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Posted by Rick on March 21, 19100 at 23:31:57:
In Reply to: george washingtons height and weight posted by stan on March 20, 19100 at 12:52:36:
: how big was george? Short answer: 6 ft 2 1/2 inches, about 200 pounds. Long answer: Washington's height in his prime is generally given as Six Feet Two and one half inches. Stated height varies between "six feet" to "six feet three and a half inches". But 6 ft 2 and 1/2 inches is what the Mount Vernon Ladies' ociation uses to display the life bust made by French sculptor Jean Antoine Houdon. Houdon visited Mt. Vernon in 1785 and took precise measurements "from head to toe" along with the plaster life mask in order to create a life-size statue ordered by the Commonwealth of ia for the new State Captiol in Richmond [Source: "Treasures from Mount Vernon" exhibit booklet, by James C. Rees (1999)page 25. Rees is the current Resident Director at Mt. Vernon.] [But I don't know where you can get/read those exact measurements.] Six feet two and half is also cited by Harrison Clark in his 1995 GW bio "All Cloudless Glory" (vol. 1, page 33). Washington wrote his London tailor in 1763, ordering clothes, that he was "six feet tall", and he was measured at death in December 1799 by aide Tobias Lear (to get size for coffin) as "six feet three and a half inches." [Both the previous figures cited in footnote by James Flexner in "GW: The Forge of Experience" Volume 1 (1965) page 80.] In James Flexner's 4-volume GW bio (Vol. 1, page 41) Flexner quotes a letter from GW to Sally Cary Fairfax (date not given, likely circa 1750-56) GW described himself as "six feet high... and proportionally made; if anything rather slender than thick for a person of that height, with pretty long arms and thighs." [Flexner's citation is to the 1925-32 era Library of Congress collection "The Writings of GW" edited by John Fitzpatrick, Volume 2 pp. 395-96] GW's good Fredericksburg friend, George Mercer, gave a famous, lengthy description of GW in a 1760 letter as: "He may be described as being straight as an Indian, measuring six feet two inches in his stockings and weighing 175 pounds when he took his seat in the House of Burgesses in 1759. His frame is padded with well-developed muscles, indicating great stength. His bones and joints are large, as are his hands and feet. He is wide shouldered but has not a deep or wide chest; is neat waisted, but is broad across the hips and has rather long legs and arms. His head is well-shaped, though not large, but is gracefully poised on a superb neck. ... blue gray penetrating eyes... clear though rather colorless pale skin which burns with the sun... a commanding countenance... dark brown hair which he wears in a cue. His mouth is large and generally firmly closed, but which from time to time discloses some defective teeth. His features are regular and placid with all the muscles of his face under perfect control, though flexible and expressive of deep feeling when moved by emotions. ... His demeanor at all times is composed and dignified. His movements and gestures aer graceful, his walk majestic, and he is a splendid horseman." [I ume (?) Mercer's 1760 letter may be found on the Library of Congress website for "George Washington Papers". Mercer's description is quoted, in full, by both Freeman (Vol. 3, page 6) and Flexner (Vol.1, pp. 190-91)] Mercer's 1760 description was later captured perfectly by GW's first portrait, painted in 1772 (aged 40), by Charles Wilson Peale. Douglas Southall Freeman ("Young Washington" vol. 2, p. 383) described GW thusly, "His straight six feet of height were the frame for an admirably proportioned body, of which only his very large hands and feet were out of scale." Weight is a little more elusive since it would likely increase with age: the 175 pounds cited by Mercer at age 29, was likely a little over 200 during the Revolution. GW's Rev War uniform is on display (on a headless manequin)in Smithsonian's National Museum of American History, and appears as a tall, fit man, with long narrow legs. John Ferling "The First of Men:A Life of GW" (1988) p. 19 says, "At age 21 GW was fully grown, stood 6 ft 3 inches... he was broad-shouldered, with long muscular arms. His waist was small and flat, though he was rather wide across the hips. He tended to stand ramrod straight on long, solidly developed legs." Many GW friends commented on GW's large, strong arms and hands: Lafayette and other friends (Timothy Pickering) dscribed GW's hands as "the biggest they had ever seen on a man." We can only ume GW inherited his size and strength from his father, Augustine, who owned and operated iron mines in ia. There is no portrait of his father. According to the stories ped down by GW's step-grandson, George Washington Parke Custis, [father] Augustine could lift as much pig iron into a wagon as any two men combined. Also, Augustine's fowling gun was very heavy and few could handle it. Final note, I've never seen GW's shoe size referenced, but his boots look fairly normal to me: like maybe a size 10. Also, as a young man, GW's hair was auburn. He was proud of his nice full head of hair and never wore a wig, but would powder his hair for formal occasions. Now, what was the question again? Rick, 21 MAR 2000