As the great-granddaughter of George Washington, Mary Lee spent her childhood at Arlington House, surrounded by the legacy of her famous ancestor. In her youth, she developed feelings for a distant relative and soldier, Robert E. Lee. Upon marriage she became a soldier's wife, yet she continued to stay as much as she could at Arlington House in order to protect it.  After the war began, Mrs. Lee and her daughters reluctantly left Arlington House. They began staying with friends and relatives until they joined Lee in Richmond in April 1862. After the end of the Civil War, Mrs. Lee followed Robert E. Lee to Lexington where he became President of Washington College.

About the presenter

Mary Lipsey spent twenty-nine years teaching seventh-grade American History at Lake Braddock Secondary School.  She is one of the directors of the Fairfax County Cemetery Preservation Association and previously served with the Fairfax County History Commission, the National Museum of American History, and the National Archives. She is the author of The ABCs of Flying; Almost Forgotten Women: Yesterday’s Headliners; Aviation: From Curiosity to Reality; and A Christmas Flight: Aviation Pioneer, Dr. William Christmas, as well as the co-author of Braddock’s True Gold: 20th-Century Life in the Heart of Fairfax County.

INVITE

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