William Lee (c. 17501810), also known as Billy or Will Lee, was a slave and personal assistant of

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

. He was the only one of Washington's slaves who was freed immediately by Washington's will. Because he served by Washington's side throughout the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

and was sometimes depicted next to Washington in paintings, Lee was one of the most publicized

African-Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of enslav ...

of his time.

Early life

Born c. 1750, Lee was purchased on May 27, 1768, when he was just a teenager, by

, as described in Washington's account book as ''Mulatto Will'', from the estate of the late Colonel John Lee of

Westmoreland County, Virginia Westmoreland County is a county located in the Northern Neck of the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population sits at 18,477. Its county seat is Montross. History As originally established by the Virginia colony's ...

for sixty-one pounds and fifteen shillings. William kept the surname "Lee" from his previous owner. Also purchased at the 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 slaves. William and Frank were often chosen to serve as domestic servants. Frank became Washington's butler at

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...

, and William served in a variety of roles, including Washington's

valet A valet or varlet is a male servant who serves as personal attendant to his employer. In the Middle Ages and Ancien Régime, valet de chambre was a role for junior courtiers and specialists such as artists in a royal court, but the term "valet ...

manservant A domestic worker or domestic servant is a person who works within the scope of a residence. The term "domestic service" applies to the equivalent occupational category. In traditional English contexts, such a person was said to be "in service ...

. As the valet, Lee performed chores such as brushing Washington's long hair and tying it behind his head.

Huntsman

Washington was a frequent fox hunter, and Lee became his huntsman and was in charge of the hounds or dogs, a role that required expert horsemanship and blowing horn calls, or signals, on a hunting horn. In his memoirs, Washington's step-grandson,

George Washington Parke Custis George Washington Parke Custis (April 30, 1781 – October 10, 1857) was an American plantation owner, antiquarian, author, and playwright. His father John Parke Custis was the stepson of George Washington. He and his sister Eleanor grew u ...

, 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,'' a French horn at his back, throwing himself almost at length on the animal, with his spur in flank, this fearless horseman would rush, at full speed, through brake or tangled wood, in a style at which modern huntsmen would stand aghast.

The hunting horn aspect of William Lee's life and other Huntsmen of African and Creole descent are largely undocumented, however they are acknowledged as "exploited for the benefit of their indentures and enslavers."

Revolutionary War

Before the Revolutionary War, Lee often traveled with Washington to the

House of Burgesses The House of Burgesses was the elected representative element of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative body of the Colony of Virginia. With the creation of the House of Burgesses in 1642, the General Assembly, which had been establishe ...

in Williamsburg, or on journeys such as a surveying expedition to the

Ohio Valley The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

in 1770 and to the First Continental Congress in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

in 1774. Lee served at Washington's side throughout the eight years of the Revolutionary War, including the winter at

Valley Forge Valley Forge functioned as the third of eight winter encampments for the Continental Army's main body, commanded by General George Washington, during the American Revolutionary War. In September 1777, Congress fled Philadelphia to escape the ...

and at the

siege of Yorktown The Siege of Yorktown, also known as the Battle of Yorktown, the surrender at Yorktown, or the German battle (from the presence of Germans in all three armies), beginning on September 28, 1781, and ending on October 19, 1781, at Yorktown, Virgi ...

. According to the 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."Hirschfeld, ''George Washington and Slavery'', p. 111.

Later life

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. Slave marriages were not recognized by Virginian law, but 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. In 1785, Lee injured a knee on an expedition for Washington. Three years later, while he went to the post office in

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...

, he fell and injured his other knee, which rendered him seriously disabled. After Washington was elected president in 1789, Lee attempted to make the journey to New York City for Washington's first inauguration but had to be left in Philadelphia for medical treatment. He was attended by several physicians, who made a steel brace for his knee, which allowed him to join Washington's presidential household. Frank's nephew, Christopher Sheels, assisted Lee in New York City and took over Lee's duties in 1790 at the Philadelphia President's House. Even after Washington's 1797 retirement, Lee's disabilities prevented him from continuing his previous duties, and he spent the last years of his life as a

shoemaker Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or cobblers (also known as '' cordwainers''). In the 18th century, dozens or even hundreds of masters, journeymen ...

at Mount Vernon and struggled with

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...

. The

veterans who visited Mount Vernon often stopped to reminisce with Lee about the war. When Washington died in 1799, he freed Lee in his will and cited "his faithful services during the Revolutionary War." Lee was the only one of Washington's 124 slaves to be freed outright in his will. According to the terms of Washington's will, his remaining slaves were to be freed upon the death of his wife,

Martha Washington Martha Dandridge Custis Washington (June 21, 1731 — May 22, 1802) was the wife of George Washington, the first president of the United States. Although the title was not coined until after her death, Martha Washington served as the inaugural ...

. Lee was given a pension of thirty dollars a year for the rest of his life and the option to remain at Mount Vernon, which he chose; he was buried there.

Legacy

"If Billy Lee had been a white man," wrote the historian Fritz Hirschfeld, "he would have had an honored place in American history because of his close proximity to George Washington during the most exciting periods of his career. But because he was a black servant, a humble slave, he has been virtually ignored by both black and white historians and biographers."

Portrayals

*Lee is portrayed by

Ron Canada Ronald Ellis Canada (born May 3, 1949) is an American actor with a specialty in portraying judges and detectives. He is best known for '' One on One'' (2001–2004), ''The Shield'' (2003–2004), and '' Lone Star'' (1996). Career Following ...

in the 1984 CBS miniseries ''

''. *Lee is portrayed by Gentry White in the AMC series '' Turn: Washington's Spies'' (2014–2017). He is featured prominently in season-2 episode "Valley Forge." *Hainsley Lloyd Bennett portrays Lee in the 2020 miniseries ''

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

''.

Bibliography

*Hirschfeld, Fritz. ''George Washington and Slavery: A Documentary Portrayal''.

University of Missouri Press The University of Missouri Press is a university press operated by the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri and London, England; it was founded in 1958 primarily through the efforts of English professor William Peden. Many publications a ...

, 1997. *Wiencek, Henry. ''An Imperfect God: George Washington, His Slaves, and the Creation of America''. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2003.

Notes

References

External links

"William (Billy) Lee"
from the Mount Vernon Ladies Association website
"Colonel Washington and Me"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, William 1750 births 1828 deaths African Americans in the American Revolution People of Virginia in the American Revolution Mount Vernon slaves Virginia colonial people Burials at Mount Vernon