(Almost) Everywhere Washington Slept

In a 1999 Smithsonian Magazine article, Timothy Foote explained, driven by duty to present himself to the citizens of the shaky new union, young George Washington spent the night in so many inns and private houses that “George Washington Slept Here” became a real estate cliché, as well as the title of a clunky 1940 stage show and 1942 comedy film starring Jack Benny.

One wonders, if the phrase was so popular, if Professor Childermass and Johnny ever saw it on something during the course of their adventures throughout New England.  It would be nice to pretend Washington slept at ... oh, let's say the Fitzwilliam Inn in New Hampshire, the site of The Spell of the Sorcerer's Skull.  However, the inn opened in 1796 and the former president would die a mere 3 years later, so --

Anyway --

Fast-forward to a Feb. 14 Boston Globe article about where Washington slept in Newburyport.  The library of all place.

...the bookworms curling up with their Washingtonian tomes in the cozy reading room of the Newburyport Public Library have the rare opportunity to do more than just follow the life of our first president on the printed page. They can also follow in his immortal footsteps.

Long before the brick building on State Street became Newburyport’s library, it was a mansion owned by Nathaniel Tracy. On an October afternoon in 1789, the United States’ newly inaugurated president paraded into town to a soundtrack of beating drums, dismounted his white steed, and crossed the threshold of Tracy’s house, his accommodation for the night.

So, yes, the Newburyport Public Library can brag that “George Washington slept here.’’

While the number of New England houses where the father of our country supposedly snoozed may seem even more plentiful than Dunkin’ Donuts shops, there are actually few homes and inns still standing with documented proof that Washington slumbered inside, and only a handful are open to the public.