Popes Creek

Popes Creek at dawn

NPS Photo

Quick Facts

Amenities

4 listed

Benches/Seating, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Scenic View/Photo Spot, Trailhead

"The homestead stood upon a green and gentle slope that fell away, at but a little distance, to the waters of the Potomac, and from it could be seen the broad reaches of the stream stretching wide to the Maryland shore beyond..." - President Woodrow Wilson

Long before the Europeans arrived, American Indians used the waters of Popes Creek and the Potomac River and the green and gentle landscapes that surrounded them.

American Indians fished for shad and herring, as well as hunted for a variety of game. For generations, local tribes harvested oysters from these waters, leaving piles of discarded shells known to archeologists as middens. Information learned through these shell middens gave archeologists a greater knowledge about the tribes that used these lands.

To a Colonial Virginian, land signified wealth. In 1718, Augustine Washington increased his grandfather's and father's property by obtaining 150 acres of slightly elevated and well-drained land suitable for farming on Popes Creek.

Over the next decade, enslaved Africans, indentured servants, and hired help cleared the land, planted tobacco, and built quarters and a house to establish the property.

In 1731, Augustine married Mary Ball who helped raise his three surviving children of his deceased first wife, Jane Butler. A year later on February 22, 1732, Augustine and Mary's first child, George, was born here.

To advance his status in Virginia's elite, Augustine expanded into new businesses, including owning a partial share of an iron foundry, and acquiring more acreage to expand his landholdings. This led the Washingtons to move upriver in 1735 to the Little Hunting Creek Plantation, better known today as Mount Vernon.

• Popes Creek Trail

  
  

  Discover how Native Americans and the Washingtons adapted to the area around Popes Creek.

  Date created:

  08/15/2025

  Audio Transcript

  "The homestead stood upon a green and gentle slope that fell away, at but a little distance, to the waters of the Potomac, and from it could be seen the broad reaches of the stream stretching wide to the Maryland shore beyond..." - President Woodrow Wilson
  
  Long before the Europeans arrived, American Indians used the waters of Popes Creek and the Potomac River and the green and gentle landscapes that surrounded them.
  
  American Indians fished for shad and herring, as well as hunted for a variety of game. For generations, local tribes harvested oysters from these waters, leaving piles of discarded shells known to archeologists as middens. Information learned through these shell middens gave archeologists a greater knowledge about the tribes that used these lands.
  
  To a Colonial Virginian, land signified wealth. In 1718, Augustine Washington increased his grandfather's and father's property by obtaining 150 acres of slightly elevated and well-drained land suitable for farming on Popes Creek.
  
  Over the next decade, enslaved Africans, indentured servants, and hired help cleared the land, planted tobacco, and built quarters and a house to establish the property.
  
  In 1731, Augustine married Mary Ball who helped raise his three surviving children of his deceased first wife, Jane Butler. A year later on February 22, 1732, Augustine and Mary's first child, George, was born here.
  
  To advance his status in Virginia's elite, Augustine expanded into new businesses, including owning a partial share of an iron foundry, and acquiring more acreage to expand his landholdings. This led the Washingtons to move upriver in 1735 to the Little Hunting Creek Plantation, better known today as Mount Vernon.