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Archive 1

Butler

"George Washington's great-great-great-grandfather, also named Lawrence, married Margaret Butler, and was a successful wooltrader."

"Mary Ball Washington (1708 – 1789) was the second wife to Augustine Washington (after the first wife, Jane Butler, died) and was also the mother of George Washington."

They made a journey of 1000s miles from home to America, and after generations their wives were still from the same family?

Maslo —Preceding unsigned comment added by 93.179.207.37 (talk) 21:03, 16 July 2009 (UTC)

yes

Death date

All of my sources say Mary died 25 August 1789. If it's the 26th, what's the source? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Bobjuch (talk • contribs) 22:09, 11 March 2011 (UTC)

Mary Ball's Family

Mary Ball's family is this same Ball Family of Colnel Ball. The same Colnel Ball that was the last officer to surrender to Cornwallace during the French-Indian War. Colonel Ball was giving all the land south of Washington D.C. All the way to the sea. Colonel Ball's family was the same Ball family that was lord of Birkshire England from 1400-1600. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.59.110.123 (talk) 02:12, 6 September 2012 (UTC)

Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just modified 4 external links on Mary Ball Washington. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:

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External Links - Wikisource - Wrong Target

Hello, the link in the WikiSource-Insert leads to "Martha Washington", George Washingston's wife, not his mother. Is it possible to fix that? --Maresa63 (talk) 07:09, 18 February 2016 (UTC)

The English, Albanians and everything in between

This individual was not Albanian, contrary to what this I.P. wants everyone to believe . The story that she was Albanian derives from an April Fool's Day joke from Kosovo . Case closed. 23 editor (talk) 22:25, 23 February 2014 (UTC)

Caption for "Garden" photo issues mentioned in edit summary

The caption does not seem to be incorrect to me. This is a 1927 glass photo-slide, manufactured by Edward Van Altena with the original photo being taken by photographer Frances Benjamin Johnston, and dates to 1927. Here is the image and here is the Library of Congress info page. The photo shows the path from the garden to the back of Mary Ball Washington's house in 1927, that's what the reliable source, the Library of Congress, is stating so that's what Wikipedia has to rely on. ScottNFred, what do you think the issue is? Shearonink (talk) 21:22, 20 February 2018 (UTC)

Per Mary Washington House the address of 1200 Charles Street in Fredericksburg is also correct. Shearonink (talk) 21:25, 20 February 2018 (UTC)


The issue is NOT the source (nor the photographer) or the address. The Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities (APVA) did "save" / buy the house in the 1890s. They owned it when Frances Benjamin Johnston took the photo. In the late 20th Century, APVA morphed (? ! ) into "Preservation Virginia" (no doubt after paying a consultant), but -- essentially -- the same owners.

In 2006, PVa divested itself of many of its statewide properties, including the MWHouse and 3 others in Fredericksburg. A newly-created, and viable, organization, the Washington Heritage Museums assumed ownership and management of the MWHouse and others sites.

My concern in the last phrase in the caption, ..."today part of --------". That should read "Washington Heritage Museums".

But, digital idiot that I am, ScottnFred (talk) 23:48, 20 February 2018 (UTC)I don't know how to edit a photo caption !

No worries, you're not an idiot at all - Wikipedia is a many-headed beast that is not easy to master. I can do the fixes for you. The issue is I'll need references/sources, since the Library of Congress (the source of the photo) states an outdated thing as true. If you could post here on this talk page a book (title, page #) or a reliable website (say, the official Mary Ball Washington House, or Washington Heritage Museum) or an article in a reliable newspaper (maybe the Washington Post or The Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star) that has the change, then I can update the caption. Then afterwards, I'll post on your talkpage how I did it so you can do it yourself next time. Shearonink (talk) 05:08, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
In the meantime I can adjust the caption a bit. Shearonink (talk) 05:14, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
OK, I went ahead and simply excised the info about who presently owns the house. If you are looking for some sources, there is an article about the house in Wikipedia - Mary Ball Washington House. Shearonink (talk) 05:27, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Thanks! I suggest using the Washington Heritage Museums (WHM) webpage. By the way, I monitor the "Mary Washington House" page and, at the request of the WHM, tired to clarify the ownership piece after the changeover from Preservation Virginia.

I understand and fully support the guideline of "correct citation". Probably need to learn more about that, as well. — Preceding unsigned comment added by ScottnFred (talk • contribs) 15:42, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Not an Albanian

There is an article supposedly written by a "John McCallum" for "Reuters" (Press Service) that alleges Mary Ball Washington was all or part Albanian. There are a couple of problems with this claim:

  • The supposed article by this McCallum is only found in other sources and I have been unable to find it in a reliable source - like, oh...I don't know...maybe Reuters??? - that unequivocally states in a verifiable fashion that Reuters is the actual source.
  • There is an "Institute" supposedly in a small town in Switzerland that is cited as the source of this expert knowledge. The town exists and this Institute exists but: not together. The town has less than 36,000 people in it and this Institute is in Basel, Switzerland, the third-most populous city in the country.
  • An alleged expert is quoted - a linguist, mind you - is quoted about genetics. This alleged person supposedly works (again, according to this spurious article) at another "Institute" at an American university. The Institute does exist but: I can find no record of this person actually working for the university. Ever. I can find no record of this person online other than when connected with the assertion GW was part Albanian.
  • I can find no proof, no evidence that this "John McCallum" was a newspaper-writer or a reporter who wrote for Reuters,

So. Can we just retire the notion that George Washington's mother was an Albanian or part-Albanian immigrant? Thank you. Shearonink (talk) 04:22, 2 August 2018 (UTC)

I've addressed this before. It's fake news, the kind of which the Balkans are regularly known to produce (e.g. Macedonia ). 23 editor (talk) 15:16, 2 August 2018 (UTC)
Yeah I saw that. This false tidbit just popped up in another edit yesterday, so I wanted to get it on-record on this talk page how completely baseless this assertion is...just in case folks say "Institute"! "University"! "Reuters"! (and even "linguist") lol - as if those words being used in a supposed/spurious/asserted reference can prove anything. Shearonink (talk) 15:53, 2 August 2018 (UTC)
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