Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Viking (2021), Edition: First Edition, 400 pages
Description
"Does George Washington still matter? The bestselling author argues for his unique contribution to the forging of America by retracing his journey as a new President through the former colonies, now an unsure nation. A new first-person voice for Philbrick, weaving history and personal reflection into one narrative. When George Washington became president in 1798, the United States of America was still a loose and quarrelsome confederation and a tentative political experiment. Washington undertook a tour of the ex-colonies to talk to ordinary citizens about their lives and their feelings about his new government, and to imbue in them the idea of being one thing--Americans. Nathaniel Philbrick embarked on his own journey into what Washington called "the infant woody country"--and to see for himself what it had become in the 230 years since. Writing in a thoughtful first person about his own adventures with his travel companions (wife and puppy), Philbrick follows the tour of America that Washington went on after becoming President--an almost 2,000-mile journey from Mount Vernon to the new capital in New York, a tour of New England, a venture out across Long Island, and into the hinterlands of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. The narrative moves smoothly back and forth from the eighteenth to twenty-first centuries, so we see the country through Washington's eyes as well as Philbrick's. Written at a moment when America's foundational ideals--or claims to them--are under scrutiny, Travels with George grapples bluntly and honestly with George Washington's legacy as a man of the people, a mythical figure of the early republic, a reluctant President, and a plantation owner who held people in slavery. At historic houses and landmarks, Philbrick reports on the reinterpretations at work, as well as meeting reenactors and other keepers of the flame. He paints a picture of 18th century America as divided and fraught as it is today, and he comes to understand how Washington entranced, compelled, enticed, and stood up to the many different kinds of citizens he met on this journey--and how through belief, vision, and sheer will he convinced them that they were now all Americans, creating a sense of national solidarity that had never existed before"--… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member SamSattler
Nathaniel Philbrick’s Travels with George is one of those books that appeals to readers on multiple levels. In my case, it particularly appeals because it recounts a modern road trip that exactly mimics the one taken by George Washington in 1789 only six months after his inauguration as
Washington knew in 1789 that the country he had been elected to help govern could fall apart much more quickly than it had been created. Governors of the thirteen former colonies, to a man, still considered their state boundaries as the “country” in which they lived. Two states, North Carolina and Rhode Island, had not even ratified the Constitution by the time that Washington’s inauguration came. And that is precisely why Washington hit the road.
The brand new president decided it was time for him to make himself available to ordinary citizens so that they could express their concerns about the new government directly to him. At the same time, Washington hoped to convince the people he spoke with that they now had a new identity in common with everyone else in the former colonies: they were Americans. Some 229 years later (in 2018), Nathaniel Philbrick decided to follow in Washington’s tracks to see if the people in America were any more united today than they were when Washington first embarked on his own travels.
Washington began his trip by traveling through the New England states, but he bypassed Rhode Island until that state finally ratified the Constitution. The president would only, in fact, visit Rhode Island after the state’s ratification of the document, and he combined that portion of his road trip with a tour of Long Island where it is believed he spent time with several of the anonymous spies who were instrumental in key military victories over the British. A second, even longer, road trip was undertaken a few months later during which all of the Southern states were visited. Washington was happy to learn during this portion of his tour of America that the expected opposition from Southern leaders was not as common as he had feared it to be.
It is unlikely that any other national figure could have united the former colonies as quickly or as securely as George Washington managed it through his reputation, words, and action. During his travels, the purposely accessible new president stayed in public inns rather than in the much more comfortable, and private, homes of political allies who would have been happy to offer him shelter. He also despised all the pomp and ceremony that so many local dignitaries wanted him to sit through, and despite being a very private man, he made sure that everyone at least got a look at him if they wanted one.
Washington, though, was far from perfect. He owned slaves, his wife owned slaves, and the family’s profiteering from slavery cannot be glossed over. Philbrick, to his credit, takes an approach to the past that I appreciate: he hides nothing, but he never forgets that:
“A reckoning is going on in which many Americans have come to wonder whether anything from our country’s history is worth saving. People from the past — even from just a few decades ago — will inevitably fail to meet the evolving standards of the present. That does not mean they failed to meet in their own imperfect way, the challenges of their own time as best they could.” (Page 171)
I wish more people, historians included, would keep this in mind.
Bottom Line: I thoroughly enjoyed the comparisons that Philbrick makes between what he and his wife encounter on the road and what Washington saw in the same locations two centuries earlier. This country may be just as divided today as it was during Washington’s first term as president but the union held then, and what Philbrick heard from strangers during his own travels gives me confidence that the same will be true today. George Washington was a remarkable man, someone who came along at precisely the moment he was needed most. Washington sensed that he had the power and the charisma to make the United States into whatever he wanted it to be, even into a dictatorship if he chose to do so. But as Philbrick says, “…his (Washington’s) only interest was in establishing a federal government that was strong enough to survive without him.” And he did it.
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America’s first president. But, in addition to being a book about identical road trips separated by centuries, Philbrick also explores Washington’s intimate involvement in the enslavement of Africans and their descendants for the benefit of himself and his wife’s family. Washington knew in 1789 that the country he had been elected to help govern could fall apart much more quickly than it had been created. Governors of the thirteen former colonies, to a man, still considered their state boundaries as the “country” in which they lived. Two states, North Carolina and Rhode Island, had not even ratified the Constitution by the time that Washington’s inauguration came. And that is precisely why Washington hit the road.
The brand new president decided it was time for him to make himself available to ordinary citizens so that they could express their concerns about the new government directly to him. At the same time, Washington hoped to convince the people he spoke with that they now had a new identity in common with everyone else in the former colonies: they were Americans. Some 229 years later (in 2018), Nathaniel Philbrick decided to follow in Washington’s tracks to see if the people in America were any more united today than they were when Washington first embarked on his own travels.
Washington began his trip by traveling through the New England states, but he bypassed Rhode Island until that state finally ratified the Constitution. The president would only, in fact, visit Rhode Island after the state’s ratification of the document, and he combined that portion of his road trip with a tour of Long Island where it is believed he spent time with several of the anonymous spies who were instrumental in key military victories over the British. A second, even longer, road trip was undertaken a few months later during which all of the Southern states were visited. Washington was happy to learn during this portion of his tour of America that the expected opposition from Southern leaders was not as common as he had feared it to be.
It is unlikely that any other national figure could have united the former colonies as quickly or as securely as George Washington managed it through his reputation, words, and action. During his travels, the purposely accessible new president stayed in public inns rather than in the much more comfortable, and private, homes of political allies who would have been happy to offer him shelter. He also despised all the pomp and ceremony that so many local dignitaries wanted him to sit through, and despite being a very private man, he made sure that everyone at least got a look at him if they wanted one.
Washington, though, was far from perfect. He owned slaves, his wife owned slaves, and the family’s profiteering from slavery cannot be glossed over. Philbrick, to his credit, takes an approach to the past that I appreciate: he hides nothing, but he never forgets that:
“A reckoning is going on in which many Americans have come to wonder whether anything from our country’s history is worth saving. People from the past — even from just a few decades ago — will inevitably fail to meet the evolving standards of the present. That does not mean they failed to meet in their own imperfect way, the challenges of their own time as best they could.” (Page 171)
I wish more people, historians included, would keep this in mind.
Bottom Line: I thoroughly enjoyed the comparisons that Philbrick makes between what he and his wife encounter on the road and what Washington saw in the same locations two centuries earlier. This country may be just as divided today as it was during Washington’s first term as president but the union held then, and what Philbrick heard from strangers during his own travels gives me confidence that the same will be true today. George Washington was a remarkable man, someone who came along at precisely the moment he was needed most. Washington sensed that he had the power and the charisma to make the United States into whatever he wanted it to be, even into a dictatorship if he chose to do so. But as Philbrick says, “…his (Washington’s) only interest was in establishing a federal government that was strong enough to survive without him.” And he did it.
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LibraryThing member DCBlack
Part travelogue, part history, this is a light read that also serves as a vicarious road-trip to the various locales in the original colonies that George Washington visited during the first few years of his presidency. I learned some history that was new to me, and got some ideas for places I may
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want to visit after the pandemic ends and I am able to do more traveling. Show Less
LibraryThing member DanTarlin
Inventive idea for a history book- Philbrick, along with his wife and dog, travel the east coast of the US retracing the steps of George Washington during t he years of his presidency. Washington toured every state in 4 separate trips, an arduous journey by horse and buggy between 1789 and 1791.
Philbrick sees these trips as Washington's attempt to unify the country in the face of the political differences of the day between the Hamiltonian Federalists and the Jeffersonian anti-Federalists. The author doesn't neglect the fact of Washington's slave-owning either, and leaves room throughout the book to examine the contradiction inherent to the nation's founding.
I enjoyed the book. I compare it to history books by my favorite history authors- Doris Kearns Goodwin, David McCullough, Stephen Ambrose, Ron Chernow- and it comes off well. It's more accessible and an easier read than those authors, who sometimes load their books with such dense detail, whereas Philbrick doesn't feel the need to enlighten me about what George ate for breakfast each morning. At the same time, the way this is written leaves me with a foot in today's world rather than immersing me in the 18th century.
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The book intertwines Philbrick's trip viewing historical sights and speaking with docents at various museums with an account of Washington's trip and the politics involved.Philbrick sees these trips as Washington's attempt to unify the country in the face of the political differences of the day between the Hamiltonian Federalists and the Jeffersonian anti-Federalists. The author doesn't neglect the fact of Washington's slave-owning either, and leaves room throughout the book to examine the contradiction inherent to the nation's founding.
I enjoyed the book. I compare it to history books by my favorite history authors- Doris Kearns Goodwin, David McCullough, Stephen Ambrose, Ron Chernow- and it comes off well. It's more accessible and an easier read than those authors, who sometimes load their books with such dense detail, whereas Philbrick doesn't feel the need to enlighten me about what George ate for breakfast each morning. At the same time, the way this is written leaves me with a foot in today's world rather than immersing me in the 18th century.
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LibraryThing member IrinaR
Philbrick is guilty of what C.S. Lewis called 'chronological snobbery.' It's a shame that someone who, generally, writes well and considers himself a 'historian' judges historical figures through the lens of 21st century 'sensibilities' and endorses the removal of monuments and markers because he
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finds them inconvenient. Philbrick does this with Washington himself and inflicts his biases on his unsuspecting reader. There are too many truly good books on this subject out there, written by real historians who understand the dangers of erasing history and looking back with the superiority of our 21st century 'wisdom'....or lack thereof. Not worth spending time with this book! Show Less
LibraryThing member thewanderingjew
Travels with George: In Search of Washington and His Legacy, Nathanial Philbrick, author and narrator.
The book is mainly a description of the author’s road trip with his dog Dora and his wife Melissa. They visited the places, across America’s thirteen colonies, that George Washington visited on
Because of the distance and his mode of travel, Washington did sleep in a lot of places and eat in a lot of places, private and public, since not all roads had equal facilities. Also, as with our current government, the times were rife with disagreement, backroom discussions and secret agreements between enemies and friends alike. Washington was not aware of the plots to oppose some of his policies from his own cabinet. It reminded me of some of today’s Congressional struggles. However, the seat of government was established, as it went from New York City to Philadelphia to its final home, in Washington DC.
More than the history of George Washington, the book includes the relevance of slavery and the resultant racism of the times. It is an obvious choice of topic since identity politics is a very strong issue today, and the problem of racism is at the forefront, including reparations for ancestors of slaves. Although the book seems to condemn the practice of dividing us by race, during George’s time, it refrained from mentioning the identity politics that divides us today. Patrick Henry’s “united we stand, divided we fall”, seemed to be the growing movement then. Today, we seem to be promoting the opposite. Many of the policies, both negative and positive, attributed to the Republicans of Washington’s time, a far different Party then, than the one of the same name today, are now practiced by Democrats in our times, i.e. labeling people by background and supporting a policy that divides us by race, religion and birthplace, or country of origin. Historically, it was a very different time, however, and it is relevant that not only George was a slave holder, but so were many others including Thomas Jefferson.
The author does point out the obvious flaws in America, regarding slavery and racism, and he also reveals those who had slaves and those whose family had slaves, as well as those who also abused them. George Washington had a side many of us would not approve of, as he was known not only to own slaves, but to punish them and put bounties on the heads of those who escaped, even though he professed to want an end to the practice. When in Washington DC, the author visited the African American Museum, but he made no mention of the belief by some, that Clarence Thomas, the Supreme Court Justice, was presented unfairly because of partisan politics. Justice Thomas is a Conservative. On the other hand, he revealed a little-known fact about Alexander Hamilton, not revealed by Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway play, “Hamilton”. Alexander Hamilton was also a slave owner.
I have been to many of the places that Philbrick mentions in the book: Cape Cod, Nantucket, Cold Spring, Oyster Bay, Rye and Charleston, on the East Coast, as well as Punta Gorda on the Gulf, on the west coast of Florida. I never knew about many of the landmarks he mentioned, however. Some of the locations only had simple markers on the land. The place was not preserved.
When you get right down to it, however, it is an easy book to listen to, with interesting tidbits offered. I had no idea that Greenwich CT had not always been Greenwich, but had once been called Horseneck! I never knew about the boundary rock in Alexandria or the 40 stones that marked the perimeter of the permanent seat of our government. There are many such reveals as the travels of the “father of our country” are explored. Did Washington really chop down a cherry tree?
Philbrick reads his book admirably well and seems to be enjoying both the trip and the narrating. When realizing that so much of the research was of documents and restored places protected by historical societies, I found it sad that today we do not write letters or preserve our artifacts with the same zeal. Will we have to rename Washington DC because George had slaves? What about Washington University? Will the statues of Alexander Hamilton be destroyed, pulled down? Will the faces on our money be changed? We are canceling our history and our culture by tearing down statues and renaming landmarks in the interest of alleviating every member of our society’s grievances, rather than educating everyone on the meaning of our past.
I found the descriptions of the cars they drove during their trip, the many dogs, some running in the surf and the insects, like chiggers, to all be interesting nuggets, but they seemed irrelevant to the trip that George took in 1789. As Philbrick traveled with his dog Dora, George traveled with his horse, Prescott. John Steinbeck traveled with his dog Charley. They each had their familiar or beloved companion. It is safe to say, however, that each of them loved the country, and many patriots, historians and philosophers still with us, really do love and respect America and Americans whether it is a melting pot or a stew.
The book is mainly a description of the author’s road trip with his dog Dora and his wife Melissa. They visited the places, across America’s thirteen colonies, that George Washington visited on
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his very own road trip in 1789, albeit not by car, rather by horse or carriage and sometimes on foot! Some places of legend turned out to be true and some simply rumor. There are false stories of Washington’s history concerning Elm trees, and there are letters attributed to George that were not written by him. Some of the places no longer resembled what they once were, or were completely gone, so that they existed only in that specific location in one’s imagination. Because of the distance and his mode of travel, Washington did sleep in a lot of places and eat in a lot of places, private and public, since not all roads had equal facilities. Also, as with our current government, the times were rife with disagreement, backroom discussions and secret agreements between enemies and friends alike. Washington was not aware of the plots to oppose some of his policies from his own cabinet. It reminded me of some of today’s Congressional struggles. However, the seat of government was established, as it went from New York City to Philadelphia to its final home, in Washington DC.
More than the history of George Washington, the book includes the relevance of slavery and the resultant racism of the times. It is an obvious choice of topic since identity politics is a very strong issue today, and the problem of racism is at the forefront, including reparations for ancestors of slaves. Although the book seems to condemn the practice of dividing us by race, during George’s time, it refrained from mentioning the identity politics that divides us today. Patrick Henry’s “united we stand, divided we fall”, seemed to be the growing movement then. Today, we seem to be promoting the opposite. Many of the policies, both negative and positive, attributed to the Republicans of Washington’s time, a far different Party then, than the one of the same name today, are now practiced by Democrats in our times, i.e. labeling people by background and supporting a policy that divides us by race, religion and birthplace, or country of origin. Historically, it was a very different time, however, and it is relevant that not only George was a slave holder, but so were many others including Thomas Jefferson.
The author does point out the obvious flaws in America, regarding slavery and racism, and he also reveals those who had slaves and those whose family had slaves, as well as those who also abused them. George Washington had a side many of us would not approve of, as he was known not only to own slaves, but to punish them and put bounties on the heads of those who escaped, even though he professed to want an end to the practice. When in Washington DC, the author visited the African American Museum, but he made no mention of the belief by some, that Clarence Thomas, the Supreme Court Justice, was presented unfairly because of partisan politics. Justice Thomas is a Conservative. On the other hand, he revealed a little-known fact about Alexander Hamilton, not revealed by Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway play, “Hamilton”. Alexander Hamilton was also a slave owner.
I have been to many of the places that Philbrick mentions in the book: Cape Cod, Nantucket, Cold Spring, Oyster Bay, Rye and Charleston, on the East Coast, as well as Punta Gorda on the Gulf, on the west coast of Florida. I never knew about many of the landmarks he mentioned, however. Some of the locations only had simple markers on the land. The place was not preserved.
When you get right down to it, however, it is an easy book to listen to, with interesting tidbits offered. I had no idea that Greenwich CT had not always been Greenwich, but had once been called Horseneck! I never knew about the boundary rock in Alexandria or the 40 stones that marked the perimeter of the permanent seat of our government. There are many such reveals as the travels of the “father of our country” are explored. Did Washington really chop down a cherry tree?
Philbrick reads his book admirably well and seems to be enjoying both the trip and the narrating. When realizing that so much of the research was of documents and restored places protected by historical societies, I found it sad that today we do not write letters or preserve our artifacts with the same zeal. Will we have to rename Washington DC because George had slaves? What about Washington University? Will the statues of Alexander Hamilton be destroyed, pulled down? Will the faces on our money be changed? We are canceling our history and our culture by tearing down statues and renaming landmarks in the interest of alleviating every member of our society’s grievances, rather than educating everyone on the meaning of our past.
I found the descriptions of the cars they drove during their trip, the many dogs, some running in the surf and the insects, like chiggers, to all be interesting nuggets, but they seemed irrelevant to the trip that George took in 1789. As Philbrick traveled with his dog Dora, George traveled with his horse, Prescott. John Steinbeck traveled with his dog Charley. They each had their familiar or beloved companion. It is safe to say, however, that each of them loved the country, and many patriots, historians and philosophers still with us, really do love and respect America and Americans whether it is a melting pot or a stew.
Show Less
Awards
Massachusetts Book Award (Honor Book — Nonfiction — 2022)
Original language
English
Original publication date
2021
Physical description
400 p.; 9.27 inches
ISBN
0525562176 / 9780525562177
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