How should we remember George Washington’s involvement in slavery? Americans have argued over that question for nearly 250 years. More than any other “Founding Father,” Washington’s ties to slavery have vexed us. He enslaved more people than any of his fellow Founders, yet he was the only one of them to emancipate the people he held in bondage. Since his death, Americans have grappled with this contradiction, shaping and re-shaping our collective memory of Washington and slavery—along with our understanding of the nation. In this talk, historian and writer John Garrison Marks will draw on his book Thy Will Be Done: George Washington’s Legacy of Slavery and the Fight for American Memory to tell the story of how politicians, abolitionists, educators, activists, Washington’s former slaves and their descendants, and others have remembered, forgotten, and manipulated slavery’s place in Washington’s story over the past 250 years. Marks’s work reveals how generational struggles over our collective memory of Washington and slavery have always been part of a bigger conversation about defining America and its people—and continue to shape the nation’s public discourse.
Link to the book: https://uncpress.org/9781469693521/thy-will-be-done/
John Garrison Marks is a historian and writer whose work has appeared in TIME, The Washington Post, and Smithsonian Magazine. Previously the author of Black Freedom in the Age of Slavery, he earned his Ph.D. from Rice University. He currently serves as Vice President of Research and Engagement with the American Association for State and Local History.
This lecture is presented by the Talbot Historical Society in partnership with the Talbot County Free Library and will take place at the Talbot County Free Library, 100 W. Dover Street, Easton, MD 21601. The lecture will be held on April 21, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. and is free and open to the public, though reservations are requested.
For questions or to make a reservation, call 410-822-0773 or email kaylaw@talbothistory.org.