Methods and Instruments

Instead, he developed a system of note-taking, using loosely-bound, pocket-sized, blank books that could be easily carried and consulted when needed. All together, he produced almost 900 pages of notes from agricultural and historical works.

...if not prevented by company, I resolve, that as soon as the glimmering taper, supplies the place of the great luminary, I will retire to my writing Table and acknowledge the letters I have received

George Washington to James McHenry, May 29, 1797

Taking notes or writing a letter in the 18th-century required a precisely-cut quill pen, paper, ink, and some form of blotting material.

The inkstand with two ink wells may have been used by Washington. Washington typically made his ink from high-quality, prepackaged ink powder, a fact which contributed to his notes’ long-term legibility.

Washington often retired to his study to read and write after attending to work on his farms, on weekday evenings and on Sundays. There, a desk and two or three writing tables provided workstations for himself and the private secretaries he employed to assist in copying and arranging his correspondence and financial accounts. For illumination, they relied on the limited light coming through the windows in the south wall during the day, and candles and Argand oil lamps at night.

Stored in the bookcases lining the study, locked in trunks, and filed in his desk, the security of his notebooks and papers posed a constant source of concern to Washington. In 1797, he dreamed of building a structure "for the accommodation & security of my Military Civil & private Papers which are voluminous, and may be interesting." He never realized this goal, leaving it to future generations to collect and organize his papers and make them available to posterity.