and use the "back" button on your browser to return.

Copyrights to the contents of this exhibit, both text and images, are held by the Clements Library. Permission for use and reproduction must be obtained in advance from the director of the Clements Library.

This superb eight-page letter, handwritten to the estate manager, documents the extent to which Washington's heart was at Mount Vernon, even while he was President. It also shows what an exacting boss he must have been at home, a micro-manager with an eye for even the smallest detail. The letter, documenting sides of Washington's personality not well represented in the existing collection, is being donated to the Clements Library by a private collector. The magnificent gift was the inspiration for this exhibit.