At a time when public skepticism and distrust of government is at a historic high, The Great Experiment: George Washington and the American Republic provides an opportunity for adults and children to revisit the American Revolution and its indispensable leader, George Washington. The Great Experiment looks at the real George Washington - behind the myths that were created to strengthen his position as President and to secure the stability of a struggling republic.
Based on a major exhibition of original manuscripts, rare books, prints, engravings and artifacts from the collections of the Huntington and Pierpont Morgan Libraries, the Gilder Lehrman Institiute of American History and other institutions, The Great Experiment is a 1,000-square-foot 30-panel traveling exhibition. The exhibition will visit 40 libraries in the U.S. between September 2000 and October 2003.
"First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen," remarked Henry Lee in his famous funeral oration for George Washington. Marking the two-hundredth anniversary of his death, The Great Experiment: George Washington and the American Republic allows visitors to follow Washington's evolution from loyal British subject to revolutionary leader to the country's first president, exploring his personal history and the development of the persona that—even in his own lifetime—made him more monument than man. Focusing on key moments in Washington's life—such as his retirement as commander in chief of the American forces at the height of his power, unprecedented in 1793—The Great Experiment examines the genuinely revolutionary process that produced the first successful modern republican nation.
Approximately 100 manuscripts, letters, rare printed documents, objects, maps, and published writings—drawn primarily from the collections of the Morgan Library, the Gilder Lehrman Collection, on deposit at the Morgan Library, and the Huntington Library—are included. A family tree, handwritten letters, a first printing of the Declaration of Independence, Washington's autograph surveys of Virginia, a copy of the first official printing of the Constitution, signed by Benjamin Franklin, Cornwallis's letter and terms of surrender, and Jean-Antoine Houdon's life mask of Washington are among the highlights. These objects help recall not only Washington's greatness as a leader—meriting the accolades of his contemporaries—but also why he remains, even after two centuries, "first" in many ways.
