It was a cold winter
morning on February 22, 1732. This
was more than 200 years ago.Inside a Virginia
farmhouse where it was Warm and cozy, a special
baby boy was born. The baby’s name was George Washington. As little George grew
up, he loved the farm and all of the animals. He loved his
horse best of all. George had two brothers who lived away. He lived with a
younger sister and three younger brothers. They followed George’s every move. ‘‘Let’s
play follow the leader,’’ said
Betty. ‘‘George is the Leader,’’ said John. Samuel and charles agreed. George went to a
small country school. He worked very hard. He was one
of the smartest students. George was also the most honest boy in school. He
grew up very fast. He was bigger and taller than all of the other boys.
Everyone looked up to George. Sometimes
George would choose games for his classmates to play. ‘‘George is a
natural-born leader,’’ his schoolmaster would
say. In a school George liked to
read and to write. He liked
numbers. But he liked
to make maps and measure land best of all.
This is called surveying. George practiced
by measuring the
vegetables gardens on his farm. Many farmers wanted George to
survey their
land. It would help them to know how much seed to buy when it was
time to plant
their crops. George was only a boy
of sixteen. But the farmers trusted
him. They knew George was very smart and
honest. ‘‘He will do a perfect job,’’ one
farmer said to another. George’s big
brother, Lawrence, took him on a surveying
trip in the Virginia wilderness. They
stayed many cold and rainy days and nights.
There were many wild
animals. George learned how to take care Of himself in
the
woods. Living in the wilderness helped George to become an even
greater
leader. When he was only twenty years old he became a major in
the Virginia army.
In 1754 a war broke
out. French settlers and Native Americans in the Ohio valley
would not let the
English settlers have farms there. George Washington was called
to help the
English settlers. He was now Colonel Washington. He led the English
soldiers and they
won the war. Everyone looked up to Colonel Washington. One
day, met a lovely lady named Martha
Custis. She was a widow with two children.
They fell in love and
married in 1759. George and Martha Washington moved
into a beautiful mansion in
Mount Vernon, Virginia. They had many parties, laughter,
and fun in their home. But Colonel Washington was soon called to war again.
It
was 1775. America was a small country with only thirteen colonies
then.
During this time England ruled America. The rulers in
England were mistreating
America. They wanted America to pay unfair
taxes. A war broke out. The
Americans chose George Washington as
their leader. The war lasted eight years.
The Colonel was now
General George Washington. Through his leadership,
the American
colonies won the war. America was no longer ruled by England.
The
colonies became the United States of America. Americans were very
happy. But the new little country needed a leader. Everyone in the land wanted
one and only one for this job-General George Washington. So they made him the
first President of the United States of America on April 30, 1789. On the day of his
inauguration, President George Washington rode on a beautiful white horse on
his way to the ceremony. ‘‘Hooray’’ people cheered when President Washington
stood before them to give to give his speech. Some people cried with joy. President
Washington was a great president. He traveled all over America to see what
the country needed. He passed good laws to help
America. George
Washington
was president for eight years. Afterwards, he went back
to his home in Mount
Vernon. He enjoyed good times and
laughter again with Martha, his family and
friends.
Americans will never forget
the first president of
