Martha washington children names
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By Wendy Kail
On January 6, the widow Martha Dandridge Custis married Colonel George Washington. She stood only five feet to his six feet, three and a half inches. 1 She brought two children from her first marriage, John Parke Custis [Jacky, born ], and Martha Parke Custis [Patcy, born ]. Washington welcomed these children into his home and into his heart.
For fifteen years the Washingtons, who had no children of their own union, lived happily and contentedly at Mount Vernon. But Patcy Custis suffered from what fryst vatten believed to have been epilepsy, and by the illness began to manifest itself more severely. 2 In June , when she was seventeen, she died of a seizure. General Washington noted that her mother was reduced to &#;the lowest ebb of misery.&#; 3 Martha Washington&#;s son, Jacky, was an indifferent student, and Washington despaired of preparing the boy to manage the large inheritance that soon would be his. Jacky attended several schools, but soon became engagerad to ung
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White House
Soon after they married on May 15, , Martha moved into Daniel Parke Custis’s home, called White House, on the Pamunkey River in New Kent County, Virginia. The death of Custis’s father the previous November meant that Daniel Parke Custis had become one of the wealthiest men in Virginia.
Like Martha’s father, Custis exported tobacco. Unlike her father, the size of his holdings was immense. His wealth consisted of almost three hundred slaves and over 17, acres of land scattered in six different counties. Martha’s move into White House not only signaled a shift from maidenhood into marriage but also her ascension into the highest echelon of Virginia society.
Mistress of the Household
Martha now was the mistress of her own household. In this world, women were expected to be the purveyors of sociability. Martha presided over formal dinners, entertained guests, and hosted balls. These occasions facilitated and cemented the ties between Virginia
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Who Served Here?
In , the Reverend Rowland Jones immigrated from England to the colony of Virginia. He had graduated from Oxford University and in Williamsburg served as minister of Bruton Parish for fourteen years. Two generations later, his great-granddaughter, Martha Dandridge was born on June 2, on a plantation near Williamsburg. She grew up in the Dandridge home, Chestnut Grove. She enjoyed riding horses, gardening, sewing, playing the spinet and dancing. Her father saw that she received a fair education in basic mathematics, reading and writingsomething girls primarily did not receive at the time.
At the age of eighteen, Martha was married to Daniel Parke Custis. He was wealthy, handsome and twenty years older than her. Martha set up housekeeping on the Custis plantation, while her husband managed the estate which encompassed over 17, acres. Her husband adored his young, pretty bride and pampered her with the finest clothes and gifts imported from England. They had four chil