| (1732
- 1799) |
| Inducted: |
1975 |
| Region: |
MidAtlantic |
| Industry: |
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|
George Washington is best known as the commander in chief of the Continental army during the American Revolution and first president of the United States. These and other “firsts” have obscured the fact that George Washington was one of the first American business leaders. Washington understood the value of land and the deposits it contained. As a surveyor and farmer, he believed that land had the most “permanent value” of any asset. He made careful observations of crop yields and rotated between tobacco and plant alfalfa when the soil was depleted. After buying and selling land for years, he accumulated 64,000 acres. Washington was also dedicated to developing water routes to the interior parts of what was to become the U.S. |
