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Lot 131
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George Washington Visits His Mother on the Way to New York and the Presidency
George Washington Visits His Mother on the Way to New York and the Presidency
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Description:

George Washington
Boston, MA, April 9, 1789
George Washington Visits His Mother on the Way to New York and the Presidency
Newspaper

[GEORGE WASHINGTON.] Independent Chronicle and the Universal Advertiser, April 9, 1789. Boston: Thomas Adams and John Nourse. 4 pp., 11.75" x 19.5". Disbound; general toning; some edge tears.

This issue of a Boston newspaper gives a report of President-elect George Washington visiting his mother Mary Ball Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia, on his way to New York to be inaugurated. She died just over five months later, in August 1789

Excerpts
"FREDERICKSBURGH, March 12.
"On Saturday evening last his Excellency General WASHINGTON arrived in town from Mount Vernon, and early on Monday morning he set out on his return. The object of his Excellency's visit was probably, to take leave of his aged mother, sister and friends, previous to his departure for the new Congress, over the councils of which the united voice of America has called him to preside." (p3/c3)

Historical Background
The first election of a President under the new United States Constitution was held from December 15, 1788, to January 10, 1789. Federalist electors won more than 90 percent of the nearly 44,000 votes cast in the six states that allowed popular votes. In the other four states, the legislature selected presidential electors. Neither North Carolina nor Rhode Island participated because those states had not yet ratified the Constitution, and New York's legislature deadlocked on selecting electors and did not participate. The 69 electors from the other ten states voted in early February and unanimously selected George Washington as President. They spread their votes for Vice President among ten candidates, with John Adams receiving a plurality of 34. A joint session of Congress counted the electoral votes on April 6, 1789, and declared George Washington and John Adams elected. Washington received notice of his election on April 14 and proceeded from Mount Vernon to New York to take office, receiving triumphal welcomes in many cities in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey as he passed through.

Adams received notice of his election on April 9 and arrived on April 20 in New York, where he took the oath of office as Vice President the next day. Washington arrived in New York City on April 23 and was inaugurated at Federal Hall on April 30. Chancellor Robert Livingston of New York administered the presidential oath of office.

Additional Content
This issue also includes "An Act providing for the Support of the Poor," passed by the Massachusetts legislature and signed in print by Governor John Hancock (p1/c1-3); a report of the "Trial, Conviction, and DEATH, of the celebrated LACO," a satire on the attempt of Stephen Higginson, under the pseudonym "Laco," to prevent the reelection of Governor Samuel Adams (p2/c2-3); reports of how Boston and other parts of Massachusetts voted in the gubernatorial election (p3/c2); and a variety of notices and advertisements, including an offer a reward for a stolen horse (p2/c4) and advertisements for several farms and houses for sale, each with a woodcut illustration (p3/c4, p4/c1, 3).

The Independent Chronicle and the Universal Advertiser (1776-1840) was a weekly, then semi-weekly, newspaper published in Boston, Massachusetts. Published under various titles in Salem and Cambridge, the newspaper settled in Boston in 1776 as The Independent Chronicle. Later in 1776, it became The Independent Chronicle, and the Universal Advertiser, a title that it carried until 1801. Publishers included Edward E. Powars and Nathaniel Willis (1755-1831). Willis left the Independent Chronicle in 1784 and settled in Virginia and then Ohio, where he published the Scioto Gazette, the first newspaper in the Northwest Territory. Thomas Adams (c. 1757-1799) and John Nourse (ca. 1762-1790) purchased the newspaper in 1784 and published it until Nourse's death. Adams continued publication until 1799, at times with partner Isaac Larkin (d. 1797). Abijah Adams and Ebenezer Rhoades published the newspaper from 1799 to 1817, when others purchased and continued the newspaper.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Dimensions: 11.75" x 19.5"
  • Medium: Newspaper

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