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First family : George Washington's heirs and the making of America / Cassandra A. Good.
- Format:
- Book
- Author/Creator:
- Good, Cassandra A., author.
- Language:
- English
- Subjects (All):
- Washington, George, 1732-1799--Family.
- Washington, George.
- Washington family.
- Custis family.
- Lewis, Nelly Custis, 1779-1852.
- Lewis, Nelly Custis.
- Custis, George Washington Parke, 1781-1857.
- Custis, George Washington Parke.
- Washington, George, 1732-1799.
- United States--History--1815-1861.
- United States.
- Families.
- Genre:
- Biography.
- Biographies.
- History.
- Physical Description:
- 429 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), genealogical tables ; 24 cm.
- Other Title:
- George Washington's heirs and the making of America
- Place of Publication:
- Toronto, Ontario : Hanover Square Press, [2023]
- Summary:
- "In First Family, we see Washington as a father figure, as well as meet the children he helped raise and trace their complicated roles in American history."--Inside jacket.
- "While it's widely known in America that George and Martha Washington never had children of their own, few are aware that they raised numerous children together. In First Family, we see Washington as a father figure, as well as meet the children he helped raise and trace their complicated roles in American history. The children of Martha Washington's son by her first marriage-Eliza, Patty, Nelly and Wash Custis-were born into life in the public eye. Raised in the country's first "first family," they remained well-known as Washington's family and keepers of his legacy throughout their lives. By turns petty and powerful, glamorous and cruel, the Custises used Washington as a means to enhance their own power and status. As enslavers committed to the American empire, the Custis family embodied the failures of the American experiment that finally exploded into civil war-all the while being celebrities in a soap opera of their own making. First Family brings new focus and attention to this surprisingly neglected aspect of George Washington's life and legacy. As the country grapples with concerns about political dynasties and the public role of presidential families, the saga of Washington's family offers a human story of historical precedent." -- Amazon.com.
- Contents:
- Family trees
- Washington's children
- The first family grows up
- The ruling family of Washington
- Washington City's first family
- A country and family split
- The Custises at war
- America's family: the first family returns to the spotlight
- The Custises confront slavery
- The Custis Empire
- "Relicts of a past age".
- Notes:
- Includes bibliographical references (pages 339-413) and index.
- Local Notes:
- Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Sylvia W. Kauders Fund.
- ISBN:
- 9781335449511
- 1335449515
- OCLC:
- 1351734828
- Publisher Number:
- 99994212564
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