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George Washington was bom into a society that accepted slavery, inheriting slaves from his father at the age of 11.
When he and Martha Curtis married in 1759, their combined slave community at Mount Vernon numbered about 50.
According to records, Washington purchased approximately 50 slaves between 1754 and 1772, just two years before the Revolutionary War.
It was during the War, when Washington led the new nation in its battle for freedom, that his views on slavery began to change, eventually leading to his resolve never to buy or sell another slave.
In 1797, just two years before his death, Washington wrote to Lawrence Lewis saying, “I wish from my soul that the legislature of this State could see a policy of gradual abolition of slavery.”
During his presidency, Washington privately advocated a policy of gradual emancipation through legislative action.
Washington provided for the emancipation of his slaves in his last will and testament.
In addition to freedom, he left detailed instructions for the continued care and support of the elderly and chil- * dren.
Many newly freed slaves lived at Mount Vernon as " pensioners into the 1830s.
Of the 316 slaves living at Mount Vernon in 1799,123 belonged to George Washington. Those 123 slaves were freed on January 1,1801.
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