Blab News
Newly Discovered 1787 Letter Reveals George Washingtons Cash Struggles
In March 1787, a freshly unearthed letter from George Washington exposes the unexpected cash woes of the nation’s first president.
The missive, dated 5 March 1787, was addressed to Colonel Israel Shreve—a New Jersey farmer who had served under Washington at Valley Forge. Washington writes that he was willing to sell a 1,644‑acre tract of land along the Youghiogheny River in western Pennsylvania, known as Washington’s Bottom, but only if the buyer could pay in cash. He rejected Shreve’s offer to use military certificates, stating that the certificates “if they cannot be converted into cash, will not answer my purpose.” The letter, hidden in the archives until its discovery in 2023, arrives more than two centuries after it was penned.
Washington’s financial picture at the time was a blend of land wealth and cash scarcity. Mount Vernon’s agricultural output had slipped while he was away leading the Continental Army, leaving him in a serious cash hole. Nathan Raab, president of the Raab Collection, described Washington as “helping family, entertaining people at his home, and he needed money.” The estate was asset‑rich but illiquid; most of his wealth was tied up in land and enslaved labor, not readily convertible to cash.
The letter highlights a structural problem that plagued many of the era’s landed gentry. Washington controlled up to 70,000 acres, yet the value of that land could not be tapped quickly. Selling distant property for cash was a slow and uncertain process, and Washington’s reluctance to accept credit reflects the liquidity constraints that shaped his decision to travel to Philadelphia in February 1787. He ultimately presided over the Constitutional Convention and was elected the first U.S. president two years later.
Washington eventually sold the 1,644 acres to Shreve, but the transaction was completed during Washington’s second presidential term, and Shreve paid in cash. The two men died on the same day, 14 December 1799. The sale closed after Washington had already begun to address his financial needs as president.
The discovery adds a personal dimension to Washington’s public legacy. It shows that even the nation’s founding figure faced ordinary financial challenges and had to make practical decisions about land and cash. The letter also provides context for Washington’s later actions, including his continued reliance on land sales to manage liquidity.
Benjamin Huggins of the University of Virginia’s Washington Papers project called the release a “great discovery,” noting that it is a small but real addition to the record of a man most people remember in marble. The letter does not alter the overall narrative of Washington’s life but offers a concrete example of the economic realities that shaped his choices.
The letter is now part of the Raab Collection’s public holdings. No further legal or governmental actions are pending. Historians and scholars are expected to incorporate the document into future studies of Washington’s finances and the early republic’s land‑sale practices. The letter remains a key piece of evidence for understanding the financial pressures that influenced Washington’s decision to lead the Constitutional Convention and later the nation.
The find underscores the importance of primary documents in reconstructing historical figures’ personal circumstances. It also highlights how Washington’s cash‑poor condition, despite his wealth in land and enslaved labor, was a factor that influenced his political and economic decisions during a formative period in American history.
The missive, dated 5 March 1787, was addressed to Colonel Israel Shreve—a New Jersey farmer who had served under Washington at Valley Forge. Washington writes that he was willing to sell a 1,644‑acre tract of land along the Youghiogheny River in western Pennsylvania, known as Washington’s Bottom, but only if the buyer could pay in cash. He rejected Shreve’s offer to use military certificates, stating that the certificates “if they cannot be converted into cash, will not answer my purpose.” The letter, hidden in the archives until its discovery in 2023, arrives more than two centuries after it was penned.
Washington’s financial picture at the time was a blend of land wealth and cash scarcity. Mount Vernon’s agricultural output had slipped while he was away leading the Continental Army, leaving him in a serious cash hole. Nathan Raab, president of the Raab Collection, described Washington as “helping family, entertaining people at his home, and he needed money.” The estate was asset‑rich but illiquid; most of his wealth was tied up in land and enslaved labor, not readily convertible to cash.
The letter highlights a structural problem that plagued many of the era’s landed gentry. Washington controlled up to 70,000 acres, yet the value of that land could not be tapped quickly. Selling distant property for cash was a slow and uncertain process, and Washington’s reluctance to accept credit reflects the liquidity constraints that shaped his decision to travel to Philadelphia in February 1787. He ultimately presided over the Constitutional Convention and was elected the first U.S. president two years later.
Washington eventually sold the 1,644 acres to Shreve, but the transaction was completed during Washington’s second presidential term, and Shreve paid in cash. The two men died on the same day, 14 December 1799. The sale closed after Washington had already begun to address his financial needs as president.
The discovery adds a personal dimension to Washington’s public legacy. It shows that even the nation’s founding figure faced ordinary financial challenges and had to make practical decisions about land and cash. The letter also provides context for Washington’s later actions, including his continued reliance on land sales to manage liquidity.
Benjamin Huggins of the University of Virginia’s Washington Papers project called the release a “great discovery,” noting that it is a small but real addition to the record of a man most people remember in marble. The letter does not alter the overall narrative of Washington’s life but offers a concrete example of the economic realities that shaped his choices.
The letter is now part of the Raab Collection’s public holdings. No further legal or governmental actions are pending. Historians and scholars are expected to incorporate the document into future studies of Washington’s finances and the early republic’s land‑sale practices. The letter remains a key piece of evidence for understanding the financial pressures that influenced Washington’s decision to lead the Constitutional Convention and later the nation.
The find underscores the importance of primary documents in reconstructing historical figures’ personal circumstances. It also highlights how Washington’s cash‑poor condition, despite his wealth in land and enslaved labor, was a factor that influenced his political and economic decisions during a formative period in American history.
