Fraunces Tavern Museum

In this lecture, recorded July 16, 2020, Jones examines how America's founding generation grappled with the problems posed by prisoners of war, and how this influenced the wider social and political legacies of the Revolution. As the British denied customary protections to their American captives, the revolutionary leadership wasted no time in capitalizing on the prisoners' ordeals for propagandist purposes. This cycle of violence spiraled out of control, transforming the struggle for colonial independence into a revolutionary war.

In this lecture, recorded June 30, 2020, Libby McNamee discusses her historical fiction book Susanna’s Midnight Ride: The Girl Who Won the Revolutionary War. McNamee discusses her research into Susanna Bolling, the 16-year-old girl who made a heroic midnight ride to save General Lafayette from capture, paving the way for the Battle of Yorktown.

In this lecture, recorded June 17, 2020, Mount Vernon Research Historian Mary Thompson offers a comprehensive account of those who served in bondage at Mount Vernon. Drawing on years of research in a wide range of sources, Thompson brings to life the lives of the enslaved while illuminating the radical change in Washington’s views on slavery and race wrought by the American Revolution, ending in his decision to grant his slaves freedom in his will.

In this lecture, recorded May 21, 2020, Lindsay Chervinsky explores the creation of the first presidential cabinet. Washington modeled his new cabinet on the councils of war he had led as commander of the Continental Army, tinkering with its structure throughout his administration. As Washington faced an increasingly recalcitrant Congress, he came to treat the cabinet as a private advisory body to summon as needed, greatly expanding the role of the president and the executive branch.

The Property of the Nation: George Washington's Tomb, Mount Vernon, and the Memory of the First President Presented by Matthew Costello 2.20.2020

Presented by Barbara Chernow