Vol. 9: Jan. 1772-Mar. 1774
5 May 1772 GW to Jonathan Boucher (from Mt. Vernon), pp. 40-41
pp. 40-41: "Mr. Ballendine's desire of laying before Govr Eden & the Gentlemen of Annapolis, a Scheme which he has been encouraged to adopt, of visiting the Duke of Bridgewaters Work, & other things of the kind in England, with a view of bringing himself better acquainted with the principles of that sort of knowledge, laid me under a kind of necessity of giving him a line to Govr Eden &ca (not that I would mean to recommend, either the Man, or his Measures further than they deserve) whilst I was doing this, it occurd to me . . . that you might possibly be there [Annapolis]; & therefore I recommended it to Mr Ballendine to shew you the Plan also; as he has met with pretty considerable incouragement on this side the Potomack, and has got Letters (as he says from Lord Dunmore to Mr Brinely, & other's, from whom he expects the Insight necessary to enable him to be instrumental in carrying into execution the present attempt of extending the Navigation of Potomack from Tidewater upwards, as far as Fort Cumberland(1)-At the sametime that I acknowledge that, Mr Ballendine has a natural genius to thing's of this sort, which if properly encouraged may tend much to publick utility, I cannot help adding, that, his Principles have been loose . . . I think if he applies the Money Subscribed, to the end proposed, the Publick will derive great advantages from it; on this acct is is, I have taken the liberty of mentioning of him to Govr Eden, Colo. Sharpe, Majr Jenifer and yourself; because, I think the opening of the Potomack will at once fix the Trade of the Western Country (at least till it may be conducted through the Mississippi, by New Orleans) through that Channel; and end, in amazing advantages to these two Colonies--"
pp. 41-42 Ed. Note 1: For a summary of GW's activities in the early 1770s to promote the opening of the upper Potomac to navigation, see source note in Thomas Johnson to GW, 18 June 1770. GW had recently secured the passage by the Va. assembly of an act for creating a company to achieve this purpose, but he was shortly to learn from Thomas Johnson, on 10 May 1772, that the Md. legislature was unlikely to follow Va's example. Ballendine's (who had recently been released after being jailed for debts) plan was to view the canals of the duke of Bridgewater who "has been called the founder of British inland navigations" (DNB, 6:570). Ballendine returned from England in the summer of 1774, and in the fall of 1774 GW became the trustee of a company organized to carry out Ballendine's plan for the opening of the Potomac to navigation at the lower falls (see Annap. Md. Gaz., 8 Sept. 1774). See also Thomas Johnson to GW, 24 Jan. 1775, n.1.
10 May 1772 Thomas Johnson to GW (from Annapolis), pp. 43-44
pp. 43-44: "Mr Ballendine has been here two or three Days but Mr Mason has not yet come I fear our Governor is still under an Impression that a Concurrence by our Assembly in a Scheme with yours for clearing Potowmack may weaken the proprietary Claim of Jurisdiction over that River and consequently that he is not at Liberty to assent to such Bill tho' I believe in his own Judgment clearing the River is an Object which deserves immediate Attention and that he wishes to see it effected. If the Governr should be under such Impression and should not write Home to be set more at large or should write unsuccessfully as the delay that might be thereby occasioned would at all Events be highly prejudicial I would submit to your Consideration whether it might not be prudent that a strong Representation should be sent to England, to be made use of in Case it should be necessary to procure an Intimation from thence that a Bill ought to pass here . . . I cannot apprehend there would be the least Difficulty in obtaining an Order for the passage of a Bill in which the Trade and Subjects are so much interested though it might possibly collatterally affect the proprietors Claim of Jurisdiction."
20 Feb. 1774 GW to Thomas Johnson, p. 489
Letter not found. Johnson wrote GW on 21 Feb: "A Servant just now delivered me your Letter of Yesterday."
21 Feb. 1774 Thomas Johnson, Jr., to GW, pp. 491-93
pp. 492-93 : "I have particular pleasure in your Approbation of our Grant of £3000 for the Western Roads-the [Commrs] are left very much at large. indeed we were not well enough acquainted with the Circumstances of the Country to be very precise in directing the Expenditure of the Money. . . I made a shew of pushing for a further Sum for improving the River with a View to secure more certainly the £3000 for the Road for some people look on any Thing less given than requested a so much saved we had a smart struggle for the 3000£ but I have not been idle since[.] I have been endeavouring and I hope with Success to impress my Ideas of the Advantages and practicability of Water Carriage we are to have a Session about the 20th of next Month and I now expect we shall then do something effectual-I am determined never to cease tiezing till some thing is done-As soon as the Bill passed I took my Measures to give an Impression in the Back Country that the laying out the money on the Road was left much in the Discretion of the [Comrs] who would govern themselves much by the Spirit and Exertion of the Back people I have the pleasure to understand it has so far answered my Expectation that 4 or 500£ is already subscribed to be laid out in assisting with the Road I wish there may be a Surplus not that I think any saving in £3000 is of much Consequence to the Province but if any Thing is saved I think thee will be no Difficulty in getting the Application changed to the River-If I was less interested in Carriage from above and an easy Communication with the Back Country I dare say I should be better attended to but being fully satisfied on the general Advantage of cheap and easy Carriage through Potowmack it would be a false Delicacy not to attempt a public Good for fear of Suspicion of my being actuated solely by private Interest.(2)"
p. 493: Ed. Note 2: In December 1773 the Md. legislature passed "An Act for emitting Bills of Credit and applying Part thereof," which included appropriation of money for the "cutting clearing amending and putting in good Order a Waggon Road from Fort Cumberland to the nearest Battoc [sic] navigable Water on the Western side of the Allegany Mountain" (Md. Archives, 64:xxv, 24-53). The supervisors entrusted with the spending of the money were Johnson, Henry Griffith, Charles Beatty, Thomas Sprigg Wootton, Joseph Sprigg, Thoms Price, and Jonathan Hagar (ibid., 252-53).