Even those Americans ignorant of their country’s history will immediately recognize the name of George Washington.
Washington’s portrait has appeared on the one-dollar bill since 1869. Our nation’s capital and one of our states are named after him, as well as 31 towns, 263 townships, 31 counties, and five universities. At least two famous Americans—millionaire and builder of Asheville’s Biltmore Estate, George Washington Vanderbilt II; and agricultural scientist George Washington Carver—carried his name. He is the most prominent of the four American presidents on Mount Rushmore, and over 200 other statues and memorials around the country honor him. His Mount Vernon home averages one million visitors every year.
