Property of the Nation

Finalist: George Washington PrizeGeorge Washington was an affluent slave owner who believed that republicanism and social hierarchy were vital to the young countrys survival. And yet, he remains largely free of the elitist label affixed to his contemporaries, as Washington evolved in public memory during the nineteenth century into a man of the common people, the father of democracy. This memory, we learn in The Property of the Nation, was a deliberately constructed image, shaped and reshaped over time, generally in service of one cause or another. Matthew R. Costello traces this process through the story of Washingtons tomb, whose history and popularity reflect the building of a memory of Americas first presidentof, by, and for the American people.Washingtons resting place at his beloved Mount Vernon estate was at times as contested as his iconic image; and in Costellos telling, the many attempts to move the first presidents bodily remains offer greater insight to the issue of memory and hero worship in early America. While describing the efforts of politicians, business owners, artists, and storytellers to define, influence, and profit from the memory of Washington at Mount Vernon, this books main focus is the memory-making process that took place among American citizens. As public access to the tomb increased over time, more and more ordinary Americans were drawn to Mount Vernon, and their participation in this nationalistic ritual helped further democratize Washington in the popular imagination. Shifting our attention from official days of commemoration and publicly orchestrated events to spontaneous visits by citizens, Costellos book clearly demonstrates in compelling detail how the memory of George Washington slowly but surely became The Property of the Nation.