Washington Became 'The Father of His Country'

 

George Washington (center, right) is portrayed in Howard Chandler Christy’s painting of the signing of the U.S. Constitution in Philadelphia, September 17, 1787. (Architect of the Capitol/Howard Chandler Christy)

How George Washington became 'the father of his country' - ShareAmerica

Article by Charles Hoskinson

Feb 11, 2026

Like the monument standing in the U.S. capital that bears his name, George Washington’s place in American history is towering.

As a general, his commanding presence inspired the Army that won independence from Britain. As a statesman, he presided over the Constitutional Convention that shaped the United States. And as the country’s first president he established lasting traditions, forging a reputation as “the father of his country.”

Washington’s journey to greatness was no coincidence.

When he showed up for the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia in his militia uniform in 1775, Washington helped the other delegates to see him as a natural choice for Army commander.

Though he resigned his commission after the Revolution, he stayed involved in political affairs, arguing for a stronger national government. This made him a natural choice to lead the Constitutional Convention.

“He was the moving force for the Constitution,” says Edward J. Larson, a law professor at Pepperdine University and author of George Washington, Nationalist. Other delegates had trust in Washington, according to Larson, and that trust moved the effort along.

Washington’s central role in developing the Constitution, in turn, would make him a favorite choice for president among the leaders in attendance.

My Ties to George Washington

My ties are through his wife Martha Dandridge, daughter of John Dandridge II and Frances Orlando Jones.

George Washington married Martha Dandridge. George was her second husband. They had no children together.

Martha Dandridge’s first husband was Daniel Parke Custis. Together they had four children and two other children who died in infancy.

From Martha Dandridge Custis Washington, I go up a generation to her mother Frances Orlando Jones. Frances was the daughter of Orlando Jones and Martha Macon.

Frances O Jones married John Dandridge and their first born child was the aforementioned  Martha Dandridge, the Martha who became the 1^st First Lady of America.

MARTHA MACON was the sister to ANNE MACON (Anne is where my line connects.)

Anne Macon 1685-1728 married Charles Massie 1678 – 1749

Their son Nathaniel Massie Sr 1727-1802 married twice. Elizabeth Watkins and Ann Clark.

With his first wife Elizabeth Watkins, he had 11 children. Their first born was Mary Massie.

Mary Massie 1756 – 1820 married James Robards 1754 – 1803.

Their daughter Agnes Robards 1792- 1870 married Pleasant Henderson.

Their son James Henderson 1818 – 1870 married Susan Sewell.

Their daughter Sarah M Henderson 1853 – 1922 married Mack Manilus McNair

The rest is history…. down to me. The information above brings me to people who my living relatives knew.  

Odd fact: As a child in the early 1960s, my favorite doll was a troll doll that I named Massie. WHERE did that name come from when I was only about 7 years old. I wrote an article titled TOYLAND in 2019, and I highlighted my beloved Massie, a troll doll.

My George Washington

So many years ago, I read a biography of George Washington, after which I determined that he was my ultimate hero. Everything about him seemed top notch and full of character. Now today, I sit and trace my family heritage, and into the view, steps George Washington. Years ago, I was excited to see that a young George had surveyed land for my 6^th great-grandmother, Sophia Pope Muse, who had inherited her father’s land when he died.  I was excited to have such rich history and a small connection in some way to this young boy, George Washington, who would become the Father of our Country.

Now today, with so many references at our fingertips via computer and DNA, I see that I actually have family ties to George Washington. It is a straight line back to Ann Macon when it goes sideways to her sister Martha Macon.

Nancy < Carolita Jones < Ava McNair < Charles McNair < Sarah Henderson <  James Henderson < Agnes Robards < Mary Massie < Nathaniel Massie < Ann Macon…. Ann is the sister of Martha Macon, who was the mother of Frances Jones. Frances was the mother of Martha Dandridge who married George Washington.

It is no wonder now, as I look back, that these families all rubbed shoulders as they carved out the wilderness and moved forward with a common goal. These people helped build most of everything that was to become the United States of America. They came across the ocean with some recognition to their bloodlines. These were the hardy souls who shouldered all the victories and defeats of making America their home and the home of the following generations of people who have enjoyed living in the land of the free!

What do Gen X and millennials Want? Part 3

 THINGS I SEE FROM DAYS GONE BY THAT CAN NEVER BE THE SAME

I copied the article entries, and then addressed each category in bold green  

Photo Albums
No, not the Google photo album on your phone. We're talking real life physical photo albums with real life physical printed photos. Ya, we know—if you're under 30, none of those words make any sense.

It is important not to discard these old photos, especially those family portraits and the old photos from the 1800s and turn of the 20th century. It's your family history. Please cherish these as they cannot be replaced once they are trashed.

Phone Calls
Yes, younger people still make phone calls. However, a text or DM is often the first choice and if someone doesn't answer, you don't leave a message (they can see that you called on their phone).

What is more valuable than someone's voice wishing you a good day, especially someone who truly cares about you. We see it as rude to just hang up and let you guess why we are calling. Then again, we are the generation that will look you in the eye, greet someone openly and value the conversation. We truly were taught proper etiquette.  

Voicemail
Think about the last time you had a voicemail. Odds are it was either from a business confirming an appointment or from someone over 60. And let's not forget...
 We are sorry to inconvenience you with our voices. Same answer as above. 

Leaving Date, Time, And Name In Voicemail
"Hi, it's Dad. It's 1:30, Thursday afternoon..."
 This is not needed anymore, true. As the calls are time stamped. I, however, like to hear a greeting and/or to know if there is something that I need to be aware of. 

Wearing A Suit And Tie To Work
It started with casual Fridays and we've been adding more days of the week ever since.

Believe me, we were most excited when we were allowed to wear jeans on Friday. However, there are certainly professions that we expect to carry the formal protocol. It shows class. We don't expect this to be an everyday thing, but there is nothing wrong with making yourself the best that you can be.
 
Checks
Think about the last time you saw someone write a check? How old were they? There are surely many people reading this who have never written a check in their lives. And never will.

Come on! Our generation didn't live on plastic. It can be a disaster as you rack up debt. When you use a check, you should write down and keep a record of your expenses. This younger generation does not seem to understand living within their means. NOT racking up a huge debt! It is also a way that I save some people, like my hair stylist, from having the expense of processing payments. Then honestly, we are not adept enough, nor trust our phones with our finances. 

Formal Living Rooms
For all you young people: A formal living room was a full room in the house that was only used when guests came over. It also usually had nicer furniture and accoutrements than did the regular living room that was used by the family 99% of the time. And not only was it only used when guests came over—you were not allowed to step foot into it at any other time. 

I pity those who find this as something to complain about. It is with pride that we have a room that represents us. When guest arrive, they don't walk into a room that is littered with our mess of the day. 
 
Couches Wrapped In Plastic
This one pretty much ended with the parents of boomers—but there were probably a few boomers who kept the annoyingly noisy and uncomfortable tradition alive.

No, we no longer live on plastic wrapped couches. But let me put it into perspective. My parents had nothing when they started out. Times were tough after WWII, and when Daddy began to make enough to start buying good furniture in the early 1950's, my parents had 1 toddler and 2 very young children. And NO, we didn't live on it for all that long. I can only imagine how Mother felt when she finally decided to take off the cover...and let go of the "newness".
 
Cable
The cord-cutting began years ago and with the proliferation of streaming services, it's only gotten worse (for cable companies, that is). From just under 100 million cable household subscribers in 2017, that number now sits under 70 million in the United States—not to mention the fact that close to 80% of cable subscribers are over 60 years old.

Instead of bashing us, maybe you should seek out an elderly couple who doesn't understand new technology...and help them out, setting it up with explanations. We live on a set income, and we prefer to do things ourselves, BUT hiring people to come in, takes money, time and trust. You will understand one of these days, when things seem to have left you behind. 

Organized Religion
No, we definitely aren't predicting the end of religion. That's not going to happen. However, we can point out that 68% of 18 to 49-year-olds are religiously unaffiliated—as compared to 18% in the 80s.

I'm speechless and heartbroken about this. I will go to my grave knowing that THIS is the main reason our nation is falling apart. We believe in the word of God. We understand that following His laws are difficult and that hard truths are buried deep in those laws. People now-adays want to change the narrative to make it easier to live with a clear conscience, so they set a new standard, rather than to live by the law. In the end, you will face judgement.
 
Cash
Again, like religion, we aren't predicting it will go away completely. But think about how often you tap and swipe as opposed to pull out cash from your wallet to pay for anything. You might've also noticed more and more businesses popping up with signs saying "Cash Not Accepted".

I have no words. The value of a dollar in your hand and understanding that when it is passed OFF in exchange for an item, it is NO longer in your hand. You have to build up the supply again before the next purchase. Just like recording and keep up with your paper checks. I addressed the PLASTIC world above and it is disgusting how people are living in debt because they want to be instantly gratified.
 

What do Gen X and Millennials Want? Part 2

Here is the article. It was the title that created unrest within me. The "Fingers Crossed" part. Like wishing my generation would just Go. Away! Again, Now I understand what my mother and my mother-in-law were thinking and feeling when they were my age. They both voiced concern about the direction we, as a nation, were going.

Everything that will disappear with the baby boomer generation (fingers crossed)

https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/parenting/everything-that-will-disappear-with-the-baby-boomer-generation-fingers-crossed/ss-AA1Vun1n?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=698463c3b2f34cecaab1d59890494c0e&ei=46#image=30

Here's the introduction to the article, "Born between 1946 and 1964, Baby Boomers are now in their 60s and 70s—and they’re still happily doing (and using) a bunch of stuff that younger generations mostly treat like urban legends. Which means as the Boomer era fades out, a surprising list of items, habits, and everyday rituals might fade out with it—possibly for good."

For good... yep! let's do away with them. That’s fine…but there are a few things that are deep core principles of human nature that are disturbing for the young people to ignore. I have decided to divide their complaints into two sections because, I don't use some of these things anymore, either. Which led me to the wording "urban legend". Let me clarify. The things listed in this article are HISTORY, not urban legend. As a schoolteacher, it was fun to teach urban legends. But that is not what these things are.

URBAN LEGEND - definition.  Urban legend (sometimes modern legend, urban myth, or simply legend) is a genre of folklore concerning stories about an unusual (usually scary) or humorous event that many people believe to be true but largely are not.

In this Part 2, I will address the things that I admittedly do not use anymore, just because life moves forward, things change and we adapt to that. It make me sad that these younger people don't realize that THEY are the ones leaving us behind. I was lucky enough to still be a teacher when the computer was introduced into the classroom and had training on how to use them. And honestly, it was fascinating to see how my students could quickly adapt and help teach ME. But now as a retired person, I DO feel left behind with some of the newer technology, and no one seems to care that these concepts are difficult for older people who don't have the capabilities to understand their usage. I remember how my mother-in-law felt "left behind". It's a situation where we don't have access to people who can teach us, help us, make these transitions. 

But anyway, here are the things on the list that I don't use. No need to cross your fingers in hopes that they will go away.

Email Forwards
"It will be nice not to have our email filled with these kind of subject lines anymore: Re:fwd:fwd:fwd:fwd:fwd: funny"

I, too, hated these anyway. It cluttered my inbox and I would spend wasted energy reading them.
Fax Machines
"Raise your hand if you still have a fax machine? Put your hand down if you were born after 1964... we're just going to assume that very few hands came down."

We had these at school, and back in the day, that was the new way to get things quickly into the hands of someone else. It was part of the progress forward. 
Encyclopedias
"Honestly, we're not sure they even produce physical encyclopedia books anymore. Which means that most of the ones still in existence probably reside on bookshelves in the homes of Gen X and millennials' parents."

Again, part of history moving forward. I'm fearful that books are disappearing, another way to brainwash people and not read history as it was...only reading what is 'online' as the way someone wants you to see the story. Today, I do find it more accessible to get the information online. But let's not rewrite history. And yes, I do have my mother-in- law's encyclopedia set sitting on a shelf because when they moved out of state, she offered them to me. As a teacher, I hit a gold mine to have these in my home as reference. Remember, we didn't have things available with a click on a screen. PLEASE, remember history!

The Yellow Pages
"Really? We're pretty sure even baby boomers don't use those big yellow phone books anymore."

Well, article is correct. I don't see any way to place all the numbers anymore into one book like the phone book use to be. I miss it, as it was so much easier than clicking and clicking, trying to find the exact listing, and then finding ALL other kinds of information, not knowing who might be truly qualified. 

Harley Davidson
"Once a symbol of rebellion, Harley Davidson is now that really loud bike the old guy in your town drives around." It was a big deal back then, but hardly any of us rode motorcycles. Don't make it sound like we all had one. In actuality, it was only a few.
Having 2.5 Kids
"1977 marked the last time the average American family had more than two kids—barely, at 2.01. By 1978, it slipped to 1.96, and it’s never climbed past 1.95 since, quietly cementing the two-kid household as a thing of the past."  I don't blame young people for not wanting more kids than they can care for. If we look back into our history, though, when families worked the land and fed themselves properly off of that land, they needed more help to do ALL that work. It was okay for them to not have birth control. Loosen up, it was the way life was for them back then. No one is slamming you for your decisions today. 

What do Gen X and Millennials Want?

 The State of Affairs

Sometimes my heart feels saddened and deeply troubled by what I see going on around me in the world. Of course, I use to roll my eyes when my mother would say, “Things are going’ to hell in a hand basket.” She was a person who … watched a brother leave home to fight the Nazi’s in WWII and he was placed right in the thick of things for the Battle of the Bulge. She grew up during the Great Depression. They had hardly anything, and yet they had everything. They were loved. They had family who helped one another and mostly, they had faith in the good Lord; that He would provide. They had extended family living nearby, and they were surrounded by the love of that family and their community. It was a time when they relied on one another and lived in the moment. They went to the movie theater to see the introductory news clips to find out what was happening overseas.  Going to the theater was a treat, but a ‘must-do’ so they would know the news. They gathered around the radio to hear what was happening outside their bubble. My mother was a person who lost EVERYTHING in a house fire. All she had was the shirt on her back. Literally, they didn’t even have shoes on, as they played outdoors barefoot.  But they had family and community and Pappy provided what he could in the days to come as they rebuilt. All of that is a story of its own…but it leads me to today….

When I opened the computer to my home screen, there was an article that was creepy down to the core of my spine. I know that today’s generation would be rolling their eyes at me. I never thought that I would see our world deteriorate into the ideology of today; it’s unfathomable to me.

But here I go…all for nothing.

I open this “all knowing” computer screen where children can lose their innocence way too soon because they can access unthinkable things and are bombarded with ads for things that are far above where they are emotionally, desensitized by decaying values of morals on all levels. So…here I sit sounding much like my mother and my husband’s mother. I’m glad they are no longer here to see what is being shown in an instance to the world. The latest most appalling thing that I saw was a gown (if you could call it that) on the red carpet of the Grammies. I don’t think I could call it a dress, but rather nudity. The dress was attached to her nipples, then draping down to her midriff, revealing her breast not just her cleavage.

Then after being completely disgusted by the wording of the above said article (which I will address in the next Post), I decided to change direction and work with the music on my computer…to which I’m sure the above said millennials would be totally disgusted with me for wanting to have at my own disposal…my own music.  I opened iTunes and was once again blasted by things that are despicable and unacceptable:  Title of songs, names of artist and groups, horrifying graphics…. the things of nightmares. Following are a few of the headliners: Demon Hunters, The Great Satan, Megadeth, Mayhem, Liturgy of Death, Midnight Blitzy by Tailgunner (with skeletons), Engines of Demolition by Black Label Society.

I pity these young people who will be raising our next generation, as they will reap the benefits…or should I say, demise… of this type of culture. My eye fell on a title and I investigated, as it was an album titled Into Oblivion by the artist Lamb of God. Really? Here are the titles of the tracks on the album: Into Oblivion, Parasocial Christ, Sepsis, The Killing Floor, Blunt Force Blues, Bully, Devise and Destroy.

Man oh Man oh Man…. are we in trouble now. YES!

So, an introduction to address the article about what is offensive to millennials about my generation turned into a rant. The information about the article will be continued in the next blog or two because I am passionate about what I’m seeing as decay in our young people. It will not get better. I have faith that there are some great young people who will cleave to what is truly good and right in this world.

More Later…

Happy New Year!

 HAKUNA MATATA

Hakuna matata is a Swahili phrase that translates to “no worries” or “there are no problems.” It conveys a carefee attitude and encourages people not to stress about things beyond their control. This is the perfect mantra for the new year.

As we age, we are faced with more life behind us than before us. We are faced with the loss of love and life. Yet there is space for new life, new love, and new beginnings.

I began my year with a new puppy .... yes, a puppy. I forgot what new energy that brings to your world. As I let go of the past pain and disappointments, may I look forward to new discoveries and new adventures; may I celebrate my victories and all that life has taught me. 

Hakuna matata...may I worry less about things I cannot change! AND may my new puppy, Miss Dixie Belle, lead the way.