Please recall George Washington Custis, GW's adopted son and the father in law of REL. J Southmayd In a message dated 7/22/2008 4:08:46 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [log in to unmask] writes: George was clearly not the "father of his country" nor were his Virginia cohorts. Paul Finkelman President William McKinley Distinguished Professor of Law and Public Policy Albany Law School 80 New Scotland Avenue Albany, New York 12208-3494 518-445-3386 [log in to unmask] >>> Jon Kukla <[log in to unmask]> 07/22/08 3:48 PM >>> In the closing pages of Brendan McConville's *The King's Three Faces*(Chapel Hill, 2006, pp. 314-5) the author attributes the substance of the following observation to John Murrin, of Princeton University: "The history of the early republic might have been a very different one had the Virginia oligarchy that initially dominated the presidency been as virile in the home as they were in public life. Unlike Adams, who lived to see his son president, Washington, Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe all lacked direct male heirs, and we might wonder at the world that would have emerged if it had been otherwise. -- Jon Kukla www.JonKukla.com ______________________________________ To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html ______________________________________ To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html **************Get fantasy football with free live scoring. Sign up for FanHouse Fantasy Football today. (http://www.fanhouse.com/fantasyaffair?ncid=aolspr00050000000020) ______________________________________ To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html