By Grace Griggs
The document I chose to annotate is an excerpt from “Circular Letter to the States” which was written by George Washington in June of 1783. It was written as he was stepping down as a military leader. The letter was sent to the executives of each state and was also published in newspapers throughout the country so that the populace could read it as well.
Washington’s Circular to the States as published in newspapers all across the states.
I was initially drawn to this document because it so closely parallels Washington’s farewell address. Just like Washington gave his advice for the success of the nation as he stepped down from the presidency, he also wrote out his advice to the nation as he stepped down from command of the Continental Army. I thought it would be interesting to see how his advice was followed or not followed during the next few years.
The most important research for this document is figuring out in what ways Washington’s suggestions were implemented throughout his presidency and, in some cases, his reasons behind those choices. I’ve been approaching this by searching “George Washington” and whatever general issue each of his points pertains to. For instance, his first advice is on the importance of uniting the states under a federal head. So I started my search by looking into Washington’s relation to federalism and the federalists.
My main challenge thus far has been trying to interpret Washington’s language. While it’s not impossible to understand, it does take some time to work out the exact meaning of what he is saying. Similarly, it is not always obvious which parts warrant an annotation. Some sentences are essentially nice-sounding filler with no clear reference that needs to be explained or expanded on. And additional problem I’ve been having is finding peer-reviewed sources. Hopefully the visit from a GT librarian will help me figure that out.