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John Trumbull's 1780 painting George Washington
also depicts William Lee |
William "Billy" Lee (1750 – 1828), also known as
Will Lee, was
George Washington's personal servant and the only one of Washington's
slaves freed outright by Washington in his will. Because he served by Washington's side throughout the
American Revolutionary War and was sometimes depicted next to Washington in paintings, Lee was one of the most publicized
African Americans of his time.
Born circa 1750, Lee was purchased on May 3, 1768, when he was just a
teenager, by George Washington, as described in Washington's account
book as
Mulatto Will, from the estate of the late Colonel John Lee of
Westmoreland County, Virginia
for sixty-one pounds and fifteen shillings. William kept the surname
"Lee" from this previous owner. Also purchased at this time was
William's brother Frank, as well as two other slaves. Washington paid
high prices for William and Frank, as they were to be household slaves
rather than field laborers. William and Frank were often chosen to serve
as domestic servants, who were given responsibilities and privileges
most slaves never enjoyed.
[1] Frank became Washington's butler at
Mount Vernon, while William served in a variety of roles, including Washington's
valet or
manservant. As valet, Lee performed chores such as brushing Washington's long hair and tying it behind his head.
Washington was a frequent
fox hunter,
and Lee became his huntsman (the person in charge of the hounds), a
role that required expert horsemanship. In his memoirs, Washington's
step-grandson
George Washington Parke Custis described Lee during a hunt:
Will, the huntsman, better known in Revolutionary lore as Billy, rode a horse called Chinkling,
a surprising leaper, and made very much like its rider, low, but
sturdy, and of great bone and muscle. Will had but one order, which was
to keep with the hounds; and, mounted on Chinkling ... this
fearless horseman would rush, at full speed, through brake or tangled
wood, in a style at which modern huntsmen would stand aghast.[2]
Before the Revolutionary War, Lee often traveled with Washington to the
House of Burgesses in
Williamsburg, or on journeys such as a surveying expedition to the
Ohio Valley in 1770 and to the
First Continental Congress in
Philadelphia in 1774. Lee served at Washington's side throughout the eight years of the Revolutionary War, including the winter at
Valley Forge and at the
siege of Yorktown.
According to historian Fritz Hirschfeld, Lee "rode alongside Washington
in the thick of battle, ready to hand over to the general a spare horse
or his telescope or whatever else might be needed...."
[3]
Lee's wife was Margaret Thomas Lee, a free African American from
Philadelphia who had worked as a servant in Washington's headquarters
during the war. Although slave marriages were not recognized by Virginia
law, in 1784, at the couple's request, Washington tried to arrange
having Margaret move to Mount Vernon to live with her husband. Whether
or not she ever came to Mount Vernon is unknown.[4]
SOURCE: Wikepedia - Find Out More
