Washington's Unique Decision on Slavery

“Did you know George Washington was the only U.S. president who freed his slaves?”

At his plantation, Mount Vernon in Virginia, George Washington owned enslaved people

for most of his life. But what happened at the end of his story is what sets

him apart. In his final will, Washington ordered that every enslaved person he personally

owned be freed—after his wife Martha passed away. No other U.S. president ever made

that choice. He never freed them while alive, but over time, his views on slavery

changed. And with one final decision made at Mount Vernon, Washington became

the only U.S. president to free his slaves. History isn’t simple—but this moment still