George Washington's 1790 Grand Tour of Long Island

The story of the first American president’s journey through Brooklyn, Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk, based on his own diary.

After being elected president, George Washington set out to tour the new nation, which was desperate for a unifying symbol. He spent five days on Long Island in April 1790, an area recovering from seven years of devastating British occupation. Washington saw it all, from Brooklyn to Patchogue to Setauket and back. He was honored at each stop and wrote extensive diary entries about his impressions of the carriage stops for food and overnight stays at taverns and private homes, as well as his vision for the future of the region. In this book, historian Dr. Joanne S. Grasso traces this momentous journey.

Includes maps and illustrations