Personal Information
George Washington was born in Westmoreland County, Va., on Feb. 22, 1732, and died on Dec. 14, 1799. He had no middle name. Washington had 10 older brothers and sisters. Washington's father died in 1743. When he was 16 he meet Lord Thomas Fairfax, an Englishmen who owned an enormous tract of land in the northern neck of the colony. He gave Washington his first job, surveying the lands of Shenandoah Valley. By age 21 Washington owned 1500 acres of land. In 1752, Washington's older brother Lawrence died, endowing George with care of his Mount Vernon estate and asking him to replace his office as an adjutant general of the colony. His responsibilities included overseeing the militia of the districts. In 1753, Washington successfully carried a British ulimatum to the French in the Ohio River Valley. A year later, he served as a colonel in the French and Indian War. Washington left the army in 1758 and return to Mount Vernon. In 1759, he married Martha Dandridge Curtis, a wealthy and attractive young widow with two small children. When Washington retired to Mount Vernon, he was persuaded to attend the Philadelphia Convention where he was elected president of the convention and so later became the first president of the United States.